Modern Foreign Languages (MFL)

‘You live a new life for every language you speak. If you only know one language, you only live once.’ Czech proverb

As part of a wider global community, we want our pupils to develop an understanding of a language other than the one of the country they live in. At Saltdean Primary School, we aim to celebrate all spoken languages within our community. We believe learning a new language promotes not only student´s curiosity about other cultures and identities but also about their own. Understanding and respecting other cultures is a key part of a multicultural school, such as Saltdean Primary.

Children interviewed about the importance of learning and speaking other languages could link the significance of this world opening skill to their school value of ‘Belonging’. We believe strongly in the importance of pupils feeling understood as well as being able to understand others, through all of the many ways that we communicate and the use of language as a tool to be understood.

During our ‘Celebration of Languages Day,’ children learn and appreciate other cultures and languages through a variety of experiences that take place across the school. Each class displays evidence around their rooms of the languages that are spoken at home. We also display the languages within our school, and link the children in our school to their spoken languages, as well as locating where these languages are widely spoken around the world.

We have chosen French as our modern foreign language, and this is taught from Year 3 to Year 6. These lessons are taught in a fun, interactive way using, games, music, creativity and challenges to engage pupils.

In Key Stage 1 we aim to build communication and literacy skills that will help our students to better understand their own language as well as gaining the basic linguistic knowledge to fully progress learning a foreign language throughout their schooling.

As they begin learning French in KS2, it is very much about having the confidence to speak and build vocabulary. The children listen to stories; sing songs; play games; act out role play and progress to write in French. They learn more about the grammar and culture of French speaking nations.

As they progress through the school, children develop their linguistic skills in:

· Listening

· Speaking

· Reading

· Writing

· Grammar

· Inter Cultural Understanding

saltdean languages overview 2024.pdf