Introduction to the Subject Leader

My name is Mrs Lewer and I am the subject leader for Modern Foreign Languages (MFL).

I have always had a passion for learning languages, and by the age of 13, I was studying 4 different languages: Finnish (which is my mother tongue), English, Swedish and French. Growing up learning different languages, I passionately believe that languages enrich children’s lives, not to mention how much fun it can be. Languages provide a bridge to feel confident to travel and meet new people from all different cultures. In my case, about 20 years ago, I came to England to practise my language skills and learn about English culture, which seemed so alien to me. Since then, I have made this country my home with my husband, who is English and partly Belgian, and we have two wonderful children that share the joys of these three different nationalities. At home, we speak Finnish and English, and occasionally, Belgian and Burnley! 

How we teach Modern Foreign Languages at St Paul's

At our school, we focus on teaching French from Y3 to Y6, however, we also promote multiculturalism and celebrate all the languages/cultures around the world in all our year groups. French is is taught weekly, generally in half hour sessions using an online scheme called Primary Languages Network (PLN), which follows the Governments model curriculum for language learning at primary school. We aim to give our pupils a positive attitude to learning languages, to learn the rules and to explore other cultures.