SPANISH AT HOLY TRINITY
At Holy Trinity, we believe that learning another language is an important part of belonging in a multi-cultural society and will broaden the horizons of the children at our school. By the end of their time here, we want children at Holy Trinity to communicate in Spanish using the written, reading and oral skills learnt in their lessons here.
It is important that children learn how to communicate practically, in lessons that represent real-life situations so that children can use the language both in and out of school. At Holy Trinity, we adhere to the National Curriculum guidance which states that all pupils: -
- understand and respond to spoken and written language from a variety of authentic sources - speak with increasing confidence, fluency and spontaneity, finding ways of communicating what they want to say, including through discussion and asking questions, and continually improving the accuracy of their pronunciation and intonation
- can write at varying length, for different purposes and audiences, using the variety of grammatical structures that they have learnt - discover and develop an appreciation of a range of writing in the language studied
At Holy Trinity, we teach our children the Spanish language. Spanish is in the top 5 of the most spoken languages in the world and we are proud to be able to offer our children this language as part of our curriculum. Because Spanish is widely spoken, teaching our children Spanish will help them in the future, whether they travel abroad on holiday, study abroad, or use the language at work.
Through an ‘explosion of experiences’, our youngest linguists are exposed to the foundations of their language learning. Carefully planned language and cultural knowledge, skills and experiences are provided for our children. High quality books, stories and rhymes are the beating heart of our MFL curriculum in EYFS. Spanish vocabulary is planned for. The foundations of Spanish learning in EYFS is linked to Year 1 and beyond.
Year 1 to Year 6
Year on year, children will build upon their Spanish knowledge, skills and vocabulary. The MFL subject leader and Spanish teacher have created a meaningful, sequential learning journey through Spanish language and culture. Careful curriculum thinking and planning ensures that our children have the subject knowledge and components embedded in their long-term memories.
In addition, many local secondary schools teach Spanish from Year 7. We believe that giving the children at Holy Trinity a firm foundation in the Spanish language will help them at secondary school and beyond.
Our Curriculum
The objectives for MFL are clearly set out in the National Curriculum:
Pupils should be taught about:
- listen attentively to spoken language and show understanding by joining in and responding
- explore the patterns and sounds of language through songs and rhymes and link the spelling, sound and meaning of words
- engage in conversations; ask and answer questions; express opinions and respond to those of others; seek clarification and help*
- speak in sentences, using familiar vocabulary, phrases and basic language structures
- develop accurate pronunciation and intonation so that others understand when they are reading aloud or using familiar words and phrases*
- present ideas and information orally to a range of audiences*
- read carefully and show understanding of words, phrases and simple writing
- appreciate stories, songs, poems and rhymes in the language
- broaden their vocabulary and develop their ability to understand new words that are introduced into familiar written material, including through using a dictionary
- write phrases from memory, and adapt these to create new sentences, to express ideas clearly
- describe people, places, things and actions orally* and in writing
- understand basic grammar appropriate to the language being studied, including (where relevant): feminine, masculine and neuter forms and the conjugation of high-frequency verbs; key features and patterns of the language; how to apply these, for instance, to build sentences; and how these differ from or are similar to English.
MFL and SMSC
Spiritual: MFL supports Spiritual development by getting the pupils excited about learning about the world around them.
Moral: MFL supports Moral development by encouraging pupils to recognise the importance of learning a MFL from another country to enable them to respect how difficult it is when people visit Britain and try to speak a new language.
Social: MFL supports Social development by allowing children to work with a partner or as part of a group.
Cultural: MFL Supports Cultural development by encouraging children to appreciate the similarities and differences between Spain and Britain.
The contribution of MFL to teaching in other curriculum areas
English
The learning of a modern foreign language contributes to the development of our children’s listening and speaking skills. It also develops the children’s grasp of linguistic features such as rhyme, rhythm and emphasises the importance of knowing the role of different word types in sentence structure.
Mathematics
Children reinforce their time-telling skills by playing time-related games in the foreign language. We play number games, too, that reinforce their counting and calculation skills, expand their understanding of date, and increase their knowledge about money.
Personal, social and health education (PSHE)
One of the main benefits to the children of learning a modern foreign language at primary school level is a social one. It gives the children the opportunity to learn about cultures from a different country. Lessons also give children the opportunity to take part in paired/ group work.
Geography
We ask the children to do research on the different countries in which the Spanish language is spoken after they have first found them on a map or a globe. In MFL lessons children will learn the names of cities and towns in Spain and will also begin to describe the weather.
Computing
Videos, games and programmes are used on the interactive whiteboard support and engage children in their Spanish learning.
Enrichment
At Holy Trinity, we aim to provide children with opportunities and enrichment to support and inspire their MFL learning. Here are some of the opportunities and events the children have taken part in recently.
Spanish Day
Every year, we hold a Spanish day to promote Spanish/language learning throughout school. All of our pupils get the opportunity across school to complete a range of activities to support their language learning and give them an increasing understanding of the History, Geography and culture of Spain.
Spanish day 2025
We're all looking forward to a special day in school today celebrating Spanish day and really enjoying our Flamenco dance lessons with Senorita Lola! We will also be doing lots of fun activities in our Spanish lessons with Senorita Andrea too!
Y5 and Y6 Spain Residential trip.
Our wonderful children have a fantastic time visiting our sister school in Barcelona and meeting their penpals. We are so proud of them for how well they applied their learning when chatting with them!
Spanish
SPANISH INTENT, IMPLEMENTATION AND IMPACT STATEMENT
| Name | |
|---|---|
| Spanish-Progression-of-Skills-Knowledge.docx editbale ks2.docx | Download |
| Name | |
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| SPANISH Impact statement.docx | Download |
Want to practice your Spanish at home? Check out some of these websites:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/zxsvr82
https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/subjects/zhyb4wx
https://rockalingua.com/videos/colors-and-numbers
https://rockalingua.com/videos/chameleon-where-am-i
http://www.learningspanishwithjohanna.com/video-colors/
http://www.learningspanishwithjohanna.com/video-greeting/
http://www.learningspanishwithjohanna.com/video-numbers-10-20/
Want to challenge yourself? Want to revise some important words and phrase? Have a look at these online books and stories: