Modern Foreign Languages

Welcome to the Modern Foreign Language Department

The MFL Department's goals are to give students the opportunity to:

become confident speakers who can use the target MFL language spontaneously to converse inside and outside the classroom
develop good pronunciation and intonation by applying the phonics system to correct and predict the pronunciation of new words
develop their ability to understand the spoken and written target language across a range of authentic materials (including literary texts), topics and registers
develop their awareness about grammar and language patterns so they can speak, write and translate appropriately, creatively and with increasing accuracy.
acquire transferable language learning and literacy skills
widen their cultural knowledge of the world in which the language is spoken
take up a language at KS4 and KS5

Languages taught are French and Spanish which are randomly allocated in Year 7. Spanish was introduced in Year 7 in September 2011 and is now available throughout KS3 and KS4.

Throughout KS3 and KS4, we use a variety of tasks to introduce, practise and memorise vocabulary, grammatical rules and verb conjugation endings, in as many ways as possible to ensure coverage of the programmes of study and a balance of the four skills - reading writing/translating, listening and speaking. We make full use of online resources and interactive vocabulary learning websites.

Key Stage 3

Click here for the Department of Education programmes of study for Languages programmes at KS3 and KS4.

Key stage 3 French topics:

Year 7 French

Term	Unit of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will be able to understand and use French in the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Introductions	Phonics & Pronunciation practice; Introduction to France and French speaking countries and culture; Classroom talk; Sentence building; basic connectives; Using cognates to decode meaning ; Alphabet; Greetings and introducing yourself;; Numbers to 31, Months, Days, Dates, French ; Memorising vocabulary and Independent Learning.
Autumn Term 2	My world	Expressing likes and dislikes and basic opinions; Describing self, family and others; Describing a photo: a typical classroom; Leisure activities; Christmas celebrations.
Spring Term 1	Life at school	Learning the time; school subjects; school uniform, describing the school day; schools in France; my ideal school.
Spring Term 2	Free time	French speaking countries; the weather; leisure activities; sports; use of technology.
Summer Term 1	Family life	European countries; Pets; Colours; Numbers to 100; Describing family members.
Summer Term 2	Family life	Describing where you live; Adjectives; Having breakfast; Bastille day celebrations.

Year 8 French

Term	Unit of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will be able to understand and use French in the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Famille et domicile (Family and home life)	Describing yourself and your family (physical and character description) including pets. Describing where you live, your house/home.
Autumn Term 2	Ma région	Describing your local area, describing your town and what you can do there, your region and tourist attractions and your country. Also shopping in town and at the French café.
Spring Term 1	On va à Paris	Using the near future tense to plan a trip and to say what you are going to do in Paris, Looking at the famous monuments and landmarks in Paris.
Spring Term 2	Les vacances désastreuses	Using the past tense (passé compose to talk about what you did on holiday. Describing a disastrous holiday as well as an extraordinary trip.
Summer Term 1	Les fêtes et les festivals	Talking and researching different holidays, celebrations and festivals in France and across the French-Speaking world. Learning about food and specialities.
Summer Term 2	Mes passe-temps	Talking about hobbies and pastimes, the digital world and the cinema.

Year 9 French

Term	Unit of Work	Summary
Autumn Term 1	Les loisirs et le cinéma	Talking about what you watch on TV, going to the cinema, different types of films, describing your favourite film and your favourite actors. Talking about film Festivals. using the present and near future tenses.
Autumn Term 2	Les loisirs et le shopping	Talking about music, Francophone musicians and songs. Building listening and speaking skills through song. Understanding and using the past tense appropriately. Talking about what you did last weekend in town. Preparing for a special occasion with your shopping.
Spring Term 1	Le sport en direct et être en bonne santé	Learning about sports and sports events. Talking about illnesses, describing symptoms and what’s wrong. Discussing food, health and fitness and healthy and unhealthy lifestyles. Talking about how to improve your health Talking about ailments and injuries. Visits to the doctors and role plays.
Spring Term 2	A quoi sert la technologie?	The role of technology and social media today. Advantages and disadvantages of technology. Looking at bloggers and vloggers. Deciding if young people could live without their mobile phones and the impact of cyber bullying.
Summer Term 1	L’argent du poche	Young people and work (part-time) earning money. Future plans and what they are going to do after school. Talking about your ideal job. (near future tense and conditional tense).
Summer Term 2	La mode	Learning about clothes, clothes shopping, problems concerning the fashion industry and health. Designing clothes and researching French fashion designers.

