KS3 Languages - French

Junior School French introduces students to many aspects of France, the French language, and the French speaking world. Through a variety of activities students are encouraged to develop the four basic skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing within the context of situationally based French. Students are asked, from the very beginning, to communicate in French in the lessons and much of the oral work is done in pairs or small groups, which helps students to build confidence in their own communicative skills. We use 'Route Nationale' 1, 2 and 4 and a wealth of other resources.
The main topic areas which are covered in the first three years are the following:

• Year 7 Meeting people and introducing oneself; describing home and family; personal information and expressing likes and dislikes; asking for directions and finding one's way; telling time; food and meal times; free time and leisure activities.
  
  
• Year 8 Travelling and means of transport; staying with a French family; school life; changing and spending money; illness and visiting a doctor; cafés and restaurants; camping in France; radio and television; holiday plans.
  
  
• Year 9 Personal details; daily routine; food; description of character; family relationships; health; the future; region and climate; where you live; school life; careers and future plans; reading newspapers and magazines; making telephone calls and sending letters.
  
  

The topics overlap somewhat in the first three years of learning French, but this is natural in language learning, because communication becomes necessarily more sophisticated as students' knowledge of the language grows. Grammar is introduced and practised regularly within each of the topic areas covered. By the end of Year 9 students will have a good working knowledge of the following grammatical areas: the Present, Perfect, Imperfect and Future tenses; negatives; direct and indirect object pronouns; relative pronouns, adjectives and verbs; comparatives and superlatives; possessives; interrogatives; prepositions; and a variety of irregular verbs.

Students are expected to learn vocabulary on a regular basis as knowledge of vocabulary is one of the essential elements in any foreign language. Homework is set when appropriate to reinforce what is learned in class or to give students practice in acquiring the structures necessary for effective communication. Throughout the first three years of French, students are introduced to reading for pleasure in French through a series of graded readers and French language magazines designed for learners of French. Students also have a chance to do project work on France and to see a variety of language videos on France and the French speaking world, both of which are designed to reinforce and supplement the topics and structures covered generally in lessons. Students will use computers: in Years 7 and 8 they will do interactive programmes based on units in the textbook and use the internet for project work in Year 9.

By the time the students reach the end of year 9 they should have a very good general knowledge of the language, the people and the culture of France and the French speaking world, providing a solid foundation for those who will continue their studies of French up to a GCSE standard in Years 10 and 11.