At The Willows, we are LINGUISTS!
Here at The Willows, we believe that learning a language provides a valuable educational, social and cultural experience for our pupils. It helps them to develop communication skills, including key skills in speaking, listening, reading and writing. The children’s knowledge of how language works will be developed and extended. Lessons will enable pupils to make progress in Spanish. The linguistic skills gained will assist and lay foundations for further language learning as they move to high school and beyond. It will provide pupils with the confidence and independence to explore and be able to attempt manipulation of the structure of language. Learning another language gives children a new and broader perspective on the world, encouraging them to understand their own cultures and those of others.
We begin our Spanish journey in Key Stage 2 where we learn all about greetings, introductions and feelings, along with some memorable songs to help us to learn the days of the week and the months of the year! In Year 3, we also learn our numbers and then excitedly follow a story to learn the names of foods and likes / dislikes.
Year 4 brings along family, pets and the Spanish alphabet. We also begin to learn about Spanish cities and their amenities, along with extending our knowledge of numbers to 100. This topic also provides us with opportunities to look at the Spanish dictionary. The final topic is excellent for our pupils who holiday in Spanish-speaking places as we learn essential ‘shopping’ phrases and about how to express our opinions.
We look at The Wider World during Year 5; this includes looking at where we live, continents and compass points – ready for our future adventures! We are also able to talk more about ourselves including our hobbies, future ambitions, activities and life at home. ‘My Routine’ equips us to tell the time and discuss our school timetable, before we move on to considering what we do during our free time and the seasons of the year. ‘Cabeza, hombros,rodillas y pies’ – or ‘Head, shoulders, knees and toes’ provides a fun opportunity to help us to remember Spanish words in a fun way!
During their final year as Willows pupil, the children are prepared for their Spanish holidays by looking at eating out in restaurants including names for different foods and their requests, along with sociable elements such as talking about their feelings and fashion. They will also reflect on their own world including family, pets, animals and home-life, before finally thinking about the way they look and how they feel about things in their lives – perfect for making new friends as they move to high school!
We hope to give our children passion and enthusiasm for learning Spanish. We encourage them to practise their Spanish at every opportunity including during registration, ordering lunches and through the catchy songs they love to sing. We hope that our Willows children leave us with the foundations to build those essential language skills that will give them the opportunities to spread their wings to explore the world, fulfil their dreams and discover what joys a second language can bring!