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French

Modern Foreign Languages are core subjects at Coopers’ which means that every pupil studies a foreign language up to GCSE. French, German and Spanish are taught from Year 7 to Year 13, i.e. complete beginners to near enough fluency at Advanced level.

We have diversified our languages curriculum so that all languages are taught equally and no language is given greater weight than the others. In Year 7 two or three forms study each language. In Year 8 all pupils start a second foreign language with which they continue to the end of Year 9 and we play through the permutations of first and second language combinations. Pupils may choose their first or second language for GCSE or may continue with both languages.

Modern Foreign Languages are mostly taught in our own block, the Prisca Coborn block, with 6 classrooms of which one is a computer room which also serves as a language laboratory. Every classroom has an interactive whiteboard and a projector so ICT can be used whenever needed.

English is currently the international lingua franca but when communicating with people in their own language you gain a different perspective. Modern Languages make any student more marketable, both in terms of higher education and employment. France, our closest neighbour on mainland Europe and the 3rd largest economy in the EU, is important both in terms of culture and as the 2nd lingua franca of Europe. French is one of the most asked for languages in surveys among employers.

Key Stage 3

Course description

Our KS3 course is partly based on the Dynamo textbooks by Pearson and is accessible to learners of a range of abilities promoting a good level of proficiency in the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

What will you study?

Year 1

You will cover these topics:

Introducing yourself, school, spare time and family.

You will learn these structures:

French pronunciation, verb endings in the present tense, gender, adjectives and adjectival agreement, near future, opinions and how to ask questions.

Year 2

You will cover these topics:

Holidays, festivals and food, online activities/TV/films.

You will consolidate the grammar you covered

in the 1st year and also learn these structures:

Past tense (passé composé and imparfait), near future, opinions, connectives, reflexive verbs, vouloir (to want) and on peut (one can).

Year 3

You will cover these topics:

After-school activities, describing your friends, celebrations, jobs, future plans, healthy living and environmental issues.

You will consolidate all the grammar you covered in Years 1 and 2 and become more confident using it. You will also learn these structures:

Using all 3 tenses, modal verbs, pour + infinitive, simple future, comparatives and conditional.

To be successful in this subject students will need to be good at and enjoy:

  • Learning about other cultures
  • Reflecting on your own learning and adapt strategies
  • Communicating in a foreign language
  • Spotting patterns and regularities

Progression routes & career opportunities

All Modern Languages on offer combine readily with virtually all subjects available within the sixth form.  In the past, language students have pursued a wide and eclectic range of complementary subjects.  Suffice it to say, it is extremely rare to find a selection of disciplines that would not be beneficially augmented by knowledge of a foreign language.

Homework/extended learning

  • Additional reading and listening
  • Vocabulary acquisition
  • Grammar revision
  • Writing
  • Web-based interactive exercises supporting all 4 skills

Additional information

Pupils learning French as their first foreign language will be invited to go on a study trip at the end of year 8 which, in past years, included visiting Paris and Disneyland.

Curriculum description French KS3 for pupils Curriculum description French KS3 for pupils
Curriculum map French KS3 Dynamo Curriculum map French KS3 Dynamo
Key Stage 4 (GCSE)

Course description

We follow the GCSE AQA syllabus which is accessible to

learners of a range of abilities and promotes a good level of proficiency in the four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Theme 1: Identity and culture

Topic 1: Me, my family and friends

  • Relationships with family and friends / Marriage/partnership

Topic 2: Technology in everyday life

  • Social media / Mobile technology

Topic 3: Free-time activities

  • Music / Cinema and TV / Food and eating out / Sport

Topic 4: Customs and festivals in German-speaking countries/communities

Theme 2: Local, national, international and global areas of interest

Topic 1: Home, town, neighbourhood and region

Topic 2: Social issues

  • Charity/voluntary work / Healthy/unhealthy living

Topic 3: Global issues

  • The environment

Topic 4: Travel and tourism

Theme 3: Current and future study and employment

Topic 1: My studies

Topic 2: Life at school/college

Topic 3: Education post-16

Topic 4: Jobs, career choices and ambitions

What will you learn about?

