An overview of our Lingotot  curriculum at Great Missenden for Pre-School, Reception, KS1 and KS2

Intent

At Great Missenden Primary School, we are linguists! We take pride in our love for language learning, and the world’s rich diversity. 

We embrace the many possibilities that language learning opens for us, and we celebrate all languages spoken in our school. 

From the moment children step into our school in pre-school, to the moment they leave in Year 6 holding a Primary Languages Qualification, we proudly encourage a life-long love of language learning among our pupils. This broadens their view and understanding of the world, and  enhances their future prospects in our increasingly-globalised society.

Having access to learning Modern Foreign Languages from the earliest stages of education ensures that children in our school embrace the values that guide us, as follows:

Faith and Community: Languages enable children to take an interest in, and acquire the ability to communicate with God’s diverse world, embracing and truly appreciating the value of different cultures. Learning languages ensures that children recognise the need to be global citizens and to play our own individual part in being an integrated global community.

Love and Respect: Through languages, children learn to love communication with people of other places and cultures, and to appreciate their own - and others’ - sense of identity. We nurture the most essential human need of communication.

Truth and Courage: Learning languages, our pupils are empowered to seek others and break the barriers in communication, and embrace the differences that make us rich as a world.

In every MFL lesson, we use a variety of resources to ensure we offer a relevant, broad, vibrant, and ambitious curriculum that will inspire and excite our pupils using a wide range of topics and themes. All pupils are expected and assisted to achieve their full potential.  By encouraging high expectations and excellent standards in their foreign language learning,  we want them to be willing and able to continue learning languages well beyond Key Stage 2.

We implement our curriculum by fostering all four key language learning skills; listening, speaking, reading,and writing.  Grammar concepts are covered in an age-appropriate way across the primary phase. This will enable pupils to use and apply their learning in a variety of contexts, laying down solid foundations for future language learning and also helping the children improve overall attainment in other subject areas. 

In addition, the children are taught how to look up and research language they are unsure of and they will have a bank of reference materials to help them with their spoken and written tasks going forward. Our carefully-designed workbooks and online games help them to consolidate their knowledge in a fun and engaging way.

Our ambition is that all pupils develop a genuine interest and positive curiosity about foreign languages, finding them enjoyable and stimulating. Learning other languages will also offer pupils the opportunity to explore relationships between language and identity, develop a deeper understanding of other cultures and the world around them with a better awareness of self, others, and cultural differences. The intention is that they will be working towards becoming life-long language learners.

What does Language Learning look like at Great Missenden School?

Great Missenden works in partnership with national language learning leaders, Lingotot. A Lingotot language specialist is on site three full days per week to teach the entire school. Their curriculum and method deliver fun, fully-interactive sessions, and progressive results.

In partnership with Lingotot, we offer our children a Primary Languages Qualification at the end of primary school. This is a unique opportunity for our pupils who take onwards with them a fully accredited qualification in languages granted by NCFE, an OfQual regulated awarding body.

Three levels of award are available which have been benchmarked against Entry Level 1, Entry Level 2 and Entry Level 3.

The Lingotot Course consists of 12 units, which are reviewed and adapted each year to match the school’s overall curriculum. 

To be eligible for an award, learners should complete a minimum of four different units, however it is recommended that learners complete 6 units. Learners complete internal assessments which are recorded in their portfolio for Speaking, Listening, Reading and Writing.

Our provision ensures that:

• Every child receives a 1 hour dedicated Languages lesson each week delivered by a specialist Languages teacher from year 3 upwards.
• KS 1 study some languages through songs, stories and dance.
• Years 3, 4, 5 and 6 study French for one hour per week delivered by a specialist Languages teacher.
• Lessons are themed around the school’s overall curriculum, which enhances the learning experience, by delivering consistency. 
• The skills acquired in language lessons during Key Stages 1 and 2 can be transferred and will prepare students for a variety of languages they are likely to encounter at secondary level.

Do you speak another language (confidently) ? Do you have family from another country?

If so, I would like to invite you to do a 10-minute presentation to your class during one of the Languages lessons during the next 2 weeks. We want to celebrate and promote the rich linguistic diversity at our school and encourage lifelong language learning . I am really looking forward to being a student and learning from you all.

All those who participate will receive a certificate. If you have any questions, please contact Madame Garcia at: mfl@gmglt.co.uk