Meet Mrs van B: Spanish Lead
Hello, I am Mrs van B and I am so proud to be the Spanish and Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) Lead at Bardfield.
Why I love languages
I am passionate about the importance of language learning in today’s interconnected world. Spanish, being the second most spoken native language globally, opens doors to diverse cultures, communities and career opportunities. In a world where travel and the internet are making distances smaller, the ability to communicate in Spanish is more valuable than ever. I bring personal experience of languages to this role, having previously taught at a bilingual grammar school and worked as a translator in the Netherlands for several years. Living in a multilingual household, I have experienced first-hand how learning foreign languages can broaden horizons and create endless possibilities.
My ambition for our school
I firmly believe that once you master one language, the skills you acquire are transferable to learning multiple others. Learning Spanish at Bardfield will help our pupils to develop oracy skills, build their confidence in speaking and performing, and encourage them to communicate clearly. Ultimately, these skills will give our pupils a strong foundation and put them one step ahead when they move on to secondary school.
Mrs van B- Spanish Lead
Spanish at Bardfield Academy
Our vision: To develop highly engaged, enthusiastic Spanish communicators, who dare to explore and develop strong oracy and translation skills in a foreign language.
Our approach: At Bardfield Academy we follow the Jolie scheme of work, which aims high, logically breaking learning into small steps. Furthermore, it integrates revisiting sessions, embedding the substantive knowledge, (such as Spanish grammar and vocabulary), throughout KS2. Likewise, there is a strong focus on learning about Spanish culture, which links with RE and British values and our Lyfta learning. In lessons, teachers use a rich hybrid of resources such as Language Angels and native speaker videos, with an emphasis on translations and as much exposure to the Spanish language as possible, carefully adapting the teaching where necessary, ensuring that Spanish is accessible for all.
Our purpose: Ultimately, through Spanish we aim to develop a zest for learning Modern Foreign Languages, and a strong grasp of the disciplinary knowledge, (how to learn Spanish), which is transferrable to all languages. We aim for our children to thrive in an evolving world where Spanish is the second most spoken language, and a disciplinary knowledge of languages will directly correlate to future career success. Through learning Spanish effectively at a young age, we intend for our children to be one step ahead in contemporary society and enable success in their KS3 journey.