  • The three themes of the AQA specification
  • Culture of French speaking countries
  • Analysing language and understanding its structure (tenses, cases, sentence structure)
  • Strategies for language learning
  • Exam techniques

To be successful in this subject students will need to be good at and enjoy:

  • Learning about other cultures
  • Reflect on your own learning and adapt strategies
  • Communicating in a foreign language
  • Spot patterns and regularities

Progression routes & career opportunities

All Modern Languages on offer combine readily with virtually all subjects available within the sixth form.  In the past, language students have pursued a wide and eclectic range of complementary subjects.  Suffice it to say, it is extremely rare to find a selection of disciplines that would not be beneficially augmented by knowledge of a foreign language.

Homework/extended learning

  • Additional reading and listening
  • Vocabulary acquisition
  • Grammar revision
  • Writing
  • Web-based interactive exercises supporting all 4 skills
Curriculum map French KS4 Studio GCSE Curriculum map French KS4 Studio GCSE
Key Stage 5 (A Level)

Course description

AQA A level French 7652

Aspects of French-speaking society: current trends

  • The changing nature of family (La famille en voie de changement)
  • The ‘cyber-society’ (La « cyber-société »)
  • The place of voluntary work (Le rôle du bénévolat)

Aspects of French-speaking society: current issues

  • Positive features of a diverse society (Les aspects positifs d’une société diverse)
  • Life for the marginalised (Quelle vie pour les marginalisés ? )
  • How criminals are treated (Comment on traite les criminels)

Artistic culture in the French-speaking world

  • A culture proud of its heritage (Une culture ère de son patrimoine)
  • Contemporary francophone music (La musique francophone contemporaine)
  • Cinema: the 7th art form (Cinéma : le septième art)

Aspects of political life in the French-speaking world

  • Teenagers, the right to vote and political commitment (Les ados, le droit de vote et l’engagement politique)
  • Demonstrations, strikes – who holds the power? (manifestations, grèves – à qui le pouvoir ? )
  • Politics and immigration (La politique et l’immigration)

What will you learn about?

  • The four themes of the AQA specification
  • Literary analysis and film analysis
  • Analysing language and understanding its structure (tenses, subjunctive, pronouns )
  • Strategies for language learning

To be successful in this subject students will need to be good at and enjoy:

  • Learning about other cultures
  • Reflect on your own learning and adapt strategies
  • Communicating in a foreign language
  • Spot patterns and regularities

Progression routes & career opportunities

All Modern Languages on offer combine readily with virtually all subjects available within the sixth form.  In the past, language students have pursued a wide and eclectic range of complementary subjects.  Suffice it to say, it is extremely rare to find a selection of disciplines that would not be beneficially augmented by a language ‘A’ level.

Homework/extended learning

  • Additional reading and listening
  • Vocabulary acquisition
  • Grammar revision
  • Essay writing
  • Additional resources in the target language are available in the school library (books, CDs, DVDs)

Subjects

  • Art
  • Business & Economics
  • Computer Science
  • Design & Technology
  • Drama & Theatre Studies
  • English
  • Food Preparation and Nutrition
  • French
  • Geography
  • German
  • History
  • Library
  • Maths
  • Media
  • Music
  • PE
  • Politics
  • PSHE
  • Psychology
  • Religious Studies
  • Science
  • Sociology
  • Spanish

Contact our Staff

If you wish to email a member of staff, please use their 3-letter staff code, followed by @cooperscoborn.co.uk.

Click for staff codes

 

The Coopers’ Company & Coborn School

St. Marys Ln,
Upminster,
RM14 3HS

  • 01708 250500
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The Coopers’ Company and Coborn School is a company limited by guarantee, and an exempt charity, registered in England and Wales under company number 07547060. The registered address is: St Mary’s Lane, Upminster, Essex. RM14 3HS

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