GCSE SPANISH

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Rationale

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The Spanish course we offer is a four year course to GCSE. The specification currently in use is that of AQA. Your daughter will have completed the first half of this course to Key Stage 3 and have acquired proficiency, particularly in listening and oral skills. She will already have some knowledge of grammar, understanding of the language, language skills, language learning skills, cultural awareness and a significant amount of vocabulary. Every effort will be made to maintain the philosophy of enabling students to show what they “know, understand and can do”. What is learned in the classroom will be useful and relevant to everyday life in Spain and the wider Spanish speaking communities of Latin America.

 

Aims

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We aim to encourage students to:

• Develop understanding of the spoken and written forms of Spanish in a range of contexts;
• Develop the ability to communicate effectively in Spanish, through both the spoken and written work, using a range of vocabulary and structures;
• Develop knowledge and understanding of the grammar of Spanish, and the ability to apply it;
• Apply their knowledge and understanding imaginatively and creatively in a variety of relevant contexts, which reflect their previous learning and maturity;
• Develop knowledge and understanding of countries and communities where Spanish is spoken, providing insights into both culture and civilisation and comparison with their own culture;
• Provide enjoyment and intellectual stimulation through the learning of the Spanish language;
• Promote the development of other skills, which have a wider application in a European dimension, such as information technology, learning and key skills, communication strategies as well as spiritual, moral and ethical awareness;
• Provide a suitable foundation for further study and/or practical use of Spanish.

Topic Areas

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There are four designated areas of study:

• My World
• Holiday Time & Travel
• Work & Lifestyle
• The Young Person in Society

These are presented through stage 3 of the ¡Listos! Rojo coursebook, the methodology of which is already familiar to our students. The approach is an integrated one, which affords plenty of opportunity for revisiting, reinforcing and using familiar material, grammatical and linguistic, in new contexts.

Programme of Study

Year 10 - Term 1

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Topics:

Self, Family & Friends, School & Future Plans, Interests & Hobbies, Home & Local Environment.

 

Grammar:

Present tense, agreement of adjectives, ser & estar, possessive adjectives, lo & adjective, gustar, imperatives, radical changing verbs, impersonal verbs, negatives, future tense.

 

Term 2

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Topics:

Holiday Activities, Services, Leisure, Part-time jobs & Work Experience, Festivals, Means of Transport.

 

Grammar:

Preterite, adjectives ending in –isimo, revision of immediate future, imperfect, imperfect continuous, object pronouns, perfect tense.

 

Term 3

 

Topics:

Tourism, Accommodation, Home Life, Healthy Living, Daily Routine.

Grammar:

Querer, gustar, Conditional tense, hacer with time idioms, opinions.

 

Year 11

Term 1

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Topics:

Environment, Social Issues, Future & Careers, Choices & Responsibility.

 

Grammar:

Subjunctive with certain expressions, revision of all aspects.

Terms 2 & 3

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At this point the teaching of the specification is complete and the remaining time is spent on revision, consolidation and practice of examination techniques.

 

Homework

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Homework is generally set after each lesson to practise or extend what has been covered. It may take a variety of forms: learning of vocabulary, preparing and learning for oral test, reading or listening, comprehension and writing.

 

Assessment

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In the final examination, the GCSE is offered at two levels, Foundation and Higher. Each of the four skills – listening (AT1), speaking (AT2), reading (AT3) and writing (AT4) – is tested at one level, but students may be entered for different tiers of assessment in the separate skills.

 

School assessment is held formally in each of these skills each half term and each student draws up a profile of her performance, enabling extra input in a specific skill area, should there be and apparent weakness. In addition progress will be assessed by means of weekly written, listening and reading homework, regular oral recording and weekly vocabulary testing.

Core Subjects

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