French

French at Coates Way
Intent
Our intent for the teaching of French in primary school is to provide children with a valuable educational, social and cultural experience. We believe that learning a foreign language lays the foundations for future language learning and helps pupils to develop confidence in communication beyond their first language. Through engaging and meaningful language lessons, we aim to nurture a genuine interest in and positive curiosity about foreign languages and cultures.
Implementation
Our French curriculum is carefully planned to develop pupils’ confidence and competence across the four key language learning skills: listening, speaking, reading and writing. From Years 3 to 6, children are taught French once a week, in a progressive and engaging way, with lessons building on prior knowledge and revisiting key vocabulary and language structures to support long-term learning.
Pupils are introduced to essential grammar and phonics in an age-appropriate manner, enabling them to develop accurate pronunciation, understand language patterns and apply their learning independently. Through songs, games, stories, conversations and written activities, children are encouraged to communicate with increasing confidence and fluency.
The curriculum is designed to provide meaningful opportunities for pupils to hear, speak, read and write French regularly, while also developing an understanding of French culture and traditions. By Upper Key Stage 2, pupils can use and manipulate language more independently and express their ideas using familiar vocabulary and grammatical structures.
In Year 6, pupils culminate their learning journey in French with a weekend residential visit to France during the summer term. This enriching experience provides children with an authentic opportunity to practise their language skills in real-life contexts, deepen their cultural understanding and build confidence in communicating with native speakers. The visit helps to bring language learning to life and creates lasting memories that inspire continued interest in languages beyond primary school.
Impact
The impact of our French curriculum is that children develop a secure foundation in language learning and leave primary school with increased confidence and enthusiasm for learning languages. Pupils will be able to recognise and recall new vocabulary, understand simple spoken French and respond appropriately using familiar language and phrases.
Through progressive teaching of grammar, phonics and sentence structure, children will be able to build and write sentences that are grammatically correct, while developing accurate pronunciation and spelling. They will become increasingly confident in speaking a new language and are willing to participate in conversations, songs, role-play and other spoken activities.
Pupils will also gain a broader understanding of French culture and develop a greater comprehension of what life might be like in another country.