Year 8 French
Brief summary of the syllabus:
The boys will use the textbook Expo 2.
The emphasis on using French as a language of communication is continued from Year 7.
The boys are encouraged to communicate with each other in pairs and groups in French.
They begin to give oral presentations to the whole class, supported by cue cards only.
The other skills of listening, reading and writing are being developed further from Year 7.
Which skills/attributes are being developed and examined?
A. Language skills:
- To learn to listen for gist and detail.
- To ask about meanings, to seek clarification or repetition.
- To imitate pronunciation and intonation patterns.
- To initiate and develop conversations.
- To begin to express agreement, disagreement, personal feelings and opinions.
- To begin to describe and discuss present, past and future events.
- To copy words, phrases and sentences.
B. Language-learning skills and knowledge of language:
- To acquire strategies for committing familiar language to memory.
- To develop independence in language-learning and use.
- To use dictionaries and reference materials.
- To begin to understand and apply patterns, rules and exceptions in language forms and structures.
- To use their knowledge to experiment with language.
- To begin to develop strategies for dealing with the unpredictable.
C. Cultural awareness:
- To come into contact with native speakers in this country and, where possible, abroad.
- To consider their own culture and compare it with the cultures of the countries and communities where French is spoken.
- To recognise cultural attitudes as expressed in language and learn the use for social conventions, eg forms of address.
What can parents expect to see in class work and homework specifically?
Practice of the above-mentioned language skills takes place both in the classroom and is expected to be underpinned in homework. The pattern of alternating learning and written homework will continue from Year 7. Increasingly boys are encouraged to write for their own purposes, adapting language and structures already learnt.
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What can parents do to help in this subject at this stage?
- Check that homework diary contains either a learning or a written homework each week.
- Check presentation of work in exercise books. Insistence on neatness is paramount.
- Help your son to learn vocabulary, even if you don't know French. His vocabulary book will contain the necessary material with which you can test him from English into French. Subsequently he can check his own responses.
- Encourage your son to use French CD-ROMs, of which there are many. The department is always happy to assist in choosing the appropriate level.
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Setting and course schedule:
The setting, which was put in place at the end of Year 7, will be reconsidered after the December examination, based on the pupil's test scores so far.
- Autumn first half-term: Module 1
- Autumn second half-term: Module 2
- Spring first half-term: Module 3
- Spring second half-term: Module 4
- Summer first half-term: Module 5
- Summer second half-term: Module 6
Although the end-of-year examination takes place in early June, vocabulary tests will ensure that the necessary knowledge is in place at the end of term. All grammar will have been covered before the summer examination.
After the summer examination re-setting takes place, based on the average of all five half-term tests. Other test scores and marks for homework and class work may be used where further differentiation is required.
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Pupil target-setting:
All boys are expected to achieve level 4-5, but boys are given the opportunity throughout the year to rise above this level in all four skills, as per level descriptions.
| | Level 5 | Level 6 |
| Listening | You can understand passages spoken by the teacher and on tape about the past, present and future. You can understand when people give their opinion. | You can understand short stories and dialogues about a variety of topics. You can note down specific detail, incl. points of view. French is spoken at normal speed and you don't need much repetition. |
| Speaking | You can have a short conversation incl. giving your point of view. You can talk about everyday events in the present, past and future. | You can adapt the language you learn from different topics. You can talk about the past, present and future. |
| Reading | You can read about the past, present and future. You are able to choose your own reading materials, incl. newspaper articles, leaflets and letters. You have become more confident in reading aloud. | You can read and understand different styles of writing and choose to read either books or magazines for your own pleasure. You can work out the meanings of words you don't know by looking at the context. |
| Writing | You can write short passages about the past, present and future using the dictionary. These passages include people's opinions. | You can write in formal and informal French in the past, present and future eg booking accommodation, writing a diary. Most of it is correct. |
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