MFL

Intent

At Somerford Primary School, French is the chosen Modern Foreign Language (MFL), taught from Year 3 to Year 6. Our MFL curriculum is designed to give children a positive and enjoyable experience of language learning. We aim to provide a firm foundation of vocabulary, knowledge, and skills on which they can build as they transition to secondary school.

Our intent is to:

• Nurture an interest in learning languages through engaging and enjoyable experiences.
• Develop pupils’ speaking and listening skills, which will in turn support learning across the wider curriculum.
• Increase awareness of different grammatical structures and syntax within languages.
• Enhance pupils’ knowledge and understanding of another country and culture.

We aim to foster confidence in language learning by creating a safe yet aspirational environment, where mistakes are seen as part of the learning journey, and where pupils begin to see themselves as capable linguists.

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Implementation

We use a range of techniques to encourage active engagement with French, including games, role-play, action songs, and storytelling. Lessons focus on listening, responding, speaking, and developing simple writing skills.

MFL teaching at Somerford is inclusive and follows the ‘I do, We do. You do’ approach providing clear modelling, guided practice and independent application… A variety of resources—including flashcards, whiteboards and animations, —are used to support learning, ensuring that all children, including those with SEND, have the opportunity to succeed and enjoy language learning.

Through the Grammarsaurus programme of study vocabulary, knowledge, and key language structures are revisited and built upon, enabling secure long-term retention. The scheme’s progressive and repetitive design ensures that learning is embedded, providing pupils with the skills, curiosity, and enthusiasm to continue their language learning journey.

Impact

As children progress through our MFL curriculum at Somerford, they develop confidence, resilience, and strong oracy skills. They build on the vocabulary, knowledge, and skills required for successful language acquisition. Our chosen scheme provides progressive repetition, allowing key concepts to be revisited so that vocabulary, knowledge, and skills are embedded securely in long-term memory. These foundations are then transferable to other languages, wider curriculum subjects, and to life beyond school.

Assessment is primarily formative and based on careful observation of pupils’ participation in listening, speaking, reading, and writing activities. Research demonstrates that learning a second language enhances problem-solving, critical thinking, and listening skills, while also improving memory, concentration, and the ability to multitask. The impact of language learning at Somerford is therefore evident not only in pupils’ linguistic progress but also in their broader academic development and personal growth.