Year 6

This week, Year 6 students had the opportunity of learning Spanish and enjoyed their first Spanish taster session with Mr Emery. With Spain being the third most popular country to visit in the World, lots of students were very enthusiastic to learn more about Spain and also learn some basic Spanish.

Classes 13 & 14 were given a short presentation by Inès from Class 13 on her experience being in a Spanish primary school in Gran Canaria. Students were amazed to hear that in Spain and the Canary islands, the school day finishes at lunch time, where school kids go back home for la comida (lunch) and, of course, la siesta!

After a cultural quiz on Spain, students then got to grips with the Spanish language by learning different types of food on the website Linguascope. Within 20 minutes, some students had already mastered the 40 different items of food, ranging from breakfast foods to vegetables and fruits!

The students were then tested on how many different types of food they could remember by playing a whole class quiz on Kahoot.com. Students are given a time-limit to answer each question and are competing against each other for the top score.

After 30 questions, the winners from each class had been established. From class 13, Ben was the overall winner, with Inès second and Peter third.

It’s really cool to try a different language and learn about Spain. Spanish is now my new favourite language! Ben, Class 13, Year 6

From Class 14, Alfie won a very close battle between himself, Juliette and Finn. All three were the only students in class 14 to score 30/30, but Alfie’s faster reaction times saw him eventually come out on top.

Learning Spanish is much easier when you already know some French!  That helped me win today!  Alfie, Class 14, Year 6

Currently, only one third of Britons are now able to hold a conversation in another language. Yet with the budding enthusiasm shown by Penpols’ language stars, there’s a feeling that the tide is turning!

Classes 13 and 14 in Year 6 have been learning about how to describe their home town in French. From learning about their favourite place to visit, as well as places they dislike in their town, both classes have worked hard to master both pronunciation and memorisation of vocabulary. Their final lesson was an opportunity to test their overall confidence with this topic by completing a language challenge on the website Kahoot.com, in the Junior Mac Suite.

Kahoot.com is a website which allows teachers to create an interactive quiz and share it with a whole class, with each student having their own computer to complete the quiz. The twenty questions on places in town is then shared live with the students at the same time and they are given a time limit of 10 seconds to answer a multiple choice question correctly. It enables every student in the class to compete against each other on this topic to get the highest score.

The winner from class 14 was Juliette, who was the only student who managed to answer all questions correctly, scoring 100%, as well as having the quickest reaction time.

Kahoot is so much fun because it tests you against everyone else in the class. I loved it! Juliette- class 14- Year 6

Juliette received a French certificate for her effort and commitment in French.

In class 13, Trystan was also the overall winner, narrowly beating Lola and Will to first place on the podium.

Kahoot is so much fun!  It’s quick and tests you on what you know.  I loved beating my friends! Trystan- class 13- Year 6

Next up for Year 6 will be the Penpol- Lavignolle email exchange. This half term, students will be receiving their first email from students in France from Lavignolle primary school, which is situated in the suburbs of Paris. This will be the perfect opportunity for the students to develop more of a cultural understanding by learning about the differences between French schools and English schools.

“I asked my French penpal which rugby team they supported, so I can’t wait to hear back from them!” Jack- class 13- Year 6.

Watch this space for more on the Penpol- Lavignolle email exchange.

Language lessons at Penpol primary school are already underway as we begin the new academic year.  All classes have already enjoyed their first French lesson this year, with both Mr Emery and Michelle.  Every student has already demonstrated lots of enthusiasm and eagerness to take part, which are key ingredients to having fun and gaining confidence in learning a language.

Reception students have already mastered the action “tire”(pull) and the different animals in French.  Classes 1 + 2 very much enjoyed dressing up and acting out the classic French children’s story, “le navet enorme”(the giant turnip).  Classes 3, 4, 5 + 6 are already enjoying being able to greet each other in French, with lots of students even making it part of their daily routine to greet Mr Emery in French outside the classroom.

Years 2 all the way to 5 have already taken part in singing “Alouette” ( the classic French song about a skylark), showing excellent knowledge of the body parts in French, with actions.

I loved learning about the giant turnip – Hunter – Class 2

Year 6 have the unique opportunity of putting all of the French they have used over the years to the ultimate test: corresponding with their very own French pen pal from a French primary school.  The small school, situated just outside of Paris, have already expressed their excitement about this exchange and are eager to learn more about our Year 6 students.  Watch this space for more news, as Penpol students learn more about French culture and way of life.

With language club now up and running every Thursday, students at Penpol also have the opportunity of learning another language, whether it is extra French practice, or learning numbers 1-10 in Mandarin.

Finally, Penpol school will be celebrating European Day of Languages on Tuesday 26^th September, with all students competing in a whole school languages competition.  The competition will be run by Mr Emery, with the aid of Penpol’s ICT teacher, Mr Woolcock.  The aim will be for students to show-off their foreign language skills, ranging from French to Mandarin.  The winners for each Year group will be rewarded with a prize in an assembly to conclude the action-packed day.

Watch this space for more news from languages over the next few weeks!