Key stage 3 Spanish topics:

Year 7 Spanish

Term	Unit of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will be able to understand and use Spanish in the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Introductions	Phonics & Pronunciation practice; Introduction to Spain and Spanish speaking countries and culture; Classroom talk; Sentence building; basic connectives; Using cognates to decode meaning ; Alphabet; Greetings and introducing yourself;; Numbers to 31, Months, Days, Dates, Memorising vocabulary and Independent Learning.
Autumn Term 2	My preferences	Colours and basic opinions; Extending sentences using connectives and conjunctions; Classroom equipment; Describing a photo; The Spanish-speaking world; Christmas celebrations.
Spring Term 1	My world	Counting to 100; Pets; describing family members; physical and personality descriptions; Adjectives.
Spring Term 2	My free time	Talking about hobbies; sports; music; the weather; famous Spanish-speaking musicians and sports stars; infinitive verbs; using the present tense.
Summer Term 1	Where I live	Describing the area where you live; using ser and estar; type of accommodation; my bedroom; using prepositions of place.
Summer Term 2	Where I live	Describing your ideal home; House chores; project work on the Canary Islands.

Year 8 Spanish

Term	Unit of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will be able to understand and use Spanish in the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Donde Vivo yo	Describing the area where you live, your house, rooms in the house, your dream house (using the conditional tense) Explaining what you do to help out at home/household chores.
Autumn Term 2	¿Adónde vas?	Talking about places in town and what you usually do there. Talking about what you are going to do in the near future. Making and reacting to invitations using excuses. Giving directions.
Spring Term 1	El fin de semana	Discussing what you are going to do at the weekend using the near future tense. Discussing rural and urban environments and discussing how things may have changed in the towns (using the imperfect tense).
Spring Term 2	Al colegio (1)	Talking about school, school subjects, detailed opinions about subjects, telling the time and describing the school routine and timetable.
Summer Term 1	Al colegio (2)	Describing the school environment. Talking about extra-curricular activities.
Summer Term 2	La comida	Giving opinions on food and drink, ordering food in a restaurant. Special occasions and festival foods.

Year 9 Spanish

Term	Unit of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will be able to understand and use Spanish in the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	La comida	Giving opinions on food and drink, ordering food in a restaurant. Special occasions and festival foods. Being able to describe dishes in detail.
Autumn Term 2	Mi dieta sana	What makes a healthy diet. Improving your diet and fitness. Illness and parts of the body and being able to tell the doctor what is wrong with you. Discussing health problems and concerns.
Spring Term 1	Las vacaciones (1)	Talking about transport and holiday travel, activities that you do on holiday, cultural information on Peru and Puerto Rico. Describing holidays and opinions describing a past holiday using the preterit tense. Studying the Amazon.
Spring Term 2	Las vacaciones (2)	Talking about future holidays, learning about Guatemala.
Summer Term 1	Generación digital	Learning about the internet and social media. Looking at television in the Hispanic world. Studying films at the cinema and at home.
Summer Term 2	La música	Describing musical tastes and genres.

Key stage four

Our current Year 10 and Year 11 MFL cohorts are entered:

for the WJEC Eduqas GCSE (9-1) examination in French, Click here for the Eduqas GCSE (9-1) French specifications
and the AQA GCSE (9-1) examination in Spanish. Click here for the AQA GCSE (9-1) Spanish specifications:

All the four MFL GCSE (9-1) examinations take place at the end of Year 11 and must ALL be at the SAME tier of entry either Foundation or Higher:

Speaking examination, 25% of the qualification - 60 marks
Listening examination, 25% of the qualification - 45 marks
Reading examination, 25% of the qualification - 60 marks
Writing examination, 25% of the qualification - 60 marks

