¡Hola! and Bonjour!
Meet the Team: Our department is led by Ms. Bauer, our Head of Department and a native French speaker. We were thrilled to welcome Miss Ruiz Marmol, a native Spanish speaker, to the team in September. We also have Miss Mistry, who is doing a fantastic job successfully completing her ECT induction. Furthermore, we are supported by Ms. Tomkow, Assistant Vice Principal for Teaching and Learning, who brings her expertise to both our Y9 French and KS4 Spanish classrooms.
Key Stage 3: Building Confidence with Language
This year, we have introduced Sentence Builders across all year groups. This new approach has significantly boosted pupil engagement and allowed pupils to produce high-quality language right from the start of September. It’s been wonderful to see so many pupils settling into their studies with such enthusiasm!
See below some examples of incredible KS3 work in Spanish and French
Year 7: Our youngest linguists have made a brilliant start studying Spanish. They are using sentence builders to describe themselves and their lives with growing confidence.
Year 8: Pupils in Year 8 are continuing their journey in Spanish, building on their prior knowledge to tackle more complex descriptions of free time activities, social media and opinions.
Year 9: This year, Year 9 have made the exciting transition to studying French, mastering pronunciation and syntax as they prepare for the options process.
Digital Learning: Don't forget that pupils can also complete extra homework tasks online on sentencebuilders.com to reinforce their learning and earn extra points!
Key Stage 4: Navigating the New GCSE
It is a landmark year for our Key Stage 4 pupils as we navigate significant changes to the national curriculum.
Year 11: The Trailblazers
Our Year 11 pupils have the distinction of being the first year group to complete the new MFL GCSE specification. This is a brand-new challenge, and we are incredibly proud to announce that they have just successfully completed their speaking exams! This exam counts for 25% of their final grade and Ms Bauer and Ms Tomkow were incredibly proud of their outcomes.
Year 10: The Rising Stars
We also have a very strong Year 10 cohort who will be the second group to tackle this new curriculum. They are already getting to grips with the completely new exam style and showing great promise.
Expert Guidance: Change can be daunting, but please rest assured—all of our staff are fully trained by AQA on this new specification. We are experts in these new requirements and are fully equipped to guide our pupils to success!
Beyond the Classroom: MFL Extra-Curricular
We believe language learning should be fun and immersive! We are delighted to offer a range of clubs to get pupils involved in culture and communication outside of their usual lessons:
Spanish for Beginners:
Monday Lunchtime (Perfect for those wanting a head start or a new challenge!)
Salsa Club: Tuesday After School with Miss Ruiz Marmol (Get moving and learn the rhythms of the Spanish-speaking world!)
Film Club: Wednesday Lunchtime with Miss Mistry (Grab your popcorn and enjoy cinema from around the globe!)
Reading: Why not try reading Le Petit Prince? It is a very famous but simple French story that gives a wonderful observation of human life. You may remember your MFL teachers dressing up as the characters for our recent World Book Day!
Recommendations for Success!
As we move through the academic year, we want to encourage all our pupils to engage with languages at home. Developing a "little and often" habit with language learning can have a profound impact on fluency and memory.
The MFL Department recommends...
Vocabulary Apps: Great for a quick daily blast of practice.
Teach a family member: Take home your revision pack of sentence builders and try teaching someone at home 10 words from it!
Change the Subtitles: Try watching a favourite familiar movie with Spanish or French audio or subtitles.
Cultural Exploration: Try following a simple recipe for Crêpes or Tortilla written in the target language!
By making language a regular part of your routine, you are helping to build a foundation for lifelong communication skills. We look forward to seeing our linguists continue to flourish!
At our academy, we believe that supporting mental health must go beyond discussion; it requires active, meaningful engagement. This past week, we came together to participate in a series of events designed to promote wellbeing, reduce stress, and foster a supportive environment for pupils and staff.
In the academy, pupils participated in a diverse range of activities. For those looking to have fun and express themselves, we hosted two well-attended karaoke and salsa dancing sessions. For those after a moment of quiet reflection, we provided hands-on creative outlets, including air-dry clay workshops, mindful colouring, and our popular Reading Rocks sessions. These activities offered pupils a safe space to practice mindfulness, decompress, and live in the present moment.
Most importantly, we want to thank the staff and pupils who took action; participating in and organising events, and supporting one another throughout the week. While Mental Health Awareness Week is over, our commitment to embedding mental health and wellbeing into the fabric of our daily academy life remains a permanent priority.
To help give our young gardeners the best possible start, we teamed up with Co-op Academy Manchester to bring in a professional advisor.
Thanks to a very generous donation from Panini, many of our pupils were thrilled to get their hands on official football sticker books and sticker packs. These proved to be a huge hit across the year groups! And that’s not all; the usual line-up is still flying off the shelves. Pupils are using achievement points to buy themselves footballs, headphones, cosy blankets, alarm clocks, cuddly toys, and more!
