Spanish

At St. Mary’s RC Primary School, we want every child to be happy and enthusiastic learners of Spanish, and to be eager to achieve their very best in order to fulfil their God-given talents. We firmly believe that the recipe for success is high quality first-wave teaching in Spanish, which is central to the life of our happy, caring school.

We believe that the learning of a language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for our pupils. It helps them to develop communication skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing, with an aim of making substantial progress in one language. In addition, children’s knowledge of how language works will be developed to lay the foundations for further language learning in future. We believe that learning another language gives children a new and broader perspective on the world, encouraging them to understand their own cultures and those of others, which feeds into our whole school ethos.

Intent – What we are trying to achieve

Our principal aim is that children leave St. Mary’s RC Primary school with a wide range of happy and rich memories in Spanish formed through interesting and exciting experiences driven through opportunities that enhance a child’s awareness of their own abilities and strengths as a learner, thus ensuring that children see learning a foreign language as an ongoing process and not a one-off event.

Children will meet the National Curriculum expectations in Spanish, which will be taught by highly-qualified staff who will support children to develop the mastery of concepts and inspire enthusiasm and interest in the subject.

All Key Stage Two children will study Spanish for 1 hour every week.

Opportunities will exist for children of all ages to experience learning beyond the classroom. This will allow them to enrich their knowledge by, for example, creative workshop days at our feeder high schools or visitors to school who may read stories in the language or share their experiences of living in Spain.

Children will develop a deep understanding of the subjects they are studying. They will increasingly use their prior knowledge to solve problems and develop the sophistication of Spanish.

Children will understand how Catholic virtues and British Values relate to Spanish.

In Spanish, children will develop the skills to appropriately understand, speak, read, write and transcribe phrases, as well as use and manipulate a variety of key grammatical structures.

Characteristics of a Linguist

The confidence to speak with good intonation and pronunciation.

Fluency in reading.

Fluency and imagination in writing.

A strong awareness of the culture of the countries where the language is spoken.

A passion for languages and a commitment to the subject.

The ability to use language creatively and spontaneously.

An independence in their studies and the ability to draw upon a wide range of resources

Scheme of Learning

Implementation – How do we translate our vision into practice?

The curriculum hours in Spanish are non-negotiable and will be followed by all staff in the school. Fixed timetables will be set before the academic year and monitored by the Senior Leadership Team of the school.

Where necessary, staff will receive training in Spanish.

Carefully designed schemes of learning in Spanish ensure consistency and progress of all learners.

Enrichment opportunities include: Spanish speakers, trips to drama productions, innovative use of technology to name but a few.

Success criteria in every Spanish lesson are set in order to guide children to achieve their potential. This ensures work is demanding and matches the aims of the curriculum.

High quality input from experts and educational resources complement the delivery of specialist learning admirably. Children understand how Spanish is used in the wider world including careers.

Actively promoting aspirations for the future. Children develop an understanding of how subjects and specific skills are linked to future jobs.

Here are some of the jobs you could aspire to do in the future as a Linguist:

Attractions manager
Teachers in other countries
Chefs
Hotel managers
Leisure and tourism
International law

Cultural Capital

Children will learn about key figures from Spanish history such as Hernando Cortes, Pablo Picasso, Queen Isabella, Salvador Dali, among others.

They will also experience the following during Key Stage 2:

Meeting and talking to native speakers
Email communication with Spanish children
Video conferencing with a Spanish school
Spanish publications (such as newspapers) and books
Listening to Spanish radio
Listening to Spanish music
Watching Spanish television programmes and/or films
Eating Spanish food
Gain an understanding from a business leader regarding the importance of learning a language

Impact – What is the impact of our curriculum on the students?

Children are happy, feel cared for, and have excellent relationships with others. They know how to deal with challenges and have a range of strategies to overcome them.

Through Spanish, children deepen their appreciation of their faith and fulfil their God-given talents

Cultural capital opportunities have enriched the lives of the children and they are able to discuss how the experience impacted their knowledge and understanding.

Children of all abilities and backgrounds achieve well in Spanish, reflected in outstanding progress that reveals a clear learning journey. Children talk enthusiastically about their learning in Spanish and are eager to further their learning in the next stages of their education.

There is a proven track record of outstanding outcomes as shown in pupils’ ability in Spanish in the areas of oracy, literacy, intercultural understanding and their knowledge about the language. Their books and views reveal their enjoyment of the subject. These indicators reflect the impact of deep learning.

Clear outcomes focus and guide Spanish development plans and drive improvement.

Fundamental British Values are evident in the school and understood by all members of the community.

Through wider reading and experiences in Spanish, children will gain an appreciation and understanding of the country and some of its historical links to other parts of the world and historical events.