Devonport High School For Girls
Languages
Languages
Name of Head of Department
Mrs V Lethbridge, BA, PGCE
Statement of Intent
Foreign languages are an important part of cultural and vocational education in Europe and around the world. In the Languages department at DHSG, we aim to provide our students with the skills to communicate effectively in a variety of languages (French, Spanish, German, Mandarin Chinese, Latin) and with a sympathetic attitude to and deeper understanding of the relevant cultures in the language of study. In the teaching of specific languages, we endeavour to foster a language awareness and an improved understanding of English and to develop language learning skills which will serve as a valuable basis for the acquisition of skills in other foreign languages which students may wish to learn later in their careers.
Language lessons focus on developing students’ ability to engage in spontaneous talk and practise transferable thinking skills. Above all, as committed and enthusiastic language learners ourselves, we wish to pass on a love of languages and encourage students to embrace language learning as a vital life skill.
“He who knows no foreign language, knows nothing of his own” Goethe
“ If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head; if you talk to a man in his own language, that goes to his heart.” Nelson Mandela.
Aims of the department:
- to produce enthusiastic, competent linguists who are confident of their ability, willing to take risks in less familiar situations;
- to develop the students’ ability to engage in spontaneous talk, uninhibited by a strive for perfection;
- to provide a sense of challenge in the language learning activities and overcome the fear of failure;
- to encourage students to become adaptable and open to new opportunities;
- to help students to develop transferable thinking skills;
- to embrace language learning and the ability to use other languages as a life skill;
- to encourage a sense of belonging to a global community;
- to develop a cultural awareness of other nationalities.
Curriculum Programmes of Study French
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Year |
Cycle | Content |
|---|---|---|
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Year 7 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: La rentrée |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Mon temps libre |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: En ville |
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Year 8 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Vive les vacances |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: J’adore les fêtes |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Le monde est petit |
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Year 9 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1 : Hobbies and Free Time Overview: Describing weekend activities and hobbies and likes and dislikes using opinion phrases
Vocabulary: Sports, hobbies, adverbs of frequency, time expressions and sequencers, expressions of like and dislike (idioms)
Vocabulary: Irregular comparatives and superlatives, adjectives to describe gender and identity, online life and technology vocab, TV programs |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Family, friends, role models
Vocabulary: Irregular comparatives and superlatives
Vocabulary: Adjectives to describe gender and identity, family celebrations Questions words, time, role play vocab, food |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Lifestyle and wellbeing (healthy habits and lifestyle)
Vocabulary: Body parts, illnesses,
Vocabulary: Food, hobbies, adverbs of frequency, intensifiers, sports, health |
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Year 10 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1 – My School Life Overview: School life in Francophone countries, school subjects, school rules, progress, photo description
Vocabulary: School subject, rules, opinion phrases, clothes, colours, time, intensifiers, adverbs of frequency Term 2 – My School Life
Vocabulary: Jobs, adjective to describe advantages and disadvantage |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Studying and My Future
Vocabulary: Different type of formation, Travel and journey, time, mode of transportation
Vocabulary: Jobs, adjective to describe advantages and disadvantages |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: – Town and Local Area
Vocabulary: Prepositions of place, rooms in the house, shops, places in town, cardinals, adjectives to describe the town |
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Year 11 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Holidays |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Environment + Town |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Oral exams/study leave |
Curriculum Programmes of Study Chinese
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Year |
Cycle | Content |
|---|---|---|
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Year 7 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 3: My Family |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: school life |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Food and drink Overview: vegetables and fruits, three meals a day, drinks, Cultural understanding: Dragon Boat festival Grammar: |
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Year 8 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: My House Overview: rooms in a house, furniture, |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Holiday |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: My Friends Overview: Describing a friend’s physical appearance & personality, sickness |
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Year 9 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Theme 1- Family + relationships |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Theme 1 Free-time: Music / TV / Cinema / Sport Overview: Hobbies and Free-time |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Theme 2 – Home town + local area Overview: Describing House, Household tasks and Local Area. |
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Year 10 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Theme 2 - Travel + tourism, Holidays Overview: Describing holidays and plans, Pros and Cons of Holiday types. |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Theme 2 Social Issues: Healthy Living Overview: Food and Nutrition, how to keep fit and healthy |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Theme 2 – Global issues: homelessness / poverty Overview: Daily Routine, Comparisons of lifestyles Grammar: 不但，而且， Vocabulary: homelessness , poverty, how to help Term 5 Assessment: Writing 150 words Term 6: Theme 2 – Global issues: Environment Overview: Environmental problems + solutions Grammar: 如果不...,那么.... 首先，其次，最后 Vocabulary: Environmental Problems, modal verbs, Term 6 Assessment: Yr 10 Exams L/S/R/W |
