Head of MFL: Mrs Karine Law Revised: September This policy applies to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Infant and Junior school

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1 Policy for MFL Head of MFL: Mrs Karine Law Revised: September 2015 This policy applies to the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Infant and Junior school Document Purpose This policy reflects the values, ethos and philosophy of Manor Lodge School in relation to the teaching and learning of French and Spanish. It gives a framework within which all governors, staff and children work together and it gives guidance on planning, teaching and assessment. The MFL Policy is very much an ongoing, working document and as such it reflects both the practices that are carried out and those to which the school is striving. Opportunities are provided for all children and staff to share and develop ideas whilst respecting each other s views. Subject Aims Our aim is to enable children to develop their linguistic understanding and competence in French and Spanish and give them opportunities to: -become increasingly familiar with the sounds and written form of a new language. -develop linguistic skills, knowledge about language and language learning skills. -understand and communicate in a new language. -make comparisons between a foreign language and English or another language. -increase their cultural awareness by learning about different countries and their people and working with materials from those countries. -develop positive attitudes toward language learning. -use their knowledge with confidence and competence to understand what they hear and read and express themselves in speech and writing. Subject Objectives Early Years children should be able to: -show curiosity about a new language

2 -listen carefully looking at the person who is speaking to them -join in with physical responses when listening to songs and rhymes -attempt to reproduce new sounds -be aware of the country where the language is spoken -respond in English about a story, read partly or in the foreign language with visual clues Infant children should be able to -understand different social conventions -recognize links in the new language to something familiar -work happily in groups, pairs and independently -understand similarities and differences with the country where the language is spoken -begin to link listening and reading of single words -be familiar with key sounds -label a few single words with a picture for a wall display -present their written work to their peers/ read the words they labelled in the language. Junior children should be able to -manipulate the language by adapting/changing at least one element in a sentence to suit their own purpose and/or create more interesting sentences -predict the pronunciation of unfamiliar words -use a dictionary to gain independence in language use -extend sentences using simple connectives and other words from memory -reading aloud with accuracy and confidence -take familiar language and use it in a new context -listen to longer passages to extract key information -understand patterns and exceptions -initiate and maintain a conversation using familiar language -take their learning beyond the classroom

3 Curriculum and School Organisation The teaching of Languages at Manor Lodge School is approached in a flexible way throughout the school within Early Years, Infants, Juniors and within year group. French is timetabled as a subject lesson throughout the school and is taught by a specialist teacher. A variety of materials, including interactive software with many activities are used in lessons from Reception to Year 6. A selection of books (in French and in English) in the Library is also used mainly for stories and to prompt discussions for Early Years and Infants. Nursery classes are taught in small groups of short sessions, through songs and games, using interactive software, story books, puppets, mascots and toys. Lessons incorporate similar topics to the Nursery termly themes when possible and frequent revision and consolidation. Infant children have the opportunity to perform in the foreign language to their parents when French Breakfasts are organized. A junior class presents an assembly to the school in the foreign language and Year 5 celebrate their language learning with an annual Language Day with activities in French and Spanish. The Head of Languages File is kept in the Language room and on Adminshare. The teaching of French and Spanish, although concentrating on developing the pupils ability to comprehend and communicate in the language itself (both spoken and written) is not restricted to an exclusively linguistic content. Pupils also learn about the varied social and cultural aspects of life in Francophone and Hispanic countries, as well as studying some of their main geographical features thus developing their intercultural understanding through their enhanced awareness of foreign countries and their people. All pupils are therefore encouraged to discuss their traveling experiences and understanding of the French and/or Spanish culture in lessons and bring objects/photographs they wish to share and to have displayed in the Language classroom. Class Organisation and Teaching Style At Manor Lodge School the MFL teacher is responsible for her own class organisation and teaching style in relation to French and Spanish from Early Years to Juniors, while at the same time ensuring that these complement and reflect the overall aims and philosophy of the school. The methodology adopted for the teaching of MFL focuses primarily on the spoken word, but also builds steadily towards the incorporation of all four key skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. Children are given the opportunity to work as a class, as individuals and as part of a group. The choice of class organisation will be determined by the learning task or activity, the nature of the topic being studied and the resources being used. Each topic suggests a range of approaches to teaching and learning which combines teacher led sessions, use of games and activities often requiring a physical response,opportunities

4 for children to apply their learning on their own or/and with others with varying degrees of support or extension. Languages provide opportunities for teaching the following cross-curricular themes: Intercultural understanding. Geographical, historical and social understanding. Languages also provide opportunities for teaching the importance of the following crosscurricular skills: Communication/Performing Oracy and Literacy Numeracy Work cooperatively and collaboratively with others. Demonstrate initiative Develop awareness of the need to listen to others contributions. Develop their self-confidence Develop positive attitudes to language diversity Resources and Accommodation A variety of resources is located in the Language classroom. These include various Smartboard and Internet resources. These are in the target language and therefore used exclusively in Language lessons. All games, visual aids and all other resources are located in the Language room. There is a large selection of English books about France and Spain, and their culture in the library, available for children (mainly Juniors) to borrow. The Head of MFL is responsible for maintaining French and Spanish resources, monitoring their use, and ordering new resources. Resources are replaced and purchased as and when necessary. The purchase of resources is planned each year by the Head of French, based on the French budget for that year. Evaluation and Assessment French can be assessed in a variety of ways: Observation of a child or group of children when on task

5 Written work in files Discussion with children about their task Gifted and Talented pupils who show above average linguistic abilities are identified each year. The MFL teacher sets weekly extension questions and/or tasks during lessons. Less able pupils are given individual support verbally and adapted resources. End of topic assessments are set as and when appropriate These assessments: Inform future planning Provide information about individuals or groups, for report grades and consultation evenings in the Autumn and Spring Terms, as well as the full annual report to parents in the Summer Term. These assessments are carried out throughout both Infants and Juniors and are the responsibility of the Head of MFL. Evaluation is carried out in order to enhance the teaching and learning of languages within our school. The timescale involved in the evaluation may differ from year to year but is most likely to be on an annual basis. It includes a regular evaluation of the content of the French and Spanish Curriculum. Evaluation may take place by means of a number of methods including: The assessment of pupils work and their achievements Changes of curriculum/expectations at KS3 Classroom observations External inspection and advice. Throughout the year the Head of Languages regularly reviews information regarding the curriculum. This may include comments as to how a particular topic is progressing and the work that children are undertaking, comments upon the availability and suitability of resources and any other relevant comments about the overall structure of the future MFL curriculum.