Spanish

What is our overarching curriculum intent and what do we intend students leave Bridgemary School with?

We intend that our curriculum supports our Trust ambition of ‘achieving more together’.  We do this by delivering a wide range of topics in which students will develop an understanding of Spanish and the countries in which Spanish is spoken. By the time students leave Bridgemary school, we intend for them to have the skills required of a developing linguist, including, but not limited to, understanding basic information across a wide range of topics, being able to speak simple phrases confidently, such as for ordering a meal, asking for directions or giving basic opinions.

Our curriculum is built around a spiral model, allowing students to build on the core knowledge that they develop over the course of their learning journey, which will be enhanced with grammatical knowledge, giving them context for their understanding and the ability to transfer skills across topics. Recap points are built into the curriculum at regular intervals allowing students to reflect on their progress and identify areas in which they can improve further. This will equip students with the knowledge and skills necessary to progress through their education and into their GCSE examinations and beyond. The curriculum itself will give students an opportunity to understand customs in Spain and Spanish speaking countries, as well as being able to communicate simply but effectively. Overall, the Languages department intends to develop learners who are naturally curious about the world around them and who can use the skills they have developed in order to become active citizens who are lifelong learners.

What is the structural intent of the subject curriculum, & how is it sequenced so that students know and remember more?

The curriculum across all subjects is carefully sequenced so that prior core declarative and procedural knowledge is built upon, with continual opportunities for core knowledge to be interleaved throughout both key stages so that students know more, remember more and can apply that knowledge in a range of contexts.  Facilitating knowledge adds important local, national, and global context to core knowledge, and our curriculum intends to provide a richness and diversity that enables our students to experience learning in real life contexts.

How do any school values and focuses influence or feed through the curriculum?

The school curriculum is built on 4 aims to ensure our students receive and are able to access it fully, those being:

• Reading and comprehension that aims to ensure all students leave with a reading age at least equivalent to their chronological age
• Our school ethos of Be Kind, Work Hard, Be the Best Version of Yourself
• A deepening understanding of core and facilitating knowledge that enables students to know and remember more
• A wide appreciation of the world that we live in, and the celebration of the diversity this brings

In Languages we support these aims by providing students with an opportunity to explore and engage with a wide ranging and varied curriculum. Students will be taught key vocabulary so that they can engage in simple conversation and answer questions across a wide range of topics. The Language department will facilitate lessons with a positive climate for learning in which students will feel safe to contribute and develop their knowledge. In keeping with the subject they will improve their knowledge of the lives of others, allowing them to leave the school as well rounded and informed individuals. Our curriculum is built around core knowledge and lessons are delivered in a way which allows students to engage with the core knowledge in order to know and remember more, whilst providing the facilitating knowledge to know and remember more in a wider context. By studying the Spanish curriculum we have designed, students will be given the tools and knowledge required to appreciate, participate in and celebrate the diversity of the world they live in.

What is our intent to assess how well students access the curriculum and how the school intends to adapt the curriculum to close gaps in knowledge?

To ensure any gaps in prior or new knowledge are quickly identified, we check progress frequently through a range of assessment opportunities, from lesson-by-lesson declarative knowledge tests, end of topic tests that assess knowledge retention and application, to more cumulative common assessments that assess students’ ability to remember and apply knowledge in a range of contexts.  The information from these assessments are used to adapt the curriculums intending to quickly close gaps in knowledge and keep students on track to achieve at our ambitious academic flightpaths.

The curriculum we intend to deliver to students at each Key Stage:

At KS3 we intend to deliver a curriculum which is wide ranging and diverse. Students will begin their journey by learning about phonics in Spanish, and then be able to introduce themselves, talking about their age, birthday, character and pets. They will then be able to give opinions about what they do in their free time and activities they might choose depending on the weather. Students will also be able to give opinions on school subjects & facilities. By the end of Year 7 they will also be able to describe family members and say what they could do in a local town. In addition, they will be able to order food from a cafe and say what they will do in the future.

In Year 8, students will be able to talk about a past holiday in some detail, as well as explaining what they use technology for, including giving justified opinions about music and TV. Further topics include food preferences and planning and organising a party. By the end of Year 8, they will also be able to describe a holiday home and summer activities.

In Year 9, students will be able to give detailed opinions of their likes and dislikes, including films and birthday preferences. Other topics include the world of work, the use of languages beyond school and healthy lifestyles. By the end of the year they will also be able to discuss children’s rights and the environment, describe a day trio and buy souvenirs.

At KS4 Students will build on knowledge acquired in KS3. They will begin by learning how to  describe a previous holiday in detail, including giving justified opinions. They will develop the skills to talk about school, uniform, subjects, teachers and rules confidently. Further topics include relationships, social networking, TV and film and sports. Students will be able to describe their shopping preferences and share opinions about their local area. They will have the opportunity to practise ordering food in a restaurant and describing festivals. Students will be able to explain how they earn money and if they work part time, as well as discuss what they would like to do once they leave school. They will be able to participate in discussions about the environment and how to live a healthy lifestyle.  

How does the co-curriculum enhance the curriculum?

During their time at Bridgemary, students will be given opportunities to develop their co-curricular knowledge as well as being able to experience cultural capital in a variety of forms. Students will be given the opportunity to explore cultures beyond their area of familiarity, for example investigating how Day of the Dead is celebrated in Latin America. It is hoped that we can begin to start planning a trip to Spain in the near future.