MFL at Baxter College

Happy half-term!

It is when you get to the holidays that you have a chance to reflect on things that have been achieved and what a start to the year it has been! We have over 30 students attending our extra-curricular clubs, 100 students who have signed up to come away with us on three different trips we are running and 15 students who played perfect hosts to prospective parents at two of our Open Evenings. And that is just the start of it...we have also celebrated the European Day of Languages, German Unity Day and Spain's National Day and love to showcase students work in our weekly Group Focus.

There is no stopping us now! Be sure to check back in with us next half-term to see what else we have in store for you.

In the meantime, we hope you enjoy a well-earned break.

Group Focus 10AFR1

In Year 10 we have been studying the topic Healthy Living.  It has been really interesting finding out about different peoples eating habits and how much exercise they do.  We did a piece of work talking about the eating habits of French people and the similarities between our 2 nationalities.  We have created a piece of extended writing using adverbs and opinions and have recorded these as an interview in small groups.  By doing this we have not only learnt to develop our writing skills, but we have also grown in confidence with our speaking skills.

 

 

Group Focus 9YML1

In 9YML1 we’ve been working in teams to set up pseudo-companies.  Each company has to plan and design a holiday village in Normandy.  So far, we’ve discussed what makes a good company name, we’ve designed and developed company logos and slogans, and each team has assigned roles to its members and finalised their company’s hierarchical  structure.  The logos and slogans are showcased below. 

 

 

 

 

Which is your favourite?

Fiesta Nacional de España

Spain’s National Day (Fiesta Nacional de España) is celebrated on 12 October. This important national public holiday commemorates the historic re-unification of Spain, and also Christopher Columbus' first successful voyage from Spain to the Americas in 1492.  It marks the emergence of a large Spanish speaking community of more than 350 million people who share language, values, and traditions.

A huge range of popular festivities takes place throughout the day and all shops and businesses remain closed.  This allows everyone to participate in this fiesta in true Spanish style.  Colourful parades are held and streets are decorated with national flags.  Fireworks are held in the evening and traditional dancing takes place late into the night.  İFenomenal!

 
  

Group focus 8YML1

In 8YML1 we have been learning how to talk about free-time activities in Spanish using the verbs jugar (to play), hacer (to do), ir (to go) and ver (to watch). 

  

 

The examples showcased above and below were done by Megan C. and Ophelia J. They demonstrate how we use visual prompts to consolidate our vocabulary work. We have also composed passages of text, which include adjectives and connectives, to describe our hobbies.  We are currently working on incorporating expressions of time, such as todos los días and una vez por semana, into our written and spoken work.  I'm sure you will agree that some great quality work has been produced – excelente!

 

  

 

German Unity Day

Today marks the 19^th anniversary of German Unity Day (Tag der Deutschen Einheit). It is held every year to remember when the Federal Republic of Germany and the Democratic Republic of Germany united to create one single, federal Germany on October 3, 1990.

 

 

Following World War II, the area that was Germany was divided into four military sectors controlled by France, the United Kingdom, the United States and the Soviet Union. On May 23, 1949, the sectors controlled by France, the United Kingdom and the United States became the Federal Republic of Germany. On October 7, 1949, the sector controlled by the Soviet Union became the German Democratic Republic.

 

The two countries developed very different political and economic systems and, due to the political tensions in post-war Europe, there was little contact between the inhabitants of the two countries. A protest against the German Democratic Republic's government occurred in Leipzig on September 4, 1989. More demonstrations took place across the German Democratic Republic.

 

The protests called for political reform and to open the borders. On November 9, 1989, the checkpoints between the two countries were opened and people were allowed to travel freely. This date marked the "fall" of the Berlin wall.

 

These events lead to political change. Democratic elections paved the way for unity in the German Democratic Republic on March 18, 1990. The "Treaty of Unification" was signed by both countries' leaders in August that year. Finally, Germany's unification became official on October 3, 1990.

 

(Source: Time and Date)

Group focus 7YML1

Since September, in 7YML1 we have spent time discussing the history of the French language and its influence on English. We were surprised to learn that roughly two out of every three English words are linked to French, and that English and French words are often very similar. With these cognates, it’s just a question d’accent or a différence de prononciation. 

 

We’ve also looked at why it’s important to learn a language: not only does it improve your communication skills, your cultural knowledge and generally make you a more tolerant person, it’s also a fantastic way to get your brain in shape. Learning a language makes you brainier! 

 

In addition to making new friends from other primary schools, we’ve also met some French personalities, including Emperor Napoléon, Président Sarkosy, Tintin and Milou, Astérix and Le Petit Prince. Click below to hear us greet each other and present ourselves...

 

 

7YML1 1

7YML1 2

7YML1 3

7YML1 4

7YML1 5

7YML1 6

7YML1 7

7YML1 8

European Day of Languages

The European Day of Languages was set up to encourage language learning across Europe. It is celebrated every year on the 26th September. This year we wanted to celebrate it by looking at languages further afield. We decided on Punjabi after a successful visit from our Indian guests Arjot and Ruchira as part the International Inspirations programme.

Arjot spent some time with us in MFL and recorded the following podcasts to give you a quick flavour of the language:

Hello/Goodbye

Arjot's Podcast

I am called Arjot

Arjot's Podcast

How are you?

Arjot's Podcast

Fine - Good - Very good

Arjot's Podcast

Numbers 1 to 10

Arjot's Podcast

Extra-curricular clubs

Monday sees the start of our exciting new extra-curricular programme. It kicks off with Make the grade French with Mrs Wilkin on Monday at 3:15pm. On Tuesday, Mrs Prout runs the German equivalent and on Wednesday Mrs Price is running our Foreign Language Leader Award. We are also very pleased that Mrs Crassus is bringing a little Italian flavour to the Department; on Wednesday she will be running an Italian club and on Thursday a Language Choir.

We hope to see you at one of our clubs!

3 Countries in 5 Days

We are very excited to be able to announce the launch of the 2010 Three Countries Tour to France, Germany and Switzerland. 

Have a look at the photos from two years ago to see what we have planned for 75 lucky students in Years 7 and 8... 

If you like what you see and would like to join us on the tour, come and collect a letter from Mrs Prout in G8.