WoK 2.0 MFL

Ratatouille!

2011-10-12T04:10:00.000-07:00

In French with our year 8's today we were talking about the Pixar movie Ratatouille and started discussing where the dish came from and what is was made from. Here is a photo that we found with some explanation.

MFL Teachers Use Languages too!

2011-10-11T08:51:00.000-07:00

Mrs Stockwell has done us proud in the MFL office today. The last time she had a conversation in Italian was 20 years ago. Yet today, when in desperate need of an Italian linguist, Mrs Stockwell came to the aid of Mrs Murayama and pulled an Italian conversation out of the bag in order to book hotel rooms in a hotel in Italy. She successfully booked the rooms and we are very proud!

The MFL team!

Why Learn Languages - The Apprentice

2011-10-06T08:48:00.000-07:00

Here it is! Another reason why you need to learn languages - you might not fail tasks on The Apprentice. Languages help you get a foot in the door in business!

2011-10-06T03:12:00.000-07:00

¡Hola!

Today we had a wonderful lesson in year 9 Spanish where we were looking at Spanish restaurant menus, practising dialogues and learning how to describe a dinner with a celebrity in the past tense. Whilst we discussed this we were looking at the various styles of Tortiallas in Spain and Mexico, how David Beckham(our chosen celebrity!)has learned Spanish for his football career and how the inventor of Doritos has died recently and requested that he was buried with Doritos! We even integrated salsa music into the lesson to add to the Spanish Tapas restaurant ambiance.

¡Buen provecho!

European Week of Languages Sept 2011

2011-10-05T04:14:00.000-07:00

Continuing on theme of European Week of Languages, here is the assembly presentation led by the Head of Faculty and the 6th formers which celebrated the importance of learning languages:

why learn languages

More PowerPoint presentations from MFL Dept

Yr 12 French: Imperative

2011-10-02T04:35:00.001-07:00

Please watch this video on the formation of the Imperative mood in preparation for today's lesson.

Merci!

Miss H

French du/de la /des

2011-09-29T13:07:00.001-07:00

Cher 10D FR,

Voici les sites webs pour le cours lundi 3 Octobre:

After the negatives test we will move onto the following sites. Please use the below links to research and practice the use of du/de la/des and also au/à la/aux in French: (make notes in your neat book).

Youtube video 1 - including notes on using just "de" after negatives.

GCSE Bitesize notes - don't forget to click "Next". There are 3 pages of notes.

A very quick exercise

Youtube video 2 - Including notes on au/à la/aux.

Information on using "de" after expressions of quantity.

We will discuss these in the lesson. We will also be using exericses on p.216 in the Edexcel French text book.

Mlle H

BA Flag Awards

2011-09-28T05:57:00.000-07:00

As part of the European Week of Languages the MFL department hosted an assembly to award year 10 students with their BA Flag Award badges to celebrate the success of all their hard work last academic year. As a result of the BA Flag Award running successfully in schools British Airways has won special recognition in the form of the European Language Label award. They have sent an email thanking all testers, including those here at the Weald of Kent.

European Week of Languages

2011-09-28T01:35:00.000-07:00

Today the MFL department led an assembly on why it is important to learn languages. As part of that assembly some of the students gave testimony as to why they enjoy learning languages and the Weald of Kent, describing also some of the benefits of the trips they have been on. Here is one student's account:

I first chose to go to France on the basis of how much my sister enjoyed it and the fact that I wanted to study A level French, despite not being very confident in speaking it. However, taking part in the French Work Experience has been very beneficial for my language speaking and understanding skills. I would recommend this experience to anyone who is passionate about languages, as it really builds your confidence in being able to speak a foreign language. The trip can also increase independence as you are constantly given the freedom to spend your own free time however you would like, instead of having a programme of activities like lower down in the school. I took my guitar with me and sang with the primary and nursery school children, teaching them songs such as Heads Shoulders Knees and Toes, which proved very popular. This was an incredible experience and taught me that there are so many ways to get over language barriers that don’t involve speaking the language, although studying French for 5 years did come in handy!

Just like everyone else on the exchange, I made a long-term friendship with my exchange partner Priscilia, as well as all of the other French partners that were involved in the visit. From going over in June, she has already come back to England once and I am returning to Elbeuf in October with a few others to see them again. This was a truly incredible experience and I would recommend it to anyone.

Yr 12 French: Modal Verbs

2011-09-24T11:53:00.000-07:00

Please watch this youtube video on modal verbs in preparation for the classwork on modal verbs today.

This is taken from the site: http://www.frenchspanishonline.com/

Merci!

Mlle Hardman

Spanish Picnic

2011-07-22T01:01:00.000-07:00

To culminate our Spanish Key Stage 3 work, we decided to arrange and enjoy a Spanish-themed picnic. Each of us brought in different foods and drinks, including tortillas, tropical juices, fruit skewers, and countless amounts of olives! We had great fun sampling all the different food, and we all thought that the picnic was a great success. 8S

Here is a recipie that the students used to make some of their picnic food.

Pastel de Limón

Ingredients

For the Cake

 2 eggs
 200g sugar
 250g self raising flour
 175ml of olive oil
 250ml cup of milk
 Grated lemon rind

For the Icing

 125ml cup of icing sugar
 2 tablespoons of milk
 1 teaspoon of soft butter
 The juice from half a lemon

Method
Put all of the ingredients into a large bowl and mix well. Once the ingredients have been thoroughly mixed and is pourable, put the mixture into greased cake tin, roughly 20cm in diameter.

No need to preheat the oven. Simply put the tin in the oven at 160˚C for the first 15minutes. This is so the cake can rise. Then raise the temperature to 180˚C for 20 to 35 minutes until cooked, or just until the cake is golden on the top, and is completely solid.

When it is cooked, take the cake out from the oven and let it stand until it is cool. Then remove the cake from the tin, before adding the icing.

For the icing simply mix all the ingredients together, before drizzling over the cake.

Spanish Love Poems

2011-07-22T00:59:00.000-07:00

Year 9I listened to a song “Mi princesa” by David Bisbal in class. After listening to the song, they wrote their own poems to the “prince of their dreams”. These are some of their poems.

Necesito tus besos para no sentirme sola.
Volar sola no puedo, eres la estrella del cielo.
Estoy muriendo en la tristeza sin ti.
Lucie (9I)

Eres las estrellas de mi cielo.
Me encantan tus besos más que un helado.
Jasmine (9I)

Vivo en el desierto del deseo
¿Qué milagro tiene que pasar para que me ames?
Mi alma sola ha regalado todas las estrellas del cielo
Porque sabe que eres el príncipe de mis sueños encantados.
Bella (9I)

Sabes que eres las estrellas de mi cielo.
Sabes que eres el príncipe de mis sueños encantados.
¿Qué milagro tiene que pasar para que me ames?
Volar sola no puedo; estoy muriendo en la tristeza.
Tus besos curan mis heridas.
Eliza (9I)

ICT in French project

2011-07-19T05:30:00.000-07:00

I am very pleased with my two year 9 French classes who have today demonstrated the final pieces from their ICT in French projects. See below for one example of a news broadcast and a radio broadcast. Others include E-Safety videos and Murder Mystery stories. More to come...

Mlle Hardman

Here is a radio broadcast created and presented by the year 9 French class. They worked hard on the project and the results show!

News broadcast:

Nous sommes de retour!

2011-07-05T03:46:00.000-07:00

The Elbeuf work experience trip (25 June - 1st July 2011) has had another successful year, providing students in year 11/12 the opportunity to teach English to primary school students in Elbeuf, near Rouen in France. They also spend their free time with very accommodating families and a day in Paris takes place on the Wednesday. Miss Hardman was very proud of how the girls conducted themselves in the work environment and many long term friendships have been developped. Student reviews to follow but here are some photos of the trip for a taster.

Mlle Hardman practising her French by buying tickets for the group to go up the Eiffel Tower!

One of the views from the second floor of the Eiffel Tower.

Proof! We climbed 700 steps (including the top one!) to get to the second floor.

Our exchange school "le Lycée André Maurois".

Word of the Day (French)

2011-06-24T06:54:00.000-07:00

We have another word of the day entry!!! "pneu" (m) = tyre in French.

Vocabexpress Trials - Year 10

2011-06-21T05:22:00.000-07:00

We trialled www.vocabexpress.com again today but with some of our year 10's this time. The girls were so engrossed I had trouble getting their attention to give me some feedback as to what they thought of the site!

They liked the fact that you have to repeat the tests until you get it right. In our 20 min session one student thought that she had learned 15 new words. It makes you learn it as you cannot just skip past any stage that you are finding difficult.

Student Flag Art

2011-06-21T01:51:00.000-07:00

We have some more flags that have been produced by our students that will be used on the menu on the right hand side. Thank you to all students who have made such an effort on these. Just the Japanese one to go!

Word of the Day (French)

2011-06-21T01:46:00.003-07:00

We have some more entries for the Word of the day: "pneu" / tyre. Thank you very much to the students who have so far taken part!

Les Langues et La Technologie

2011-06-17T04:28:00.000-07:00

We have a great opportunity to do an ICT project in this term with our year 9 French students. Projects so far include: an animation, a video, a French radio broadcast, an e-safety video, and a murder mystery themed www.voki.com project! I am really looking forward the results. More updates as we go along.

Miss Hardman

Bradley Cooper speaks French!!!

