Spanish
A majority of people on the planet speak at least two languages fluently. The needs of globalisation and cultural openness continue to underline the increasing importance of acquiring additional languages.
Twynham students of Spanish join a Hispanic community of over 400 million speakers worldwide and are able to access opportunities unavailable to those without foreign language skills.
Beyond the proven economic advantage foreign language competence brings, research suggests multilingual brains also demonstrate increased executive function and may afford additional resistance to forms of dementia.
Naturally, the joy of being able to access the culture and colour of other nations is not least among the reasons for the study of Spanish!
Curriculum Information
Key Stage 4 Options Information
| Exam board: AQA |
| Qualification: GCSE in Spanish |
| Specification: AQA GCSE Spanish |
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Assessment: GCSE Spanish has a Foundation Tier (grades 1–5) and a Higher Tier (grades 4–9). Students must take all four question papers at the same tier. Papers are taken at the end of the course in Year 11. The four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are each worth 25% of the exam. Paper 1 - Listening (Written Exam of 35 or 45 minutes) Understanding and responding to spoken extracts comprising the defined vocabulary and grammar for each tier Paper 2 - Speaking (Non-Examined Assessment) Speaking using clear and comprehensible language to undertake a role-play Paper 3 - Reading (Written Exam of 45 or 60 minutes) Understanding and responding to written texts which focus predominantly on the vocabulary and grammar at each tier Paper 4 - Writing (Written Exam of 60 or 75 minutes) Writing text in the language in a lexically and grammatically accurate way in response to simple and familiar stimuli |
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Who is the course for? This course is for anyone who has already studied Spanish in Year 9 and would like to be able to speak and understand a foreign language better! Students who speak a second (or third) language are greatly valued and sought after by employers. Many students know that most of the world’s population speak at least two languages and to compete for jobs (whatever you do!) in the future another language is a vital asset. GCSE Spanish adds an international dimension to your choice of GCSE subjects, something both employers and higher education providers look for. |
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What will I do on the course? GCSE Spanish builds on what you have learnt in Key Stage 3, though you will meet new topics and learn more about the cultures and countries in which Spanish is spoken. You will learn many skills which are useful in a wide range of future careers, such as the ability to communicate clearly, problem solve as well as creating greater opportunities to work abroad or for companies in the UK with international links. You will practise listening, speaking, reading and writing and will be helped to understand Spanish in common situations you might meet in Spain or a Spanish speaking country. You will gain independence in how to use Spanish to communicate your own ideas clearly and accurately with good pronunciation and by the end of the course will be able to communicate effectively over a broad range of topics. Students study the following themes: Theme 1: People and lifestyle |
Key Stage 3
Year 7
In Year 7, students recap and extend elements of Spanish that they may have studied in Key Stage 2, although the previous study of Spanish is not a requirement. Students are taught the pronunciation of the key sounds straight away to build confidence quickly. Students are taught through individual, small group and whole class teaching using the latest resources available. An emphasis is placed on acquiring a sound understanding of grammatical rules which then allow students to use the language creatively for their own purposes. A range of online resources is used to help students gain a wide vocabulary quickly and confidently and practice at home what has been introduced in class.
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Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
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Phonics, greetings, school items. |
Phonics, school subjects, teachers, Opinions and food. |
Family, pets, appearance and character. |
Where you live, home, rooms, activities at home. |
Free time, telling the time, sport, future plans. |
Town, making and responding to invitations, weather, two tenses. |
Year 8
In Year 8, students gain an ability to use tenses and extend spoken and written responses to include additional details and opinions. The range of topics is widened and includes real-life contexts relevant to students such as use of social networking websites. As in Year 7, end-of-term assessments enable students to track and review their progress effectively.
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Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
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Describing friends, comparisons, routine and reflexive verbs. |
Places in a town, saying what you are going to do, making excuses, likes and dislikes. |
Holidays, saying where you went, how you travelled and what you did. |
Mealtimes, food shopping, going to a restaurant, describing a meal in the past. |
Clothes, school uniform, choosing clothes, fancy dress and talking about a trip. Present and future. |
Barcelona: saying what you can do, directions. |
Year 9
In Year 9, students extend both their grammatical grasp of the language and command of an extending range of contexts. They begin to make lengthier spoken presentations which demonstrate a greater command of the past, present and future tenses with improved flexibility of expression.
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Autumn |
Spring |
Summer |
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Computers, TV, films, music. Describing what a film is about, using present and past tenses together. |
School, subject options, teachers, school rules and after-school activities. |
Health: parts of the body, symptoms, diet, healthy living and lifestyle changes. |
Earning and spending, saying what you would like to do, jobs, languages at work, winning the lottery. |
Learning about Spanish-speaking countries, describing working conditions, environmental problems, fair trade. |
A revision of verb tenses: Present, preterite, future and conditional. |
