At Cambridge Primary School, we believe that every child has the right to experience high-quality immersion in a modern foreign language. The skills, knowledge and understanding gained through learning a language contribute to the development of children’s oracy and literacy and to their understanding of their own culture and those of others. MFL offers an exciting and unique gateway into another worldview, helping our children to foster lifelong, outward-looking attitudes and an escape from insularity. Children in Key Stage 2 are supported in making progress in French. We prepare children for the Key Stage 3 language curriculum by laying a solid linguistic foundation and developing an appreciation for the unknown.

We teach French across Key Stage 2. The school has developed a bespoke, spiral MFL curriculum that enables children to build upon their language skills and vocabulary. Phonics and grammar are embedded within each unit of learning, and further consolidated in the yearly ‘fundamentals’ units. The curriculum is designed so that content and skills are developed logically, allowing for clear progression of phonics knowledge, vocabulary acquisition, and the fundamental language skills: speaking, listening, reading, and writing.  

Our MFL teachers use a variety of the
following techniques to encourage children actively engage in MFL learning:

• Modelling – teachers model accurate
  pronunciation and expression in the target language.
• Games – to develop vocabulary and oracy.
• Interactive resources –to allow children to
  revisit and review their learning at their own pace.
• Songs and videos in the target language – to
  develop phonetic skills, listening skills, memory skills and to
  develop vocabulary.
• Reading and writing quality materials.
• We build children’s confidence through praise
  for any contribution they make in the foreign language.
• Use of Showbie to support speaking and
  listening activities through voice recording.

Class teachers may also use French
for classroom routines such as countdowns or displaying the date in English and
French.

Once a year we also celebrate a
trust-wide ‘International Day’ with a focus on linguistic, cultural and
religious diversity. 

By Year 6, children will feel well-equipped and confident to continue language learning in KS3 and beyond.