2011-06-17T01:06:00.000-07:00

Oh my gosh - in the languages department we are very excited: Bradley Cooper of "Limitless" and "The Hangover" (1 & 2) fame, SPEAKS FLUENT FRENCH!! Click here for the link to the video recording.

Videoconference with Ourense pen pals

2011-06-16T03:41:00.000-07:00

Our three Year 7 Spanish classes have been writing to their Spanish pen pals in Ourense this year. 7 Blue have been the lucky ones who did a videoconference with their friends in 5°B. Below are some photos that were taken in the Spanish classroom. Their school blog is here. Why don't you take a look?

Word of the Day (French)

2011-06-15T05:54:00.001-07:00

Yet again more entries for the Word of the Day homework. Well done to those completed so far! A wall display will also be created in the B corridor of all entries.

Word of the Day (French)

2011-06-15T05:49:00.000-07:00

We have more entries for the Word of the Day!!

Vocab Express Trial

2011-06-14T01:49:00.000-07:00

Today we have been trialling an online vocabulary learning tool called "Vocab Express". Good features include tests where all words must be correctly translated (target language to English/English to target language) in a row. Any errors and the test has to be done again with those words causing trouble being repeated at the end. It is also case sensitive and necessitates the correct use of apostrophes in both the target language and in English. The vocabulary lists are also directly linked to the text books that we are using so it links nicely with any text book based work.

Student reactions from today's lesson were as follows:

"I like the fact that if you get one wrong you have to do the test again. I prefer this to all the other websites as I've learned alot today"

"It helps you learn because if you get one wrong you have to go back so it is helpful with revision"

The students were certainly on task for the whole of the lesson and 100% indicated that they felt the process had help them learn new phrases. Students didn't want to log off at the end of the lesson!

Mlle Hardman

Word of the Day (un pneu)

2011-06-10T08:05:00.000-07:00

Whey heyyy we have our first student entry into the "un pneu" Word of the Day homework. Très bien fait!

Word of the Day (FR)

2011-06-07T01:25:00.001-07:00

We have a new entry in for the Word of the Day from Mme Stockwell:

"pneu" (m) (/pne(r)/)

...which means "tyre" in French.

What a fabulous word! I think we need to get some students taking photos with objects represented by these Word of the Day entries. Will update when we have some pictures to add...

In the mean time with 9D FR we have discovered this great phrase: Je n'aime plus le pneu!!! Quite a tongue twister.

Mlle Hardman

Eisteddfod yr Urdd 2011

2011-05-31T15:39:00.000-07:00

Now we sometimes hear students saying that learning languages is hard (suspecting that they say this to every teacher of every subject...). However, check out Welsh! I've been watching SKY channel 134 S4C showing the Urdd National Eisteddfod 2011 - one of Europe's largest cultural festivals. I've taken a sound file recording of it too and will load it here when I get a mo...

Mlle Hardman

Word of the Day

2011-05-29T18:19:00.000-07:00

Le Mot du Jour!

My favourite word of the day today is French:

"FEUILLE" (f)

...which means "leaf". It can be seen in compound terms that we use in our day to day language here in English such as "mille feuilles" /meel/fu(r)ee/(a thousand leaves) which is a multi layered pastry desert.

Mlle Hardman

A New Flag for our Blog

2011-05-20T07:03:00.000-07:00

Thank you to a member of our year 7 Spanish class who created this great flag for our blog menu on the right:

Austausche, die wir immer in Erinnerung behalten

2011-03-26T14:18:00.000-07:00

A week ago, five other students of AS German and I returned to England after spending a week in Wiesbaden. Whilst in Wiesbaden, we all had very different experiences, which were largely shaped by the type of work experience placement each of us had. Personally, I carried out my work experience in a museum, where I had the chance to learn all about tourism, the way the museum worked and the exhibits themselves, as well as completing a complex, philosophical translation concerning the relevance of women to the meaning of wisdom. In addition, I also assisted in the museum’s education department, which provided me with an opportunity to see how children acquire language and to improve my own basic vocabulary.

The other placements took place in a kindergarten, primary school, hotel, theatre and newspaper, where the tasks were varied but the hours short enough to allow us plenty of time to spend both with each other and our host families. During the weekend, we were all taken to Frankfurt as well as various other places, which was an excellent opportunity to visit a new place and get to know our exchange partners better. As a group, we visited the cinema, received a tour of the town and were treated to luxury cakes. The importance of foreign links was emphasised at a reception at the town hall, where we realised how privileged we were to have such an opportunity. For me, this was one of the highlights of the week, because I was invited to make a speech thanking all of those involved in the exchange, which I know I would never have had the ability to do a year ago.

Overall, we all agreed that our spoken language has improved considerably as a result of the exchange in a way that it would never have done by merely sitting in a classroom; we were exposed to many registers of speech and had to think quickly in numerous situations. In addition, the way of life allowed us to become more independent and confident whilst in a foreign country, and many of us have made friends and connections which will hopefully be a part of our futures.

Ich hoffe, dass viele andere Schüler in der Zukunft solche Möglichkeiten haben werden. Wir möchten noch einmal unserer fleißigen Lehrerin danken.

Bis zum nächsten Mal!

Teachers Learn New Things Too!

2011-03-26T06:56:00.000-07:00

During the French Elbeuf exchange, I produced an invoice for the French partner school in order to settle accounts for the first part of the trip. Not knowing the exact title of the French finance office worker in the French school I used the general term: "financier" for the signatory section of the invoice. However, what I learned during the week is that the term "financier" can also mean a small cake! The same term for finacial person appeared on the gift that I received from the French teacher for allowing her to stay with me during the week. This proves that Teachers Learn New Things Too! Another reason why exchange trips are a good thing.

Miss Hardman

Extended Sentences

2011-03-26T05:44:00.001-07:00

In languages it always gains more marks if you extend your sentences and elaborate from the basic facts of what you want to say. Here are some good examples from 8I FR's second writing assessment:

Elbeuf Exchange 17-25 mars 2011

2011-03-25T08:05:00.000-07:00

We have just said "Au revoir" to our exchange partners from Elbeuf near Rouen in France. Student reviews of the trip to follow, but for now why not read the French teacher accounts of their stay here from the French school's website "Lycée André Maurois":

23rd March - Day in Tunbridge Wells

21st March - Day in London

22nd March - Day in school with partners

Mlle Hardman

Modal Verbs - French

2011-03-24T07:14:00.001-07:00

8I have been making comic strips to experiment with modal verbs and invitations. Here is Mlle Hardman's effort. There is not the opportunity to embed code from the website we used (http://www.makebeliefscomix.com/) so we have added a screen shot using our visualiser here. Hopefully we will get some students efforts here soon too...
8S &

Weald Student Feedback on national languages website

2011-03-01T04:35:00.000-08:00

Our students have been getting to grips with the MYLO (MY Languages Online) Goverment funded language learning website recently and feedback from our students has been posted on the CILT Languages website "Languages Work". Take a look to see how our students are finding it!

(Students - you will find your comments under your MYLO screen names).

Mlle Hardman

A2 Spanish Student Work

2011-02-17T07:51:00.001-08:00

Successful Videoconference - Elbeuf Work Experience Exchange

2011-02-15T09:37:00.001-08:00

Today we held a successful videoconference between our students going on the French Elbeuf Work Experience Exchange and their partners. Students were introduced to their new partners for the first time on camera where a small exchange took place between them. Time was tight due to the time difference -we only had a 15 minute window! - however, we got through a lot of introductions and this brought life to the exchange earlier than it would have been physically possible. Well done to both sides!

MYLO Teacher Feature

2011-02-08T08:53:00.000-08:00

MYLO are encouraging teachers to provide feedback on how they are using MYLO in lessons. CILT are posting a MYLO Teacher Feature on their website which also features on the MYLO Facebook page. This week Miss Hardman has a quote entered this week. Click on the links for updated feedback features.

We are also getting more teachers signed on and creating groups at The Weald of Kent Grammar School. MYLO has a great inbuilt motivation system: avatars which are unlocked the more points the students get, competitiveness between individual students on activities, between classes/teachers, between individuals on a national level and lastly between schools nationally. This multi-layered motivation system drives the students interest to look into more language learning activities. We look forward to higher rankings!

Reasons to learn languages

2011-01-23T13:01:00.000-08:00

Last year, only 16% of those completing their GCSEs obtained the "English Baccalaureate", a new initiative of Education Secretary Michael Gove. The baccalaureate consists of five GCSEs: English, mathematics, a science, a humanity and a foreign language. Gove proposes that this be considered the benchmark of success, an idea which is not unreasonable considering that equivalent qualifications are already an expectation in most other developed countries.

The foreign language is the component which most often hinders a pupil in obtaining this qualification. Last year was the first year in which French was no longer one of the top ten GCSEs in terms of number of entries, a figure which has been falling ever since it became optional to study a language after the age of fourteen. Such little emphasis on the study of other languages, especially in comparison to our European counterparts where it is usually compulsory until the age of eighteen, is shocking, considering that:

From 2012 entry onwards, it will be neccesary for all those applying to University College London to offer a language at GCSE level.

Only medicine graduates enjoy a better rate of employment and higher level of salary than those who graduate in modern languages.

Depite the common belief that "everyone speaks English", the figure is actually only 25%. It is also polite to attempt to speak to others in their own tongue when abroad, instead of arrogantly assuming a knowledge of English.

Knowledge of another language improve's ones understanding of their own.

