“If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart.”
- Nelson Mandela
Aims of the subject
The fundamental aim of our department is to ignite a life-long passion in our students for languages; not only to communicate linguistically with people around the world, but also to understand cultural differences in the increasingly accessible world in which we live. The experience of learning and using a foreign language makes a unique contribution to the curriculum by taking students out of an “English” environment and allowing them to explore other life-styles and cultures, as well as helping to develop an understanding of the linguistics of their own language.
Overview of KS3
Throughout Key Stage 3, students will
- Acquire knowledge and understanding of the target language, through the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing
- Develop grammar skills to create language independently
- Use meta-learning to build transferable skills such as resilience, resourcefulness and reciprocity
- Develop cultural awareness of the target language countries
- Be challenged at all levels of abilities through shape differentiated tasks and activities, including homework
- Be supported to achieve their very best, by teachers with expert subject and pedagogical knowledge
All students in Year 7 and 8 study Spanish during their five allocated hours per fortnight. In order to enable our students to become independent and creative linguists, we focus on the delivery of grammar from the outset, ensuring a depth of knowledge to enable students to embark on the path to mastery.
In Year 9, students have four hours per fortnight, where we focus on creating a solid foundation for those opting to continue with Spanish at GCSE. Students wishing to achieve the EBacc will require Spanish as an option subject.
During KS3, students will have the opportunity to participate in a trip to a tapas bar to sample some delicious Spanish dishes and we also have a link with a local primary school for students to do some outreach teaching with younger students.
SPANISH KS3
Books Used: Spanish Sentence Builders Trilogy, Viva 1 and 2
What will be studied in Year 7:
Autumn Term:
Topics: Greetings, age and birthdays, saying where I live, school, free time activities.
Grammar: Nouns, adjectives, the negative, connectives, intensifiers, the use of ‘Soler’
Spring Term:
Topics: Family, describing people, comparing appearance and personality, describing teachers
Grammar: Present tense verbs, possessive adjectives, the comparative, ‘desde hace’ (plus revision of grammar already seen).
Summer Term:
Topics: Daily routine and the school day, weekend plans, food and drink, holiday plans
Grammar: sequencers, irregular present tense, the immediate future, ‘para’ + the infinitive, future opinions and ‘Me gustaría’ (plus revision of grammar already seen).
What will be studied in Year 8:
Autumn Term:
Topics: Mi Familia y Mis Amigos Describing your family, describing hair and eye colour, saying what other people look like
Grammar: possessive adjectives, the present tense, comparative and superlative, adjectives, intensifiers, Ser, Tener, Estar, Me gustaría, Desde hace.
Spring term
Topics: Mi Ciudad Discussing where you live, telling the time, ordering food and drink in a café and saying what you are going to do at the weekend.
Grammar: Lo + adjective, ¡Qué + adjective, comparative/superlative, qualifiers/intensifiers, the preterite tense, Suelo + infinitive, Acabo de + infinitive, the near future, Se puede.
Summer Term:
Revision of Viva 1 topics followed by:
Topics: Todo sobre mi vida Saying what you use your mobile phone for, discussing the type of music and TV you like, saying what you did yesterday.
Grammar: Present tense (-ar/-er/-ir), Time markers/ frequency phrases, suelo + INF, comparisons/ superlatives, range of intensifiers, justified opinions, near future, the regular preterite and key irregular preterite verbs
What will be studied in Year 9:
Autumn Term:
Topics: Mis Vacaciones saying what you did on holiday, describing the last day, saying what your holiday was like. Talking about future holiday plans.
Grammar: The regular preterite tense, Ir in the preterite, ¡Qué + adjective!, Acabar de, Soler, comparative and superlative, near future, me gustaría, para + infinitive, the near future, Lo + adjective
Spring Term:
Topics: ¡A comer! Food, mealtimes, in the restaurant, shopping.
Grammar: Soler, future tense, past tense, comparative and superlative, Acabar de, Me gustaría, formal and informal address, Tener idiomatic expressions, Se puede, Querer, Lo + adjective
Summer Term:
Topics: Operación verano Describing holiday homes, saying what you can do in different towns, directions, summer camps, world trips
Grammar: past, present and future tenses, comparative and superlative, demonstrative pronouns, Me gustaría, Lo + adjective, Soler, Acabar de, the imperative, Desde hace
The year will end with a review of all topics covered throughout KS3.
SPANISH - GCSE
Students can choose Spanish at KS4 as part of their option choices, and it is one of the core subjects that form the Ebacc. At GCSE, students develop and, of course, add to language learnt in Key Stage 3, learning new grammar and vocabulary, extending their knowledge of both the Spanish language and the Hispanic countries. Students will be able to communicate in both formal and informal situations, across a wide range of topics. They will also explore important issues of interest to young adults.
Spanish
Viva Coursebook
Exam Board: Students follow the AQA GCSE course in Spanish. This is a linear course and will consist of the following components:
- Listening and understanding 25%
- Speaking 25%
- Reading and understanding 25%
- Writing 25%
All components will be assessed in the summer term of Year 11, under examination conditions. Candidates are entered at either Foundation or Higher level for all components according to their ability. During the two-year course, students study the following themes:
- Local, national, international and global areas of interest
- Identity and culture – mealtimes, illness, festivals, family, media and technology.
- Current and future study and employment
Further information from Mrs F Harrison