MFL at John Spence
The MFL Department at JSCHS aims to provide students with a stimulating environment in which to learn a language.
Over the course of KS3 students will study a variety of everyday topics to help them cope with life in France.
These include:
- Personal Identification
- Leisure
- Ordering Food and Drink
- Asking for Directions
Students in KS3 receive 4 x 1 hour lessons per fortnight (although those with Special Needs may receive less to accommodate support in core subjects). Students are taught in mixed ability classes in Year 7 and in Sets according to ability in Years 8 and 9.
Students in KS4 receive 5 x 1 hour lessons per fortnight. At KS4 students study the AQA syllabus for GCSE. Listening, Speaking, Reading and Coursework each account for 25% of the final grade at GCSE.
Themes include:
- My World
- Holiday and Travel
- Work and Lifestyle
- Young Person in Society
As a Department we are keen to encourage extra curricular cultural experiences to further enrich language learning.
VISITS ABROAD
Educational visits are a fantastic opportunity for children to build on their schoolwork / interests in an exciting, interesting and informative way. Educational travel companies often have a wealth of experience in organising successful educational visits, and are committed to providing safe, educational and enjoyable trips that also offer real value-for-money. The knowledge and expertise they provide ensures that each group has an individually tailored trip to meet their needs. Our visits always prove to be a valuable and enjoyable experience
MFL VISITS TO FRANCE
The MFL Department organises annual visits to France in either the summer term or at Christmas. The groups normally stay in Paris or Normandy and have the opportunity to visit Christmas markets, the Eiffel Tower and Stade de France. They also spend a day at Disneyland and Parc Astérix and take a boat trip along the river Seine.
MFL VISIT TO SPAIN 2012
The duration of the visit will be 7 days and 6 nights and will commence on Saturday the 14th July and return on Friday the 20th July 2012.
The itinerary affords us the opportunity to travel by coach to Northern Catalonia and visit the cultural areas of Northern Spain such as Girona and Figueres where we will visit the Salvador Dali museum, Barcelona city where we will visit it’s famous cathedral and the Castle of Montjuic which is accessed by cable car. There will also be a tour of the Nou Camp Stadium. Students will take part in a visit to Cambrils museum and it’s underground caves. There will also be the opportunity to visit the attractive outdoor market in Salou. The itinerary also includes a full day excursion to PortAventura.
THE BIG CHALLENGE CLUB
The MFL Department is now a member of the Big Challenge Club which is the first pen pal club in Europe where both teachers and students can organize letter or email exchanges simply and safely. The best and most interesting way of learning a language is by practicing it in real contexts. A number of students have signed up and have already made contact with pupils across Europe. We aim to increase our links with schools in France and Spain and have already had requests for a pen pal exchange from schools in Normandy and Paris.
http://www.thebigchallengeclub.com/
MFL MERIT AWARDS
We have introduced a merit system this year to award those pupils who we feel have made a great effort and therefore improvement. A number of Year 8 pupils have already achieved 5 merits.
5 Merits
Letter Home. Award
10 Merits
Postcard Home. Pencil case full of goodies
15 Merits
Letter Home. Outstanding Effort Award
20 Merits
Certificate. Letter. Star Prize
LANGUAGE LEADERS
The Year 10 Language Leaders have taken part in a 6 hour teaching programme in local primary schools. Their aim was to teach French through the medium of sport. Both primary staff and pupils enjoyed the programme which gave John Spence students the chance to teach younger students both inside the classroom and through sporting activities based outside the normal classroom environment.
“the students built up a relationship with the children and made them enthusiastic about their tasks.” Preston Grange Primary
“the students worked well and delivered exciting lessons” Priory Primary School
WHY LEARN LANGUAGES?
- A language will also enhance your grammar skills and improve your knowledge in English.
- A language will enable you to travel
- 40 to 50% of English words come from French
- A language will increase your problem solving skills and improve your memory
- Many firms are now multinational so you will be able to compete successfully when looking for employment
- Learning a language encourages respect for others
- 60% of British Trade is with non-English speaking countries.
- British Business has the poorest language skills in Europe.
- In many other European countries a second language is introduced in primary school.
- France is the world’s major tourist destination (75 million tourists a year!)
- French is the most widely taught language after English.
- French is a major language of the business world.
- To secure the Ebacc qualification
- A language will make a difference in how you see the world and how the world sees you!!
MFL and Education Business Partnership Event
42 Year 9 students were selected to take part in a Modern Languages and Business event. The students who were selected to take part displayed a talent and an interest in language learning. The event was run by North Tyneside Business Partnership and involved business ambassadors from the local area who ran an interactive workshop on the importance of learning a language and the skills/knowledge the students could therefore acquire. We hope this will become an annual event at John Spence.
The MFL Department consists of:
- Mrs B Tose Head of Department
- Mrs R Ward
- Mrs S Wilkinson