However good a translation is, there is no substitute for Moliere, Brecht, Flaubert or Kafka in the original language.

These are just a few reasons why language learning is important, but widespread media concern over the decline in students choosing to study them does suggest that an overhaul in teaching methods and perhaps the curriculum is needed.

Qu'est-ce que vous pensez?

(source: timesonline)

Relative Pronouns - Classwork YR 11

2010-12-08T07:36:00.000-08:00

To 11 1.2 & 11.2.1

We will use these links in our lesson Thurs 9th Dec and Fri 10th Dec.

Relative Pronoun Practice:

Qui or Que?

Instrutional Videos:

The Angry Museum

"que", "qui", "où" et "dont"

Mlle Hardman

New Online Learning Resource

2010-12-04T03:18:00.000-08:00

Digital Dialects is a site that is growing with new resources in a multitude of languages. Whilst of a KS2-3 level currently, it provides good practice in language basics. Russian, Portuguese, Japanese, Mandarin and Greek students will be pleased as we are low in online resources for these languages. It has been added to the online language learning resources menus under each flag on the right of this page. If you find any more please add the information to the comment below!

Merci beaucoup!

Mlle Hardman

MFL Snow Cover Work Friday 3rd Dec - UPDATE

2010-12-03T06:38:00.000-08:00

As the volume of information is increasing for cover work information, we are experimenting with a different format for storing cover work.

1) Please create and account with http://www.edmodo.com/ - for which you do not need to add your email address.

NOTE: Please make your username recognisable to your teacher. This is a secure website where only your teacher will be able to make contact with you and vice versa. Communication with groups you are a member of is also possible. In the interest of e-safety members of the school management will also have access to this account.

2) A group entitled "Snow Cover MFL" has been created for you. For the purposes of e-safety, please request access to this group by sending an email to e.hardman@wealdofkent.kent.sch.uk with the subject "Edmodo Access".

3) You will see documents by teacher name and date for the current snow period. Scroll down to see these for each group you are invited to, or click on the "Library" link at the top of the page.

Please leave a comment on this blog or email Miss Hardman at: e.hardman @wealdofkent.kent.sch.uk if you have any queries about this site or accessing the currently available snow work. Alternatively any comments made on this group in http://www.edmodo.com/ will be emailed to Miss Hardman. This will remain the case until individual teacher accounts are created.

Thank you

Mlle Hardman and the MFL Team

Snow Day MFL Cover Work Friday 3rd December

2010-12-02T10:45:00.000-08:00

Given the continued closure of the Weald of Kent Grammar School on Friday 3rd December, please find below details of cover work for any MFL lessons missed for this day:

(The "Snowflake" artwork was achieved via the "draw 4 free" app on an iPhone. It's simply called "Flocon Bleu" / "Blue snowflake". Think you can do better? Create a snowflake* and email it to Miss Hardman on e.hardman@wealdofkent.kent.sch.uk, and it may be posted on the next snow work post! If we receive a few we will dedicate an entire post to them. Please add a/some key words in a foreign language to describe your snowflake). * For iPhone app creations, save it to your photo album, email it to your email account, then forward to above address. / No iPhone? - Draw one then take a photo, then email it etc...

Miss Hardman's classes:

7OR Spanish Period 1 - we were going to distribute your Spanish penfriend letters so please prepare some text to include in a Christmas card to send back to them. Write this in English. You could include how we celebrate Christmas as a nation, and also specifically in your family. Either bring them to next lesson (10/12/10) or you will get lesson time to do it in as we are in B1 that day.

9G & 9D French P3&4 - we were going to conduct your speaking and writing assessments on Friday 3rd Dec. Therefore continue preparing / revising for these.

7GR German Period 5 - We were going to do your telling the time test so continue revising that. Please learn 10 more words from the glossary pages of Module 2 from the text book. Be ready to demonstrate your learning next lesson.

All other MFL students for Friday 3rd December - or any further ensuing days of snow, please use the language practice links on the right hand menu under the relative language. Try to do an hour for each lesson that you would miss.

If you are currently preparing for controlled assessments, written or oral, please continue to do so at home.

Please check this blog site for further updates

Mlle Hardman & the MFL Team :o)

Snow Day Learning Resources

2010-12-02T02:49:00.000-08:00

Dear MFL Students,
Snow day work for those missing Miss Hardman's classes is as follows:

Year 10D French period 1:
Do an extra preparation hour for your controlled assessment.

Year 11 1.2 French:
For those who missed last lesson due to an exam I was going to introduce Relative Pronouns. Please read up on this website link prior to next lesson. For those who where there last lesson we were going to reinforce our prior learning and also practice. Please do the QUIA exercises on this blog post and see how you do. We will feedback next lesson.

All other MFL students for Thurs 2nd December - or any further ensuing days of snow, please use the language practice links on the right hand menu under the relative language. Try to do an hour for each lesson that you would miss.

If you are currently preparing for controlled assessments, written or oral, please continue to do so at home.

Please check this blog site for further updates

Mlle Hardman & the MFL Team :o)

Eruditio latin quod cupiditas

2010-11-25T09:17:00.000-08:00

Sunday 21st November 2010 saw the launch of an exciting £2.5million campaign to restore the teaching of Latin and Greek to all state school students in Britain within ten years. With celebrity supporters such as Joanna Lumley, Boris Johnson and Tom Stoppard, the campaign, lead by classics enthusiast Bettany Hughes, aims to ensure that more than current 16% of state schools offer at least one of the subjects.

The learning of classical languages is proven to help British learners of romance languages, particularly of French, Spanish and Italian, for they already have a basic grounding in the grammatical patterns. In addition, however good a translation of a piece of literature, there are always some aspects which can only truly be appreciated if the piece is read in its original language. A wide range of classical literature in its original text would be opened up to people if they were equipped with the language skills. Learning Latin is also proven to improve pupils’ standards across the curriculum, particularly in English and Maths, and classics graduates can expect to enjoy a higher employment rate than the majority of other arts graduates.

Personally, I believe that the campaign is a brilliant idea, and hope it will be effective. A couple of years ago I had the chance to learn a small amount of Latin at Weald. Even the basics have proved to be helpful as I now attempt to read medieval French literature!

This information in this post was taken from an article published in “The Sunday Times” on 21/11/2010.

Yr10 French 16/11/10 P5 Devoirs

2010-11-16T04:52:00.001-08:00

Pour vos devoirs ce soir:

1: Find a photo on which you will base your oral presentation

2: You will need to answer some questions in the oral so practise recognising question words via this link: Exercise 1
Mlle Hardman

Avoir, Être, Faire and Aller

2010-11-15T09:40:00.000-08:00

Year 8 French P1 16/11/10
Today we are going to revise the 4 key irregular verbs in French: avoir, être, faire and aller. We are going to:

a)find out what they mean,
b)find out why they are important,
c)and then practise them in different ways.

Practise:

4 Key irregular verb flashcards.

Using the above link:

1) Familiarise yourselves with the four verbs using the flashcards
2) In the "Study" section click on "Learn". Note your score at the end.
3) In the "Study" section click on "Test". Note your score at the end.
4) In the "Play Games" section click on "Scatter". Note your time.
5) In the "Play Games" section click on "Space Race". Note the Level, Kills and score you achieve.

We will publish the best scores for each section at the end of the lesson.

Your homework is to beat these scores! Add your new highest scores in the comments section before next lesson.

(Create a Google ID to be able to add comments to this post. Remember to blog safe and only use a pseudonym/nick name, never your real/full name online. Ask an adult if you are unsure).

Amusez-vous bien en apprenant les verbes irréguliers!

Mlle Hardman

Podcast Entry - YR7German Speaking Assess

2010-11-12T11:49:00.001-08:00

We have recently completed some Year 7 German Speaking assessments. Play the entry on the Podcast and leave your comments - What did she do well (WWW)? Even better if (EBI)? Work out what level you think she might be (including sub level and your reasons for it:

Crossing the Channel

2010-11-11T13:26:00.000-08:00

As our closest European neighbours, it is unsurprising that many of the current affairs which affect France also impact us in England. On Monday, it became apparent that the French Coastguard is of the belief that a ban should be enforced against those who wish to challenge themselves by swimming the 21 miles from Dover to Calais to cross the English Channel. The main reason for this proposal was fear of an accident occurring. Those attempting the challenge must pass through the world’s busiest shipping lane, which sees over five hundred vessels pass through each day. Several organisations, including ferry operators, have warned that passing swimmers could cause a serious accident, despite assurance from the Channel Swimming and Piloting Federation that the crossings are safe and well organised.

It is worth noting that France banned swimmers from using the Calais to Dover route seventeen years ago and also that no swimmer or support boat has ever caused an accident whilst completing the crossing. With this in mind, is the proposed ban a justified, or even necessary, measure?

Olivia, who is a keen swimmer in year 13, agrees that it would be a shame if the ban were to be enforced:

I think it would be a real shame to ban such an iconic event that many swimmers aspire to complete. I understand the obvious safety concerns, however, it is arguable that due to technological advances it is now safer than ever to swim the “Everest of open water”. I can only imagine the feeling of triumph and accomplishment is unparalleled and this should not be taken away from those who are able and determined to take up the challenge.

