Children are introduced to the Spanish at the very start of their All Saints' journey in the Early Years, and it is taught consistently through to the end of Year 6. We have implemented an engaging curriculum, constructed to support the teaching and learning of Spanish. On visiting a Spanish lesson, you will see objectives set out in the National Curriculum being covered.

In line with our All Saints' Approach, children are engaged, build on their skills and are able to apply them through creating final pieces of work, such as conversations or written work, and are able to evaluate their outcomes effectively. Throughout each Key Stage, children will be showing that they can reinforce and build on skills previously learnt through songs, games, role-play and other spoken and written tasks.   

We use a variety of the following techniques to encourage active engagement with Spanish, including:

• Songs – to reinforce vocabulary, pronunciation and memory
• Games – to improve recall and understanding of vocabulary through repetition
• Role-play – to practise conversation for practical purposes
• Stories – to introduce or review vocabulary learnt and provide context
• Writing – to help to embed certain phrases and encourage learners to adapt those phrases
• Cultural topics – to deepen understanding of events or celebrations in Spanish-speaking cultures

In lessons, children have the opportunity to listen to native speakers, including the teacher of Spanish herself, as well as through recordings and videos. Children are introduced to familiar stories in Spanish so that they learn the skills needed to begin to read carefully and show understanding of words and phrases. Spanish lessons offer fun learning and allow a secure space for creativity and exploration. Lessons offer a safe space to speak and create conversations where mistakes are welcome and are part of our learning journey! Skills build progressively and focus upon grammatical understanding, learning basic grammar which is appropriate to the language.

Each topic has clear objectives in relation to the main vocabulary and phrases taught, there is a focus on recall and understanding of these, and they are assessed and evaluated by both the children and the teacher at the end of the topic. Children are aware of their own progress through regular opportunities for self-assessment and self-evaluation on what they have learnt.

During lessons, learning is assessed through brief conversations in Spanish, such as through a relevant question and appropriate response, or through a written response. General feedback on pronunciation or spoken responses may be given to the class, as well as more targeted verbal or written individual feedback throughout the lesson. Our Spanish specialist teacher, will use their assessment of spoken and written language to determine progress and be informed ready for the next steps or areas to review. Children are praised for any attempts in Spanish and are encouraged to support each other in pair or group tasks.

To learn another language develops resilience, confidence and respect for other cultures.

‘Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun.’ – Mary Lou Cook.