French

Starting in Year 3, all children have the opportunity to learn French at Weald Rise Primary School. Every week, children experience exciting lessons delivered by a French specialist teacher, learning the language in a range of different ways including singing songs, chanting rhymes and participating in role play.

In June 2019, a large group of Year 4 and Year 5 pupils travelled to France for the day to practise their speaking and listening skills as well as to experience French culture in reality. Travelling by the shuttle, they enjoyed visiting Boulogne Sur-Mer old town, seeing the largest sea life centre in Europe as well as shopping in the hypermarket near Calais.

Year 3

Autumn 1

Getting to know you

• Greet each other
• Exchange names
• Ask how someone is
• Count to 20
• Say how old you are
• j'ai- I have, il/elle est- it is
• Nursery Rhymes

Autumn 2

 At School

• Understand and follow classroom instructions
• Objects in pencil case
• Ask questions/ read written questions
• Christmas Rhymes
• Song: Sacre Charlemagne

Spring

 Animals and Colours

• Focus on gender articles (definite and indefinite)
• Focus on plurals and adjectives (position and basic agreement)
• Core vocabulary of 9 animal nouns and 6 colours
• Key verbs: il/elle est’ (he/she/it is), ‘ils sont’ (they are), il y a (there is/are)
• Song: Old MacDonald
• Story: Les quatre musiciens de Breme

Summer

 Food

• Retell the story of The Very Hungry Caterpillar in French
• Knowledge of vocabulary linked to numbers, days of the week, fruits and food
• Perform the story using either pictures or video.
• Story: La chenille qui fait des trous

 Year 4

Autumn 

 Birthdays

• Know the numbers up to 31
• Days of the week
• Months of the year
• Asking when it is your birthday and giving the date
• Vocabulary linked to birthdays
• Christmas vocabulary
• Know how the Epiphany is celebrated in France
• Song: Joyeux anniversaire/ Noel, joyeux noel/ Petit Papa Noel

Spring

 More about Me

• Shapes and prepositions of place linked to an art project focusing on the work of Matisse
• Learn the parts of the body and face 
• Describe themselves
• Artist: Matisse
• Song: Tete, epaules, genoux et pieds

 Summer

 Family Members and Pets

• Retell the story 'The Giant Turnip'.
• Learn how to say J'ai un/une...qui s'appelle... and apply this in the context of pets.
• Learn adjectives for describing personality and physical description (hair and eyes).
• Use key verbs in the 3rd person singular: 'a', 'est', 'ont', 'sont'
• Children create a family tree in French.

 Year 5

Autumn

 Getting to Know You

• Apply previous knowledge from Y3 and Y4
• Learn to express their emotions and talk about the future using two tenses
• Apply previous knowledge of topic areas such as clothes and the body
• Learn to describe their own appearance .
• Talk about their emotions and health, increasing conversational skills.
• Songs and stories about the body in French
• Role play: Visit to the doctor

Spring

Sports, hobbies and opinions

• Talk about different sports activities
• Practise using a dictionary to look up unknown words
• Describe sports using simple sentences e.g. je fais, c'est and il y a for their peers to guess
• Say which sports they like/ dislike using aimer + infinitive verb

Summer

 Different instruments

• Use dictionaries to look up different instruments.
• Use opinions in the context of different types of music and give reasons using 'parce que'
• Use the language they have learnt to create short raps or songs about food, sports or music.
• Pupils will perform the raps  or songs they have created.
• Artist: Chopin

Year 6

Autumn

 Review of greetings, numbers and where I live.

• Learn vocabulary for places in a town.
• Build sentences saying what there is 'il y a' and what there is not 'il n'y a pas de'
• Develop dictionary and memory skills
• Describing the weather
• Know words for seasons and climate 
• Study the French poem 'L'automne' and perform in small groups

Spring

 Revision and consolidation of essential KS2 language

• Learning how to ask for and give the time.
• Extend food and drink vocabulary.
• Learn how to say when mealtimes are  and what they usually have, comparing eating habits with people from other countries.
• Give opinions of different food and drink.
• Complete a food diary
• Song: Le facteur n'est pas passe

Summer

 Travel and Transport

• Extend use of 'er' irregular verbs in the present tense  (aller).
• Gain basic understanding of the geography of France, including the countries that border France.
• Say where they live and where they come from.
• Be aware of La Francophonie and why French is spoken in so many different countries.
• Write a critical review of a French film set in Africa, expressing opinions and using acquired adjectives.