Language Leaders taking control of blog

2010-11-05T09:05:00.000-07:00

Hi. My name's Jess. I am one of the Language Leaders in year 12. Among the other responsibilities that we have been given, we have been asked to contribute actively to the MFL blog. This is exciting, as it means that students will have more control of what appears on the blog! As I am already a keen blogger, I have gladly accepted the role of Blog Manager. I will be listening out for languages-related news in the press, achievements in languages of our students and reviews and write-ups of language events. I will be looking to meet with students who have anything that they would like to add. For now, though, bis zum nächsten Mal!

Why Learn Languages - (USA)

2010-11-04T09:20:00.000-07:00

We are way behind in adding this to the blog (this video is from July 2008!), however related to current times nonetheless. Barack Obama illustrates the need for the American population to learn more languages. Interesting debates ensued in the American news highlighting language being very close to identity.

Languages in Exciting Future Career Choice

2010-11-04T03:59:00.001-07:00

Below is a write up by Abigail, one of our year 13 English Literature students, who is applying to do a Linguistics degree for her future career choices. This highlights cross curricular links between English and Modern Foreign Languages and the place that they both hold in an exciting career choice. Enjoy!

I have always had a fascination with language and have been interested in how it works and is pieced together. Studying English Language at A Level has made me want to pursue with this into further education. However I have been looking at courses in linguistics. This will mean I am analysing language and looking at how it works, it is the science of language. There is an opportunity to choose some Modern Foreign Languages as modules as this helps when analysing texts in such intricate detail.
In some of the courses I have chosen at university there is a chance to study Forensic Linguistics as a module. This is what I have a true passion for and wish to go into after I finish my degree.

Forensic Linguistics is analysing language for the police. When text messages, emails or letters are involved they can be analysed in order to discover more about the crime being investigated. Also using forensic phonetics, interviews with suspects can be analysed in great detail to help in the same way. This is a fairly new branch of police investigation and has enhanced the ways in which they can solve crime. I am currently carrying out an EPQ on the topic so that I can make sure that it is something that I really do want to do as a career but also so that universities can see that I have a real interest in language outside my core A Level study.

Oxford Language Competition Success

2010-11-04T03:50:00.000-07:00

Below is wonderful write up by Jessica, one of our year 12 students who studies AS German with Miss Sheehan, regarding a recent success that they had concerning languages. Enjoy!

On Wednesday 20th October, my parents and I spent a lovely day in Oxford. The reason for this was my success in the “Think Kafka” competition, which was organised by the Modern and Medieval Languages Faculty of Oxford University.
I was sent a link concerning the competition in May by Miss. Sheehan. I immediately decided to enter, mainly because I was eager to find out more about German literature. I also thought it would be a good way to have a break from revising for my GCSEs...
I had heard of the German writer Kafka, but in reality I knew little of his life or his work. There were three categories: “The Best Translation of a Kafka Story”, “The Best Essay on a Kafka Story” and “The Best Creative Response to a Kafka Story”, of which I chose the latter. This was mainly because I had no idea how I would go about writing an essay about one of the stories, and I had little inclination of how to do a translation.
Each of the categories offered a choice of two stories. Of the two that I had to choose between, I chose “Ein Kommentar”, because I immediately saw how I could interpret it as a metaphor for life. After reading it several times and a discussion with Miss. Sheehan, I decided to continue the story. I chose to write it in German, mainly because it felt more natural and I had had little previous opportunity to use the language creatively.
Writing my response was quite difficult; it was tricky to structure it, and I had to teach myself much of the grammar I needed, for it is not usually taught at GCSE level. Several redrafts later, my story was ready to send.
Winners were to be notified a week after the closing date. On that day I was travelling to Elbeuf on the school work experience exchange, so I forgot all about it. It was not until the Saturday morning, when I was strolling peacefully along the pavement in Rouen with my exchange partner and her family, that my Dad rang me. As he read the letter to me over the phone, I learnt that I was a joint runner up in the competition! Having never succeeded in any form of competition before, I started jumping around in excitement, an excitement which quickly decreased when I realised that I would now have to explain in French why I was so happy.
I could not really bring myself to believe it fully though, until I was able to hold the letter in my hands myself. It was only when I popped into school to tell them the news that I realised the significance and importance of what I had achieved.
After a summer of attempting to read Goethe, the day to visit Oxford swiftly arrived. Having known a couple of people who had studied at Oxford, and having considered the prospect myself, I was eager to visit. Despite thinking about it quite a bit, I really had no preconceptions of what it was going to be like.
The first part of my prize was to have lunch at Jesus College. Just walking into a college was fantastic; the building was beautiful and felt so steeped in history. There were ten of us in total, as well as a few current students and lecturers, so we started off by introducing ourselves. This was when I found out I was the youngest by a whole year, which surprised me quite a bit. The idea of the lunch was so that we would be able to get to know one another prior to the evening reception. As we ate, we had a variety of discussions, most of which lead back to German.
The ceremony begun with a speech about the importance of learning languages, and the often lucrative careers that language graduates can enjoy. Then, Kafka’s great nephew made a speech. I was surprised to learn that he does not speak any German, despite being a relation of one of the most prolific German writers ever. He then presented the prizes. I received a personalised copy of Kafka’s “Die Erzählungen”, which includes all the stories used in the competition, as well as a postcard and £20.
After taking some photographs, we had the chance to look at the actual manuscripts of the stories. Although they were in a glass case, it was amazing to see the paper which Kafka actually wrote on, and fun to try to decipher the words which had been crossed out.
Soon afterwards, it was sadly time to leave. I am extremely glad that I had this opportunity, for not only has it left me with a clear sense of my aims for the future, but it has also given me new ideas for how I can explore literature in other languages. I have been inspired by meeting the other prize-winners and sharing our passion for languages.

Importance of Languages NEWS FLASH

2010-10-14T04:02:00.000-07:00

The recent media coverage of the Chilean miners rescue has highlighted the importance of languages in the global community. You only had to witness Tim Wilcox, prized journalist for the BBC, switching effortlessly into Spanish in order to interview the family of a miner and then translating the conversation back into English again for the viewers at home, to understand how much of an asset his knowledge of Spanish was to the BBC at this crucial time and indeed, for making him, usually the studio anchorman, the ideal man for the job abroad.

"And the other secret weapon the BBC had was its remarkable on-site anchor, Tim Wilcox. He is normally an anchor on the domestic BBC News channel but he was sent to Chile three weeks ago and he showed a remarkable change in persona anchoring on-site rather than from the studio. It was obvious how well he knew his story, that he knew and had spoken to all those involved – officials, family, and the like, his Spanish was impeccable in being able to interview family members and officials live and give instant translation – he was just so natural." (http://followthemedia.com/writeon/bbcchile14102010.htm)

His Twitter feed also shows the benefits of his language knowledge, as well as the power of Web 2.0 technologies:

Just spoke to the father of the first miner expected up, Florencio Avalos. Father Alfonso says he is excited but anxious.
1,286,908,596,000.00 via web

Interpreters were also important in the international communication process of the rescue attempt:

The voice of an interpreter on hand to translate the words of the miners and rescuers for the English-speaking audience watching at home, could sometimes be heard directing the miners to get out of the way of the camera set up to beam images across the planet.
http://www.nowtoronto.com/daily/story.cfm?content=177177

Interpreters were also used to communicate Presidential speeches abroad, and Chile's President, Sebastian Pinera, even showed up or own PM by speaking to him in fluent English.

All in all languages were at the heart of international affairs. So if you want to get ahead in the world - learn languages!

European Week of Languages Videoconference

2010-10-07T06:09:00.000-07:00

On the 28th September 2010 we (a year 8 French class) conducted a videoconference with our partner school in France: Lycée André Maurois in Elbeuf, near Paris. We focused on the topic of careers - the chosen topic for European Week of Languages. This was not the first videoconference we have done jointly with our French partner school, and so this time the official language was English. The French side asked us questions about our future career choices and whether that would need languages or not. Our answers formed a listening exericise that they completed the other side.

Here are some of the pupil reviews...

Lara: On the 28th of September 2010 we had a video conference to France. We prepared answers to the questions they asked us. We answer these three questions in English we took it in turns to answer. I enjoyed getting the chance to see how alike our two schools are. All in all it was a great opportunity.

Holly: …I feel a bit more confident about speaking out loud to other people now. …It was cool to see what schools are like in different countries. … I gained a lot out of the video conference and I would love to do it again some other time!

Anna: … I found out what it was like to talk to somebody French, and it was interesting to hear how they spoke English. It was the first time I had seen a video conference with France.

Frederica: It was good practice to speak to them in English and speak loudly and clearly because this skill will probably be used in your job when you are older.

Emilia: The video conference was a lot of fun and a great experience to see how they learn languages in other countries like France. I would most definitely like to do another conference with the school in Elbeuf again as it was a very amusing and unique experience.

Freya: I found the video conference really interesting because we got to hear real French people speak to us and hear their accents! It was also a really good opportunity because we could answer questions and the class felt involved in the link between the schools. I really enjoyed it because I have never spoken or heard a French student before and also I found it was a really fun activity in class and a good way to learn.

Eleanor: …it was very interesting to hear how the French speak our language. I have learnt to speak clearly when speaking to people and I have also learnt that it is important to have your answers prepared … Also, that you should not speak into your book and that you should speak directly into the camera.

Olivia: The video conference was a great opportunity for us to practise public speaking…

Sophie: … I have now learnt how to speak clearly and slowly so people can understand you and also how to keep eye contact with that person through the web cam.

Grace: I would definitely like to do this again because it was really fun and is a good way of learning French pronunciation.

