In a good lesson
Child involvement is high and there is lots of interaction and active learning. Children show an enthusiasm for the subject and can use the language to express what they want to say and there are frequent opportunities for repetition of key phrases and vocabulary and previously learnt language is recycled to reinforce learning.
The target language is used as much as possible by the student and the children. Gestures, mimes, props and visuals support understanding and accurate pronunciation and intonation are encouraged.
Using the language for practical communication is the main focus. Children use the language in a meaningful way (for example, a game, a role play, a message to a partner school), progressing from word to sentence to text level.
A range of activities and resources are used to develop the language skills (for example, pair work, group work, games, songs, raps, rhymes, real books, storytelling, role plays, dialogues, authentic materials, magazines, DVDs, film clips, video links, email exchanges).
Other elements of best practice which may not be evident in every lesson
The four skills of listening, speaking, reading and writing are developed equally, but are relevant to their stage of learning and the language taught is set in a context and is purposeful, maybe through a cross curricular approach.
Cultural input is used to promote intercultural understanding. Children are encouraged to have a strong awareness of the culture of the countries where the language is spoken.
Children are taught basic grammar and how to apply the rules to build sentences. They discuss the similarities and differences between the new language and English to enhance their understanding and knowledge of their own language.
Children discuss and reflect on the strategies they use to learn the language, so they can build up a repertoire of language learning strategies as a basis for future language learning.