European Day of Languages

European Day of Languages

On Thursday 26th September, we celebrated France during European Day of Languages.

The celebrations began with an assembly discussing what European Day of Languages is and why we celebrate it. The children were taught some conversational elements and how to ask for a selection of pastries ahead of our patisserie sale at break time.

During break time, children had the opportunity to speak French in our ‘French Café’ where they bought croissants, pain au chocolat and brioche. The café was very busy and children could be heard confidently trying out their French skills, including bonjour and merci.

Here are some activities that the children took part in:

Reception

In reception, the children responded to their name in the register with Bonjour! They learnt what the French flag looks like and chose to paint or colour their own. The children looked at some French landmarks and then used construction toys to build or draw their own version.

Year 1

In Year One, the children learnt the name of some animals in French (cat, dog, goat, bull and donkey). They started to learn to sing Old Macdonald in French and put actions to the animal names to help them remember.

Year 2

Year 2 researched French artist, Henry Matisse and used oil pastels to brightly colour abstract shapes, which the children then arranged the shapes to create their own artwork. They created interesting shapes and images and some people even had a story to match their artwork!

Year 3

Year three read a story in French about a rabbit who was scared of the dark and watched a video on French culture/ family life. They also explored the fabulous cave art that has been discovered in the Chauvet Cave in France and discussed what these markings may tell us about life back during the Stone Age in France. They then created their own examples of Palaeolithic Stone Age cave art using charcoal.

Year 4

Year 4 learnt about France and then created a fact file about France on the computers. They also listened to "The Gingerbread Man" in French and discussed the similarities and differences to our version of the fairy tale.

Year 5

Year 5 children learnt about Bastille Day ahead of our French revolution History topic later in the year. They also learned about Georges Seurat, who was a French pointillism artist. The children then created their own pointillism art based on the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre. Both of which were built in celebration of Bastille Day.

Year 6

Year 6 learnt about the life of French artist - Claude Monet. They looked at numerous examples of his art and then created their own based on The Water Lily Pond.

We were so pleased that French day was a real success. Children and staff entered into the spirit of the day and lots of children told us how much they had enjoyed themselves. We hope it has really ignited their enthusiasm for learning a language and that French in our school will go from strength to strength.