Ella: I think the video conference, was a very fun and educational experience. It gave us the opportunity to practice speaking to real French people, and it taught us how to speak at a steady pace and confidently.

Zara: I really liked taking part in the video conference as I enjoyed listening and speaking to French people... I also liked the fact you can have a link with a school so far away.

Molly: Even though it was in English it gave us a chance to see what other schools in different countries are like and their similarities and differences. Over all it was a great opportunity and I really enjoyed it… I would love to do it again.

Abigail 2: I think that the video conference was a brilliant experience; it gave us a chance to speak to some French people inside school as well as getting to use some new technology.

Katya: I think the video conference was educational and…it is better if you look directly at the camera and watching it back I can see this is the mistake that most people made.

Jessica: I enjoyed the video conference a lot because it was a good experience talking to different students from another country.

Year 8 voki project

2010-07-16T04:50:00.000-07:00

Year 8 class talking about their hobbies in French. ( Miss Figueira)

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

Get a Voki now!

Year 6 Induction day 8 July 2010

2010-07-08T00:29:00.000-07:00

Today we welcome those year 6 students who will be with us in year 7 in September for an induction day. Our current year 7's have written some post cards for them to welcome them into the school and their future MFL studies. Here are some examples...

Win a Trip to Galicia!

2010-07-01T00:10:00.000-07:00

The Spanish Tourist Office and the Consejería de Educación have launched a competition on the Camino de Santiago. The competition is open to primary and secondary school teaching staff in UK schools providing Spanish as a foreign language.
Entries should consist of ideas to develop school projects and activities aimed at disseminating the history, geography and cultural legacy of the “Camino de Santiago”. Entries must be submitted by the 28th of September by e-mail to info.uk@educacion.es.

Prizes:
Schools submitting a proposal will receive a set of reading material.
The teacher presenting the winning project will be awarded a trip to Galicia for two people, including flights and accommodation for either
- A 7 day walking trip on the “Camino de Santiago inglés” (110 kms approx)
- or a 4 night stay to visit the cities of La Coruña and Santiago de Compostela.
The winner will be announced on the 31st of October 2010.

Further information is available from the websites of:
- Spanish Tourist Office
http://www.spain.info
e-mail: info.londres@tourspain.es
Tel. 0207 486 8077

Consejería de Educación
http://www.educacion.es/exterior/uk
e-mail: info.uk@educacion.es
Tel. 0207 727 2462

Additional information on El Camino de Santiago and Galicia:
Turgalicia
http://www.turgalicia.es
Xacobeo
http://www.xacobeo.es/en
The Confraternity of St James
http://www.csj.org.uk

Wiki Presentations Year 10 French

2010-05-20T04:01:00.001-07:00

Today we started work on some oral presentations in year 10 French. We used a Wiki which had the task instructions on a welcome page, then the students had their own personal pages to write their preparation work on. Online based work means the teacher gets access to multiple students' work in one place and is able to see immediately at what stage the student is at. Student's can also see the work of their peers for ideas to improve their own. A "Comments" facility enables the students to ask questions to the teacher who can answer them directly. This provides another avenue of communication of the student were to be unable to find the teacher during the school day for example. The students were very motivated especially at the prospect of being able to peer correct each other's work. We will continue to experiment with capabilities of Wikis as the project develops. (We have kept the Wiki closed to public access for child protection purposes).

Madamoiselle Hardman

Spanish Essay Competition

2010-04-28T08:17:00.000-07:00

Our Spanish GCSE students were invited to enter an essay competition organised by the Instituto Cervantes, in collaboration with the Consejería de Educación on the occasion of the International Book Day. The theme of the essay was the Don Quijote in your life.

Amy, in Year 11, entered this competition and her essay has been published in the Instituto Cervantes blog. Congratulations!!! This is the link

Flashmeeting Overcomes Volcano Hurdle

2010-04-20T06:06:00.000-07:00

How exciting! As our Swiss German language assistant has been unable to return to the UK for the new term, due to the volcanic ash from Iceland cancelling her flight, many of our 6th formers have been left without the specific 1-to-1 input in the target language. However, to overcome this we have set up a test Flashmeeting videoconference today between Swiss German and the Weald of Kent students that were scheduled to meet with her today. Trouble shooting issues were over come, (sending out the Flashmeeting booking link to students and languages assistant alike, testing available headphones, and ensuring students were familiar with how to work the software) and a successful videoconference is taking place as we type...!

UPDATE: Feedback from the students suggests that Flashmeeting is an effective videoconferencing tool as the assistant could use the "Chat" function (instant messaging) to type any words that the students found difficult to understand from listening to the spoken word.

It definately created a buzz in the corridor as other students waiting for the next lesson could see the videoconference taking place.

We will be setting up a schedule of Flashmeeting videoconferences for the remaining time that our assistant will be away.

Successful Videoconference with France!

2010-04-11T09:25:00.000-07:00

On the 31/03/10 we held a successful videoconference between the French and English sides of our French work experience exchange. We set up 15 web cams on our side, with the students sharing in pairs, whilst the French side used one web cam interchanging the students as they took their place to speak. Time was tight given the only mutually convenient time was 8.30 am to 9.00am that morning. However, 10 of the students from the Weald of Kent Grammar School held conversations in French with their corresponding partners in France. The English students used the time to ask questions in French to the French students about their on coming stay in France in June. At first the students were nervous to take part and speak on camera, however, they were eventually encouraging us to use as much of the time as possible to allow as many students to take part. All in all a successful videoconference which we hope to follow up with another before June so the French side can practise their English.

This has been a very successful use of our recent purchase of 15 web cams for the MFL department and we hope to integrate their use into other exchanges across the department. Videoconferences provide authentic language experiences for our students to develop their confidence with languages.

JAPAN TRIP FEBRUARY 2010

2010-03-17T05:11:00.001-07:00

Going to Japan was a surreal cultural experience. The sites in Japan are unique and spectacular, the Buddah was especially amazing. Having stayed in Tokyo, Miyajima and Kyoto we experienced the hospitality of the Japanese people everywhere we went. As a group we were welcomed into their society and took part in several traditions and routines. Japan was the best experience, especially staying with the host families as you could get a real feel for Japanese culture, which was very different to England. The fact that you have so many different shoes to wear in houses and hotels and also the food was a new, exciting experience. Going to Japan was a trip none of us will forget.

Year 11 GCSE group

Year 9 French Assessment

2010-03-15T07:25:00.000-07:00

Bonsoir 9D!

For your homework I'd like you to assess the below pieces of work (call them A, B and C going down the page). Please award each piece of work a mark according to the Edexcel writing assessment criteria (Communication and Content / 15, Knowledge and Application of Language /10, and Accuracy /5)Bear in mind that you only see this shapshot and they may have added other tenses / detail further down / on the otherside, but just go on what you see here. Merci!
Mademoiselle Hardman

Year 8 level 5-6 Spanish classwork

2010-03-11T02:39:00.000-08:00

Today we have been analysing how we did in a recent piece of written classwork entitled ¿Qué hiciste?. Here are two examples. What level would you mark them at? If the mark is shown, do you agree? Why/Why not?

Videoconference second stage success!

2010-03-08T09:00:00.000-08:00

Success! We have just completed another test videoconference with one of our partner schools in France. Last time it was from our home addresses to familiarise but this time we based ourselves at our respective schools. We were excited to find that both sides were able to load photos (excuse the picture of a bucket - it was just a test!) and URL's for the other side to see. This will be great when asking the French party of students to provide photos of where the English students will be staying and useful websites of their home town. Next step the conference itself!
Miss Hardman & Mr Oakley

9B Spanish Avatars

2010-02-23T04:11:00.000-08:00

¡Hola! Today we have been setting up Avatars for future use with online projects. They form part of our awareness of being safe online. Here are the results for 9B!:

Videoconference Preparations

2010-02-17T02:27:00.000-08:00

In the languages dept we have been practising with Flashmeeting - and online videoconference tool - in order to link with our exchange partners inbetween visits. Miss Sheehan and Miss Figueira have both been getting to grips with it, and Miss Hardman has been also practising with a teacher in France involved with the Elbeuf work experience exchange. Plans are in place to test the technology between the English and French school sites, with the student videoconference planned prior to our visit to France in June.

year 11 AS cinema project

2010-02-04T08:34:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow we will be recording some cinema reviews in French

Il Neige!

2010-01-07T07:28:00.000-08:00

Don't forget that there are useful links on the right hand side of this blog which give you access to language learning websites, daily news channels and exam board information etc... Plenty to keep you busy in those moments when the initial excitement about the snow is beginning to wane!

The MFL Dept

Comme d'habitude!

2010-01-04T02:06:00.001-08:00

To start our year off we, in year 10 French 2.1, have been finding ways to remember various phrases and Claude François has helped us on our way! Good singing 10 2.1!

9B Las Tiendas de ropa dialogues

2009-12-17T04:00:00.001-08:00

Today we peer assessed our shopping dialogues. Add your What Went Well comments and your Even Better If comments below. Sound files will be added to this post later...

Miss Hardman

Year 10 Au Camping

2009-12-08T01:39:00.000-08:00

Here is some of our year 10 work on the topic "Out and About" where pupils had to design an advert for a camping site. I have given comments but written on the rearside of these pieces as they seemed too nice to write on! Why don't you add comments below.

New Flag pictures!

