Languages
“Learning another language is not only learning different words for the same things, but learning another way to think about things.”
- Flora Lewis
At Oatlands Infants, we believe that we have a fantastic opportunity to nurture our children's curiosity and awareness of the wider world, and we see Languages as a natural extension of this. We seek to inspire the children to approach Languages with confidence and enthusiasm as they continue their education and, indeed, throughout their lives.
Languages Week, 2024
To mark the European Day of Languages 2023 (26th September), we held our own Languages Week. Families and staff members were invited to film themselves reading a story in another language as a way of celebrating the many languages represented within the school community and they certainly didn't disappoint! Throughout the week, the children were treated to stories in Spanish, Catalan, French, German, Afrikaans, Polish, Bulgarian, Italian, Irish and Turkish!
We even made it into the Harrogate Advertiser! Read the full article here:
Our Curriculum Intent
Although the National Curriculum doesn’t require Languages to be taught as a subject until KS2, we don't want to miss the opportunity to get our children excited about it! In Reception, we take a relaxed, multi-lingual approach, linking with the topic and adding another layer to the children's knowledge and understanding of the world. The children may learn to count to ten in one language, then learn some food vocabulary in another language later in the year. In Year 1, the children learn basic greetings and vocabulary in Spanish. In Year 2, we follow the same programme in French. As many of our children continue their education at Oatlands Junior School, this provides a great introduction and foundation for their French learning in KS2.
All our Languages learning is practical, using songs, rhymes, games and stories. We have lots of fun!