Year 10 French topics:

Term	Unit(s) of Work	Summary: by the end of this unit students will have developed their knowledge and understanding of the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Identity and Culture Youth Culture Grammatical skills Exam skills	Self and Relationship Adjectives and intensifiers, the near future tense, the future and conditional tenses Speaking and writing exam practice
Autumn Term 2	Identity and culture Youth Culture Grammatical skills Exam skills	Technology and Social Media Listening and reading practice
Spring Term 1	Local, National, International and Global areas of interest Home and Locality Grammatical skills Exam skills	Local Areas of Interest Transport Revision of Present, Imperfect, Perfect and Near future tenses Speaking and Writing exam practice
Spring Term 2	Current and future study and employment Current Study Grammar consolidation Exam skills	School/College Life School/College Studies Speaking and Exam practice Reading and Listening Assessments
Summer Term 1	Identity and culture Lifestyle Grammar consolidation Exam skills	Health and Fitness Entertainment and Leisure Speaking and Exam practice
Summer Term 2	Identity and culture Entertainment and Leisure Grammar consolidation Exam skills	Cinema, music, reading, television and going out Writing and speaking practice

Year 10 Spanish Topics:

Term	Unit(s) of Work	Summary - By the end of this unit students will have developed their knowledge and understanding of the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Local, National, International and Global areas of interests Holidays and tourism	Local and Regional Features and Characteristics Holidays and Tourism Holiday preferences; the weather; activities; adjectives; infinitive verbs; the present tense; Talking about past holidays, the past tense.
Autumn Term 2	Current and future study and employment	Applying for jobs, earning money; work experience; plans for the future.
Spring Term 1	Identity and culture – Family life & leisure activities	Talking about family life and socialising; Describing people; Talking about family life and socialising; Describing people. Describing relationships; using ser and estar
Spring Term 2	Identity and culture	TV; film; sports; leisure activities; role-model; Using the present continuous
Summer Term 1	Local, National, International and Global areas of interest	Healthy life style
Summer Term 2	Identity and culture	Revision for the end of year examinations

Year 11 French topics:

Term	Unit(s) of Work	Summary - By the end of this unit students will have developed their knowledge and understanding of the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Holidays and Tourism	Booking rooms in a hotel/accommodation Problems at a hotel/resort using imperfect Ideal holiday using conditional Speaking and writing exam practice
Autumn Term 2	Food and Drink Festival and Celebrations	Regional food Restaurants and menus Expressions of quantities Music/Food/cultural celebrations Comparatives and superlatives Preparation for PPE exams
Spring Term 1	Work experience and part time jobs Applying for work/study Career plans, skills and personal qualities	Advantages and disadvantages Past tenses revision Opinions/Adjectives Post-16 study, CVs, projects, studying abroad Career plans /advantages/disadvantages Demonstrative pronouns – matching employers to employees/recruiting Exam practice
Spring Term 2	The environment Social Issues	Problems and Solutions Recycling Nuclear energy, renewable energies World problems The homeless Immigration Refugees Speaking and writing practice
Summer Term 1		Revision and exam practice.

Year 11 Spanish topics:

Term	Unit(s) of Work	Summary - By the end of this unit students will have developed their knowledge and understanding of the following topics:
Autumn Term 1	Current and future study and employment	Applying for jobs, earning money; work experience; plans for the future.
Autumn Term 2	Identity and Culture Family life, Relationships & leisure activities	Learning vocabulary and conjugation. Talking about family life and socialising; Describing people; leisure activities; reading; new technology; using the present continuous; Describing relationships; using ser and estar. TV; film; sports; leisure activities; role-model. Revision for PPE exams.
Spring Term 1	Local, National, International and Global areas of interest	Preparing for the speaking exam. The environment; Health; Global issues and local actions.
Spring Term 2	Local, National, International and Global areas of interest	Preparing for the speaking exam. Town, city, region, shopping. Daily routine, typical meals, food, music, festivals.
Summer Term 1	Revision	Intensive listening, reading, writing practice and vocab revision.