2009-12-04T06:46:00.001-08:00

7D have been helping to create their own versions of foreign flag pictures for the blog. Look below on the right hand menu to see the examples. We have put the French one up today (thank you student "AR KA$H" ). More to follow... :o)

8S Spanish Invitation Dialogue Medley

2009-12-03T12:43:00.000-08:00

¡Hola!

Today we recorded some dialogues in Spanish using our Easi-Speak microphones. The sound files were then combined into a medley using Audacity software and then uploaded to our Podcast. Listen to the podcast entry for today's date and leave some comments below.

What do you think the students did well (WWW) and what could they improve on (EBI)?

Señorita Hardman

Languages Laboratory - Teacher review

2009-11-26T04:36:00.000-08:00

I loved our lessons in our languages laboratory today. My year 10 pupils had the opportunity to record a conversation complaining about a campsite that they had stayed at. This followed on from a written homework of the same nature. Each pupil then listened to another pupil's recording. They were provided with the Edexcel speaking criteria and a peer assessment sheet where they could comment on their partner's achievements within this speaking activity. Well done to all of them for their hard work today.

Miss Hardman

Spanish Verbs

2009-11-17T14:17:00.001-08:00

Having problems with your Spanish verbs? Check out the below!

(Miss Hardman)

Homework / Les Devoirs / Los Deberes... by Miss E Hardman

2009-11-09T13:33:00.000-08:00

This is a great site - based on a recent discussion I had with one of my year 10 French class I've called my wall "Homework / Les Devoirs / Los Deberes" - what kind of languages homework would you like to do? Click on "Post a sticky" to add your ideas. (UPDATE - due to an error I have recreated the wall - thanks to those who added ideas previously but unfortunately we could not see them. Please try again! Thank you - Miss Hardman)

RSS Feeds - RTL.fr

2009-11-06T11:02:00.000-08:00

Want to listen to French Radio online? Check out this link to various RSS feeds for "RTL.fr - a French radio station.

Écoutez bien! RSS

Blogtastic!

2009-10-07T13:12:00.001-07:00

Here at Weald we see the value of blogs a source of information to the wider community. Hence the launch of our WoK to Weald MFL Transition blog! Do take a visit to check out our virtual tour which our year 10 "Les Langues et la Technologie" students put together in July 2009. See also the student reviews on the making of the virtual tour earlier in this blog.

Why Learn Languages?

2009-10-04T05:08:00.000-07:00

We often hear the "Why learn languages?" cry when people rely on English as being one of the current international languages. However, one must be careful in setting presumpions about the prowess of English in the world's eyes, especially when you are not on your own home turf (WARNING: this makes uncomfortable watching):

"Just imagine a German Reporter demanding that our own Mr Milliband, his counterpart, answers his questions in German!" José Picardo, Teacher, Nottingham High School

European Day of Languages 26th September 2009

2009-09-28T06:10:00.000-07:00

This week our year 9 French students are celebrating the European Day of Languages by entering a French poetry competition! See some of the results below:

Poetry Competition 2009-10

See more presentations by wok20mfl Upload your own PowerPoint presentations

You can read more about the European Day of Languages at the Council of Europe's website.

Les Languages et La Technologie - UPDATE

2009-09-09T15:05:00.001-07:00

At the end of last term we had a successful videoconference with Mascalls Secondary School. The pupils presented their schools in French and played buzz word bingo on the topic of Careers and Work Experience. This was a timely topic as both sides of students were about to embark, or had just embarked upon their work experience placements. Students also learned about Videoconference etiquette and presentation skills.

A successful videoconference needs careful preparation and organisation, and the students demonstrated professionalism and teamwork throughout. We look forward to holding more in the future.

Mr Oakley checking the webcam...

...and Miss Sheehan helping to test the equipment prior to the videoconference.

Intercultural Understanding

2009-09-09T14:40:00.001-07:00

Check out this video link: Eels

As we welcome our new year 7's we are embarking on a transition project which includes looking at Intercultural Understanding. This is reflected in the KS2 Framework for Languages and we hope to build upon students learning in this area as they start their KS3 language studies.

Year 10 German Exchange, May 2009

2009-09-02T05:57:00.000-07:00

Our Year 10 students went to stay with their German partners from the Beethoven Gymnasium, our German partner school in Bonn, in May this year. Luckily we had great weather most of the time so our excursions were really good. We went on a double-decker train from Bonn to Düsseldorf where we saw the really expensive shops as well as visiting the 21st century art museum.

Some students went with their families to Fantasialand which is one of the biggest theme parks in Germany and others went to Aqualand which is a huge water park.

Another day out was a trip down the river Rhine by coach to a picturesque village called Bacharach where we embarked on a cruise boat and sailed up river to the Marksburg castle. The picture shows a view from the castle battlements down on to the river. It is one of the few castles in Germany which has furniture and interior decoration. We saw the medieval kitchen, the bedroom complete with a very short bed with curtains (they believed you should not sleep lying down in case you did not wake up again) and a baby’s crib, cannons with their muzzles pointing down to the river, a herb garden and the torture chamber.

We went to the school one morning which was very different from Weald of Kent, not least because it started at 8am and finished at 1.15. On our last day we took the train again, this time to Cologne. Lots of us climbed to the top of the cathedral tower which was over 400 steps and from where, once we had got our breath back, we had a fantastic view over the city. We then had time to look around the shopping streets and spend the rest of our money.

The students had a great time with their partners and families and learned such a lot of German during their stay.

Work Experience in France - Student Feedback

2009-07-14T09:24:00.001-07:00

Let me first start by saying that I never chose Weald of Kent aged eleven because it specialised in languages, but by the end of year ten I found that language was definitely something that I wanted to be a part of my future, and in comparison to other schools in our area Weald of Kent offers the most outstanding opportunities for language students. One of which is doing work experience in France.

Although the emphasis of ‘work experience’ is usually the aspect of ‘work’ I found that the entire ‘experience’ was what made the trip particularly rewarding. Working in France really offers a unique insight into a completely different way of life and gives a rare opportunity to really appreciate another culture. I found my colleagues more than enthusiastic to talk to me about the way things work in France and, having actually experienced it for myself, I now understand and appreciate it to a level far above and beyond just reading from a textbook. As I personally worked in two different placements, a town hall and a library, I was also able to experience as much as possible in a short space of time.

Needless to say, in terms of language I feel much improved and more than anything a lot more confident in my skills which I feel will do nothing but help me as I begin my A2 year of French.
Besides the language and cultural aspect of the trip, it was genuinely fun and even after five years at the same school we all found that we made lots of new friends and memories which are in many ways just as valuable as anything else. It was really one of those experiences that we just didn’t want to end.

I think the scariest thing about the work experience was actually being brave enough to go. This wasn’t helped by the fact that I was met with a look of horror and disbelief whenever I mentioned ‘France’ and ‘work experience’ in the same sentence. However, once I was there I felt completely supported by my colleagues, French family, friends and teachers. Everyone in the workplace seemed just as interested in “une anglaise” as I was in them and although I was sad to leave, I know that I made international connections that are invaluable for my future in languages. Alice yr 11 2009

In June 2009 I took part in one of the biggest challenges of my life so far. I spent a week in Elbeuf, France on work experience at a local primary school. Having decided not to carry on French after GCSE in year 10 along with the rest of the people on the exchange, I was pretty nervous, however I was thankful that I was paired up with an AS student.

As we walked across the playground for the first time, the children were all amazed. It was as if we were aliens. They pointed and whispered “L’Anglais”. This interest in us did not die down over the week though. You could guarantee that that at each break or lunch there would be a small (or large) group of group of children gathered round you, keen to try out their best English, asking who you’re going to eat lunch with or whether Mr Oakley is your dad or simply babbling on in French about their favourite music or hobbies.

Throughout the week we travelled round each class in the school, ranging from five and six year olds up to eleven and twelve year olds. In each class we would introduce ourselves in English and answer some of their questions the best we could, even when one asked us, “is this a cat?” We would then teach them a bit of English and even teach them English songs such as “heads, shoulders, knees and toes” which became very popular and was requested all round the school by both teachers and students. We also had fun reading them books and teaching them English games which proved very hard to explain, especially in French. On the last day at the school, I even had to write about 20 autographs!

This trip was not only great fun but was also very rewarding when you improve their English and your own French. It is also very rewarding when you get home and realise that you survived a working week in a foreign country, and enjoyed it! I would recommend this trip to anyone who wishes to gain valuable work experience. Chloe Yr 11 2009

I have to admit, during the weeks leading up to the exchange, I did wonder occasionally how I was ever going to make it through a week in a French Primary school, but now I can’t believe I ever had doubts!

The most rewarding thing about working in the primary school was the reception that the children gave me. I was amazed at just how attentive they were while I taught them “Baa- Baa Black sheep,” read them “Little Red Riding Hood,” and answered their questions about England. It made me feel very proud that they would come up to me during play-time and sing “Baa- Baa Black Sheep” back to me, as it proved that they had really listened and enjoyed my teaching. At first, it was extremely difficult to understand their questions when they all tried to talk to me at once in very excited, quiet French! However, by the end I found that most of the time I could understand their questions, and was used to hearing variations on the question “comment dit-on … en anglais?” at least fifty times a day!

I was very sad to leave the pupils and teachers of Ecole Louis Pergaud, and was overwhelmed by the number of children that surrounded me for a goodbye kiss when I was leaving, asking when I was coming back, and waving pictures they had drawn for me and notes on the theme “MADDY, JTM!” (JTM being an abbreviation of Je T’aime) and so I received a solid education in French text language too!

