At Wood Green School, all students study French and German in Years 7 (2h per fortnight) and 8 (3h per fortnight). In Year 9 students specialise in one language and receive 5h per fortnight of instruction.
Across all key stages, our curriculum brings together various different sources from textbooks, songs and films to other cultural exports and authentic materials to develop students’ linguistic understanding and cultural awareness. We aim to strike a balance between receptive skills (listening and reading) and productive skills (speaking and writing) while simultaneously building vocabulary and grammar.
The topics covered are relevant to the students’ areas of interest and prepare them for future study. We believe in continuous improvement, and update our curriculum and inject challenge regularly. Our department places a strong value on the use of target language in the classroom and we draw from different experts to inform our pedagogy such as Rachel Hawkes, Gianfranco Conti, Martine Pillette and Steve Smith.
Trips & Exchanges
We are immensely proud of our annual trips offering:
Key Stage 3
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Year 7 |
Year 8 |
Year 9 |
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Term 1 |
Allons-y! - Introductions and basics |
Mon collège - School |
La technologie - Technology |
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Term 2 |
Je me présente - Talking about yourself |
Les modèles et la culture des célébrités - Role models and celebrity culture |
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Term 3 |
Les passe-temps et temps-libre - Free time activities |
Chez moi - House and home |
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Term 4 |
Les vacances et le festivals - Holidays and festivals |
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Term 5 |
‘Mon monstre’ - Revision through designing a monster |
Ma ville - My town |
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Term 6 |
Les jeux de rôle - Role plays |
Key Stage 4
We follow the AQA GCSE French specification and base our learning around the Oxford University Press GCSE French textbook series. Learning is split into 3 Themes, each comprising 3 Units. Theme 1 - People and lifestyle; Theme 2 - Popular culture; Theme 3 - Communication and the world around us
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Year 10 |
Year 11 |
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Term 1 |
Theme 1, Unit 1 - Identity and relationships with others |
Theme 3, Unit 7 - Travel, tourism and places of interest |
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Term 2 |
Theme 1, Unit 2 - Healthy living and lifestyle |
Theme 3, Unit 8 - Media and technology |
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Term 3 |
Theme 1, Unit 3 - Education and work |
Theme 3, Unit 9 - The environment and where people live |
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Term 4 |
Theme 2, Unit 4 - Free-time activities |
Revision |
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Term 5 |
Theme 2, Unit 5 - Customs and festivals |
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Term 6 |
Theme 2, Unit 6 - Celebrity culture |
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Key Stage 5
We follow the AQA A-Level French Specification and follow the structure of the Oxford University Press textbook series, underpinned by up-to-date materials from the francophone world. The topics covered over the two years are as follows:
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Year 12 Topics |
Year 13 Topics |
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Unit 1 - La famille en voie de changement Unit 2 - La cyber-société Unit 3 - Le rôle du bénévolat Unit 4 - Une culture fière de son patrimoine Unit 5 - La musique francophone Unit 6 - Le septième art (le cinéma) |
Unit 1 - Les aspects positifs d’une société diverse Unit 2 - Quelle vie pour les marginalisés Unit 3 - Comment on traite les criminels Unit 4 - Les ados, le droit de vote et l’engagement politique Unit 5 - Manifestations, grèves - à qui le pouvoir Unit 6 - La politique et l’immigration |
Key texts studied can vary by teacher but can include: L’étranger, Albert Camus, Un sac de billes, Joseph Joffo or La Haine (2005) Matthieu Kassovitz.
More detail on the A level curriculum
Updated November 2025
