Spanish at Torrisholme School 

• In our school we teach a foreign language to all our KS2 children as part of our normal school curriculum.

• We believe that a learning a foreign language prepares pupils to participate in a rapidly changing world in which work and other activities are often carried out in languages other than English.

•  The choice of which language to teach is secondary to the lifelong language learning skills that the pupils will be encouraged to develop.

• Skills that they will be able access in the future will help them to learn new languages or to improve their competence in an existing language.

• Increased capability in the use of a foreign language promotes initiative, confidence and independent learning and encourages diversity within society.

Intent:

At Torrisholme our intent for our Spanish curriculum is:

• To foster an interest in learning other languages;
• To introduce young children to another language in a way that is enjoyable and fun;
• To make young children aware that language has a structure, and that the structure differs from one language to another;
• To help children develop their awareness of cultural differences in other countries;
• To develop their speaking and listening skills;
• To lay the foundations for future study.

Implementation:

• Spanish is the language that is taught in our school.
• The curriculum that is followed is based on the guidance given in the revised National Curriculum, using the Language Angels scheme of work as a basis to create our bespoke, personalised Spanish curriculum.
• Our Spanish curriculum has been crafted to provide clear progression throughout KS2 and is regularly reviewed to ensure it is challenging and engaging for the current cohort of children.
• When starting in KS2 every child receives a Spanish exercise book. These are used to record writing and reading, as well as enabling pupils to keep a vocabulary log which is for their use.
• Speaking and listening work lays the fundamental foundations of learning a language and is integral to every Spanish lesson. Children engage with a wide range of speaking and listening tasks which expose them to a variety of native speakers.

The children are taught to know and understand how to:

• Ask and answer questions;
• Use correct pronunciation and intonation;
• Memorise words;
• Interpret meaning;
• Understand basic grammar;
• Use dictionaries;
• Work in pairs and groups, and communicate in Spanish;
• Look at life in another culture.
• During Spanish lessons, children are given the opportunity to work as a class, as individuals and as part of a group.
• The choice of class organisation is determined by the learning task.
• By its nature, language learning will involve lots of interaction with visual, auditory and kinaesthetic prompts.

Inclusion

• All KS2 pupils shall have the opportunity to learn to speak a language.
• Most assessment is formative and is used to support teaching and learning and inform future planning.
• The teacher assesses the children's progress in the Spanish based on their achievement of the learning objectives in lessons.
• When written work is produced, it is marked in line with the school policy.

Impact:

The impact of our Spanish curriculum is carried out in the following ways:

• End of unit assessments which assess the children’s speaking, listening, reading  and writing skills
• Informal discussions with staff and pupils
• Pupil voice questionnaires
• Work sampling
• Learning walks

This policy is reviewed annually by the MFL subject leader. This policy is due for review in September 2024.