Even if at first doing my work experience in France seemed like a daunting prospect, in the end it was absolutely worth it! Not only am I more confident in speaking and understanding the French language, but I have also improved my overall confidence, and made new friends. Maddie Yr 11 2009

When the opportunity of going to France came up I jumped at the chance. I got rather excited about going to France, the week before the French exchanges arrived for their week in England. I immediately formed a friendship with my exchange partner. This was just one less thing that I would have to worry about. At this point the work experience part hadn’t registered into my mind properly yet. Then it dawned on me I would actually have to speak French in a French School. The idea seems very daunting, however I was reassured by friends who had already been through the experience, that it is a wonderful experience working in a foreign country. I got rather apprehensive as my first day at work became closer and closer. It began on Monday 22nd June. The minute I stepped on to the playground of “Ecole Elementaire de la Londe” I felt an enormous welcome from the children. They swarmed like bees around me. I was the “new” person at the school. They were obviously prepared. The members of staff greeted me and I introduced myself.

The first class I went into was CM1, the English equivalent of Year 5. Their first lesson with Madame Duhamel was French. I thought to myself great getting to learn French in a primary school, little did I know that the French language had more tenses than I could ever imagine. The “Passe Simple” could not have possibly confused me more. Next was Maths a subject you can understand in almost any language, decimals was their first assignment.

During the course of the week children would come up to me to ask rather childish questions for example “How do you say Lucie in English?” They all expected something extravagant, but was quite disappointed to find out there wasn’t that much of a difference. There were so many great memories with the children that I hope to cherish. I was also able to visit CM2, equivalent to year 6. They seemed more mature, I was given the opportunity to help with their English lesson which was a brilliant experience. I found out that for 11 year olds their level of English was much higher than mine in primary school or even at the age of eleven. I probably just managed to say “Hello, my name is...”. I found it rather odd that in the school that English is a big part of their curriculum. Another fond memory that will definitely be kept is when I showed a picture of the Royal Family, they were able to pick out the Queen. The teacher then asked “What is Buckingham Palace?” One child put their hand up very confidently said “It’s a Casino.” Then another child shouted “No it’s a Hotel.” At this point the teacher, rather embarrassed reassured the two children that it was neither a casino or a hotel it is in fact the Queens’ residence. Later they thoroughly took advantage of my presence, they began to quiz me on my Chinese background. The question varied from “Why do Chinese family prefer boys?” to “Can you sing the Chinese alphabet? ”, which doesn’t exist. It was a pleasure to be able to explain and let them explore a different culture although I had never thought of it before.

Luckily I was also able to interact with CE1 and CP, children aged 6 and 7. They were an entirely different experience from the older kids, they required more patience and attention. I had the opportunity to read to them which they enjoyed very much.

Along with patience one of the key skills that you need with children, I have also improved my confidence levels as I was required to be confident in introducing myself and be confident in my French. The experience has improved my French speaking , along with my French listening. Another skill I have definitively improved is being flexible. I was not given much notice about what class I was going to or what I was doing so I had to adapt what I had to what age children I was teaching.

The whole experience lasted just 4 days but it has made me consider working with children. I have learnt many skills during this work experience the most important one especially with children is patience and understanding. In conclusion this was a truly awesome experience, to be able to work in a foreign country is a feat in itself. The opportunity to see how a school works is another. I would recommend this to anyone who is looking to work in abroad in the future as there is a choice of place to work or specifically working with kids in general. It was a once in a lifetime experience that I would recommend to everyone. Maggie Yr 11 Student

On Saturday 20th June 2009 I went to France, near Elbeuf on an exchange and for work experience. As I had not studied A/S French it was a daunting experience but my language came back to me and improved drastically!

My French exchange partner and I grew a fantastic friendship and although our language limited conversations sometimes, we helped each other and learnt a lot from each other. We have arranged future exchanges and visits as we do not want to lose contact and it will continue to build and improve my French.

The work experience aspect of the trip was also extremely valuable. Working with the French children was thoroughly enjoyable and gave me a chance to see how small children express themselves differently to teenagers and adults. Although the pupils spoke fast, it tested my French and gave me a chance to use my language in a working environment. When working with the children I was able to teach them English songs such as ‘heads, shoulders, knees and toes’, games and I worked through worksheets with them that I had made for them to learn English vocabulary. I also helped teach maths and physical education in French and was able to work one on one with an autistic child who refused to work and I helped him with his maths work.

All in all, the trip was a fantastic experience and something I would thoroughly recommend. Not only did my language improve but I learnt a lot about French culture and how a French school runs. The exchange was brilliant! Abbi Yr 11 2009

WOK YEAR 7s - why learning languages is fun

2009-07-13T15:12:00.000-07:00

What we like about languages at Weald of Kent!!!
Hello! What we like about learning languages at Weald of Kent is that the lessons are not just boring writing and copying, but we do drama, posters, projects and many more interesting things to get the new language into our brains to help us in later life
Katrina and Ellen

I think that German is great and didn’t think it would be as good as it has been.

MFL @ W.O.K IS FUN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Emma

I find German not too difficult and fun to learn. I like learning new words with different meanings. I think it is hard to learn verb endings but the posters and leaflets make it easier to remember. It is nice to be able to say things that people don’t understand. We also use great websites like KLAR and LINGUASCOPE. Valerie

WHY I WANT TO CARRY ON LEARNING JAPANESE

2009-07-13T15:10:00.000-07:00

I have really enjoyed learning Japanese over the past two years as it has been interesting and fun, I have learnt a lot and have found out a vast amount about Japanese culture as well as the language.
We have done 4 external exams to get certificates. I liked doing this as it gets you used to the pressure of exams and I also got the chance to make sure that I knew and understood all of the new vocabulary that I have learnt.
I have learnt so much in the past two years. When I came to Weald in September 2007 I didn’t know any Japanese and now I know a lot of vocabulary. I have also learnt hiragana, katakana and kanji. This has been difficult at times but very interesting and is good to now know even though sometimes I still get stuck on a few symbols that I need to learn a bit more to enable me to use them with more confidence.
I have chosen to carry on with Japanese and take it for GCSE. I chose to continue with it because it is an interesting language and this way I can embrace learning even more and not forget what I have learnt in the previous couple of years. I have learnt so much Japanese now that I just want to know more.
In Year 10 or 11 there is a Japanese trip and I cannot wait for that and I am looking forward to the next three years in Japanese.

Melissa Year 8

STARTING JAPANESE

2009-07-12T13:52:00.000-07:00

This is what Year 7 students say about learning Japanese at Weald...

"At first I thought that Japanese would be really difficult but now I've been doing it for a whole year it's not. I actually understand the language! The most difficult part was learning hiragana. English only has 26 letters. Hiragana is over 46 symbols and sounds."

"I found travel easiest to learn. I found remembering the 46 hiragana the hardest."

"Interesting and fun things about Japanese: playing games while learning, working in groups, doing origami, creating things, being able to write hiragana with fun added!"

"At first I thought Japanese was going to be really hard but by the time I was on my 5th lesson I found it easier. We learnt about nationality and pets which were fun to learn, as everything is."

"At WOK Japanese is great fun and extremely interesting. It gives us a chance not only to learn the language but to explore their culture as well. Learning the Japanese script has been interesting but very challenging as there are 4 Japanese alphabets! (hiragana, kanji, katakana and romaji!!) At the start of the year most of us knew little to no Japanese, but now we can confidently give a short speech about ourselves to the entire class!"

Listen to some of our interviews!

http://mbm-wok.podomatic.com/entry/2009-07-12T14_55_05-07_00
http://mbm-wok.podomatic.com/entry/2009-07-12T14_43_30-07_00

Project 1: Avatars - 2D

2009-07-10T07:30:00.000-07:00

We have been researching the use of Avatars to allow students to have a virtual presence on our blog. Vokis is one way, however we wanted to find a more immediate solution for pupils to add their identity to any text or other work input on the blog. We discovered
Laura Yr 10

Suzi Yr 10

In fact the MFL department went Avatar mad and many a hilarious moment was spent as the staff created their own...

Miss D Schulz - Voki Fever!

2009-07-10T06:24:00.000-07:00

Miss Schulz, one of our German teachers, was so impressed by our year 10's Voki project that she couldn't wait to have a go herself. Check out the results below:

Project 1: Avatars - Student Reviews

2009-07-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

By using the avatar Voki to create a person who speaks French and is set at my school helped me learn new skills in ICT. I now know how to set up my own avatar on a website quickly and easily. I have also learnt how to record my own voice into a small sound clip and upload it to a computer, and then upload that file onto my website as well as a photo of the school too.

The Voki website is useful for students, as you learn new ICT skills for avatars, and can listen to your accent and learn how to pronounce the words correctly.

Becky Yr 10

We created voki’s about our school by using photos of its surroundings such as the foyer, the canteen and the school field, so that they can be used by year 6 pupils to enable an understanding of the feel of the school. As with any new technology we had our issues, for example whilst trying to upload photos to set as our background, it took a while and would not always work.

By using avatars it created a fun tool for learning and incorporated the use of ICT, blogs etc, safely. By creating voki’s it can allow students to become more confident whilst speaking.

Katrina Yr 10

I had never created an Avatar before this and so was unsure what to expect, however I soon found creating Voki’s fun and a good way to improve my French- especially speaking as I could record myself and hear my fluency and pronunciation.

