Foreign Languages

Primary Foreign Languages is a foundation subject in the National Curriculum and is taught in KS2 classes. At St Mary's our focus language is Spanish.

We strive to bring Spanish to life; and to relate it to the life experiences of the pupils in our school, through a cross-curricular, lively approach. We use games and songs in order to develop and orally rehearse vocabulary and we use lots of practical opportunities to embed what the children have learnt in a fun and memorable way. The nature of language learning necessitates the constant repetition of voacbulary, over time, with the introduction of some new themes each year. This is due to the non-linear nature of foreign language acquisition.

KS2 Classes have fortnightly Spanish lessons and we have a whole-school Spanish Day each year. On this day, children wear red and yellow clothing to match the colours of the national flag and teachers ensure their lessons are all linked to Spanish - whether it be creating mosaics in the style of Antoni Gaudi, immersing themselves in Spanish culture through flamenco dancing or food sampling. 

Below are some photographs from our most recent Spanish day, have a look at what each class did:

Reception Class:

Our Reception class learnt how to say hola and counted in Spanish from 1-5. They also created some wonderful Spanish flags.

Year 1:

Our Year 1 class learnt about the famous style of dancing in Spain, flamenco. Some of the Reception children showed them their beautiful flamenco dresses. They also ordered the days of the week in maths. 

Year 2:

Our Year 2 class learnt the days of the week in Spanish and ordered them in maths. They also learnt how to count from 1-10 in Spanish and played a hockey game based on these numbers.

Year 3:

Our Year 3 class read La Oruga Muy Hambrienta (The Very Hungry Caterpillar) and then completed some activities based on what the caterpillar had eaten. They also learnt about the life of Antoni Gaudi during guided reading.

Year 4:

Our Year 4 class labelled different parts of their body in Spanish and then tied this into their maths learning to measure parts of their body in cm. They also listened to some Spanish music and described what they liked about it.

Year 5:

Our Year 5 class learnt about Antoni Gaudi and his famous architecture in Barcelona and created their own salamanders inspired by his mosaics. They also had an 'El Classico' football tournament.

Year 6:

Our Year 6 class were studying the volume of a cuboid. Using their knowledge of colours in Spanish, they had to ask for a specific colour from their friends to build their cuboid with. They also learnt about Pablo Picasso and his famous painting 'The Weeping Woman' before creating their own artwork inspired by this.

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