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Year 11 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Theme 1 – Family / Friends /Free time Technology benefits and dangers |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Theme 2 - Social Issues: Charity / Voluntary Work |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Revision / Exam Practice / Study Leave |
Curriculum Programmes of Study for German
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Year |
Cycle | Content |
|---|---|---|
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Year 7 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Grundlage (Groundings in German) Grammar: Weil + obwohl + verb to end Term 2: Wohnort (Where I live) |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Meine Stadt (my town) Term 4: In der Stadt (Going out in Town) |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Aktivitäten in der Stadt (activities in town) |
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Year 8 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Mein Urlaub (My Holiday) |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Mein Alltag und meine Freizeit (Daily Life and Free Time) |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Die Umwelt (the Environment) |
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Year 9 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Zurück zur Schule (back to school) |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Freizeit (Free Time) |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Meine Welt, deine Welt (my world, your world) |
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Year 10 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Schule und Freizeit (School and Free Time) Overview: Revise School and Free Time while practising exam skills, writing oral questions. Cultural focus: German Unity Day Grammar: Revise weil, dass, wenn, da, obwohl + verb to end, revise perfect tense, revise modal verbs, revise sein, haben and geben in imperfect tense Vocabulary: Revise School and Free Time Term 1: Assessment: Photo Task on school Term 2: Meine Welt, deine Welt (my world, your world) Overview: Festivals, Family, Relationships, Equality and Identity Cultural Focus: Festivals Grammar: Gefallen, Spaß machen, Possessive adjectives in nominative, accusative and dative, nominative relative pronouns, Revise time, manner, place, Using past and future time frames together, Revise dual case prepositions, dative pronouns Vocabulary: Revise family, Revise physical and Character descriptions, Revise relationships, Discrimination, Revise time phrases, Festivals Term 2 Assessment: Listening and Reading |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Bleib Gesund (Staying Healthy) |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Schöne Ferien (Travel and Tourism) |
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Year 11 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Revise Education Post-16, Social and Global Issues Term 2: Mocks and DIT |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Listening/Reading/Writing Exam Preparation |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Revision / Exams |
| Year 12 | Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Post GCSE grammar programme, changing state of the family |
Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Festivals and Traditions, Film Study: Das Leben der Anderen |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Art and Architecture, Cultural Life in Berlin Past and Present |
Curriculum Programmes of Study for Spanish
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Year |
Cycle | Content |
|---|---|---|
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Year 7 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: El Español |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Mi Familia Overview: Describing family members |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Mi Insti Overview: School life |
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Year 8 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Mis Vacaciones |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: İA Comer! |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Operación Verano Overview: Holiday homes and further holiday activities |
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Year 9 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: My Personal World – Family |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Media & Technology |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Lifestyle & Wellbeing Healthy diet and Illness |
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Year 10 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Travel & Tourism - Holidays |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Lifestyle & Wellbeing – Healthy Lifestyles |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Studying & My Future – School/Future Plans |
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Year 11 |
Cycle 1 |
Term 1: Social Issues: Healthy Living & Illness |
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Cycle 2 |
Term 3: Region |
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Cycle 3 |
Term 5: Revision / Exam Practice |
Lower Years Assessment Framework
To view the Lower Years Assessment Framework for MFL Languages, please click here
To view the Lower Years Assessment Framework for Chinese, please click here
Middle Years Exam and Specification Information
In years 10 and 11, students are entered for the AQA GCSE and schemes of work cover the GCSE topics. Students will be assessed by final examination in year 11. They will be expected to understand and provide information and opinions about these themes relating to their own experiences and those of other people, including people in the countries / communities where the language is spoken.
Students will be assessed by final examination in year 11 and are entered for the Eduqas (WJEC) GCSE.
Please see below for indiviual subject specifications
In recent years extra-curricular visits and activities have included
- Year 8 Languages and Careers Enrichment Day
- Euroscola Visit to the European Parliament in Strasbourg for sixth formers
- Year 7/8 International Carol Concert
- Year 8 Normandy Experience – Immersion / Activity based visit
- Year 8 Visit to Spain
- Year 9/10 Visit to Berlin
- Year 9/10 Summer camp in China
- Year 11 Exchange / Residential visits to France and Spain
- Year 10 Residential / Immersion / Activity based visit to Normandy
- Year 8 Discover Germany
- Making Languages our Business
- Passport to Export (Dragons’ Den style competition with visit to Berlin for winners)
- French Drama competition
- Languages pop video competition
- National Speaking Competitions