Sometimes the software was difficult to use as it did not always log on or upload backgrounds/sound files correctly. I found this tool useful for student learning as we had never done anything like this before, however it was prone to software difficulties. It was useful for the teacher as they can hear pupil’s pronunciation in the language and how they are in ICT. The software would be useful in other subjects – mainly languages as it would improve the pupils’ language skills.

Laura Yr10

I have never used Voki.com before so was a new experience for me, which I enjoyed greatly. It was useful for student learning because recording my French paragraph helped me improve and practise my French and it also helped me recap the school topic. It is also useful for the teacher because they can listen to my French accent and can watch the progess in my accent. This site would also be useful in art because you could upload your painting/work and talk about it etc It would also be helpful in ICT to help with your IT skills.

Helen Yr 10

Before using Voki.com I did not have an account before. I found using Voki very safe and friendly to use and also fairly easy. Using Voki is useful for student learning because you had the opportunity to speak French after the exam. It is a useful tool for the teacher as it involves the pupils to speak French. For languages Voki is useful and people got to improve the pronunciation of the French words. This website would be useful in other subject, such as Spanish and Japanese. Overall I enjoyed using Voki.

Suzi Yr 10

Using the Web 2.0 tool was user friendly because it was fairly easy to use.
Using the Easy Speak microphones were good because we could record our voices and then the teacher could say on what we could improve on with our accents, and the microphones were easy and effective to use. The teacher can monitor the progress that is being made too. We can practice our accents and our writing skills using the Voki’s and it was quite fun making them into avatars of ourselves. It can be useful for learning in other subjects such as ICT – to practice with technology, Humanities – for research into the subject.

Lucia Yr 10

Using the web tools was easy but it helped that other people already had experience with them. It is useful for what we used it for but I don’t see how vokis could be incorporated into everyday lessons, but something similar would be useful for the other departments too. Another way in which they could be used is in ICT lessons to learn about blogs and avatars. They helped improve our accents and French writing, and would be useful for language teachers to use for this purpose.

Sophie Yr 10

I have never used an account like this before but now that I have I found it very fun. It was use friendly as it was clearly set out with clear instructions. I think it is a good idea for student learning as it can let students from other schools or primary schools look at what are school looks like through the backgrounds and they can hear our opinions on the school. It is useful for teachers as it is a fun way to engage students with talking about the school. I think it is useful for languages because it’s a fun way to speak and present different languages. It could also be used in many other subjects such as English where people could talk about recent books that they have read in class with a picture of the book in the background. It could also be used to show other students what they have been doing in Drama.

Sasha Yr 10

[Read Harri's review on the previous post below...]

Harri Yr 10

I have enjoyed using the Voki’s, as they are fun to use and was a different way to use our knowledge of French. I think that they would be useful for younger students who have just started learning the language, as it is an interesting way to learn and it encourages them to use what they are learning.

Vickie Yr 10

I have enjoyed learning about the Voki’s and new forms of ICT I hadn’t heard about it, because they were a fun way of learning and allowed us to continue to use our French even after the exam. I think the Blog and Voki’s will be useful for year 6 students wanting to learn about Weald of Kent languages. It also presents interesting ways in which we learn and work within school.

Alexandra Yr 10

I found the Voki project very enjoyable and useful for our language and confidence skills. Recording our own scripts and characters gave us freedom and helped us with useful French school vocabulary. I really liked using this software as it was easy to use and good for student learning. This was also easy for teachers as it kept us busy and was not complicated. However, I think that this software is best used for languages as it may be too easy to create Vokis in other subjects.

Maddy Yr 10

Les Langues et La Technologie - Student Review

2009-07-09T08:26:00.000-07:00

Technology Project – Harri Yr10

Throughout the past couple of weeks we as a class have been trying, exploring and experimenting with different technology to see how it could improve learning languages at the school.

We started off trying out our language laptops which took a long time to start up. By the time we had logged onto the various web-sites half the lesson had gone and soon after we had to take them back. So the laptops aren’t really a safe bet but once up and running there wonderfully easy to use and very light and portable.

[Note from Miss Hardman: we have discovered a weak link in the wireless connections in the corridor outside this room – we are looking into it over the summer]

After the laptop trial we had a look at “Voki’s” the wonderful animated characters with voices and background pictures! We spent time playing with our various Voki’s first getting to grips with the various faces, cloths and features available. Then we moved onto the more technical aspect… uploading the background and sound. We used photos of the school to upload as our Voki backgrounds. For some students the uploading process happened immediately, for others it took a long time which was a downside to the technology. Finally we wrote French scripts and recorded them using two hand-held easy to use microphones! The voki’s were defiantly fun to use and most of the class had good fun creating rats and elves as well as our final characters.

Year 10 Voki Practise

Uploaded on authorSTREAM by wok20mfl | Upload your own presentation

Now we have moved onto looking at 2D characters called wee-mee’s however due to firewalls at school and various web-site bans we are having problems getting onto the relevant web-site so for now we are just experimenting with Kar2ouche.

Note from Miss Hardman: This is a shame re www.wee-mee.com as this would enable each student to have a 2D virtual identity on this blog without having to use photos. We will investigate further options]

Thank you Harri for a balanced critique of the project so far.

Miss Hardman

Les Langues et La Technologie Project 1: Avatars

2009-06-22T07:02:00.000-07:00

Project 1: Avatars

Hypothesis:
Avatar’s can be used to promote MFL at Weald of Kent.

Aims:
• To provide year 10 post GCSE students with a purposeful context in which they can use their knowledge of French.
• To provide year 6 / primary level pupils with a window into Weald of Kent via visuals, target language audio and humour.

Miss Hardman's example:

Year 10 pupil examples to follow...

Inspiration for this project came from Nodehill Middle School, Newport, Isle of Wight: http://www.nodehillfrench.typepad.com/

Post GCSE French Projects

2009-06-19T07:07:00.000-07:00

We are very excited to be embarking on our Post GCSE Projects with our year 10 French students. Students were allowed to choose between three different projects: "Les Languages et la Technologie", "Le Cinéma Français" et "La Culture Française". We will post up some results of these projects as they evolve...

Year 9 French Exchange, Buc 20-27 May 2009

2009-05-31T01:24:00.001-07:00

On est de retour! We have just come back from another successful exchange trip to Buc near Paris. Instead of the teachers writing up the experience we asked our Weald students to answer a few questions about what they learned about France and the French during their stay.

Enjoy their responses below:

What were our best bits?

The hot weather.
The Paris boat ride.
Visiting Eurodisney.
Visiting the school.
Meeting great new people.
Becoming closer to people.
The P.E. lesson at school.
The Eiffel Tower (4 km high!).
Everything apart from leaving.
Visiting the gardens of Versailles.
Experiencing a different house and lifestyle.
The whole trip was immense and I didn't want to leave.
Visiting Montmartre with my French family on the weekend.
Staying in with my French family in the evenings and playing games.

What new French phrases did we learn?

Vraiment? (Really?)
On y va! (Let’s go!)
Je suis désole (I am sorry)
Je suis fatigué (I am tired)
J’ai une rhume (I have a cold)
À demain (see you tomorrow)
La même chose (the same thing)
De rien (no problem / it’s nothing)
Tourne à gauche/droite (Turn left/right)
Tu as bien dormi? (Did you sleep well?)
Je me suis trompé de chemin (I went the wrong way)
Vous prenez la carte bleue? (Do you accept debit card ?)
As-tu besoin de quelque chose? (Do you need anything ?)
Je regrette, je ne comprends pas. (I’m sorry, I don’t understand)
Je voudrais boire quelque chose (I would like to drink something)
Je voudrais du pain s’il vous plait ( I would like some bread please)
Quand est-ce que je peux prendre une douche? (When can I have a shower ?)

Familiar language

Quoi? (What?)
Salut! (Hi / bye)
Tu veux? (Do you want [some / any]?)
Allez, allez, vite, vite ! (Go / hurry / quickly!)
T’as vu ? - familiar form of : Tu as vu ? (Did you see?)

What did we learn about French culture / way of life?

La Nourriture!
Snails are nice.
They always eat bread.
They eat cereal out of mugs.
They don't drink fresh milk.
They eat cheese at most meals.
They put vinegar on their salad.
They eat a lot later than we do at home.
They drink coffee out of breakfast bowls.
They eat salade either before or after dinner.
They have a starter, main and dessert course every day.

Au collège Martin Luther King
They start school at 8.00 a.m.
The teachers were really strict.
They don't wear a uniform at school.
They aren't allowed to talk in lessons.
They learn history and geography together at school.

En général
The houses are different.
Lots of them speak English.
The French are really hospitable
The toilets are in a different room to the bathroom.
They kiss each other, even when they meet strangers.

Qu'est-ce qui s'est passé?

2009-05-06T15:17:00.000-07:00

Qu'est-ce qui s'est passé? (What's happened?). I'm setting my year 8D class a challenge: use www.toondoo.com to practise and reinforce some of the problems and accidents language that we have been using in class. I'll publish the results below mine entitled "L'Accident".

Note to teachers: www.toondoo.com was a good website visually, motivated the students and allowed them to practise using language in context via the medium of a Web 2.0 tool, but we did encounter some gremlins in the system with it's use.

Miss Hardman

Emma Cushen

Emma Rumgay

Sarah Fisher

Melissa Hudson

Sofia Phillips