French at Langold Dyscarr Community School:

 

“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language that goes to his heart.” Nelson Mandela

 

“Learning a foreign language is a liberation from insularity and provides an opening to other cultures. A high-quality languages education should foster pupils’ curiosity and deepen their understanding of the world.” National Curriculum 2013

 

At Langold Dyscarr Community School French is taught as a subject in KS2. Foundation and KS1 incorporate different aspects of French and other languages through cultural activities throughout the school year.

We use Euro Stars New Primary French to deliver the French lessons. This is an interactive whiteboard programme which aims to motivate and stimulate a curiosity for a foreign language and its culture. The National Curriculum objectives for Foreign Languages are reflected in the course and aim to: “ …enable pupils to understand and communicate ideas, facts and feelings in speech and writing, focused on familiar and routine matters, using their knowledge of phonology, grammatical structures and vocabulary.” National Curriculum 2013. The objectives cover listening, speaking, reading, writing and grammar skills.

As well as teaching French in KS2, the whole school celebrates European Day of Languages (26^th September). On this day we all experience different European and world languages and cultures through language and cultural activities, such as: singing and poetry; dance; art and craft activities; sporting activities; food tasting and cooking. The activities provide a window into other cultures and help the children to reflect on other languages and customs and hopefully ‘deepen their understanding of the world’. As well as our European Day of Languages, we hold an annual and very popular French Boules Championship, which is open to all children and is a whole school activity.