Language Exchanges

With the pandemic still restricting international trips, our linguists are finding new ways to broaden horizons and practise their skills.

Our German GCSE students enjoyed an interactive online event with the BFI, exploring the themes of identity and belonging through German short film; tasks were designed to support language skills as well as nurture intercultural understanding.

Agatha in Year 10 commented: “Watching the short films helped me learn how to write sentences with a more natural tone.”  Aisling in Year 11 said: “It was engaging to hear language being used in a different context and useful for our general conversational skills.” Lucy in Year 11 added: “I particularly enjoyed the film Bango Vassil because of its message: to appreciate customs from all cultures and to look for similarities in people rather than differences.”

Meanwhile, our Spanish students have been connecting pupils in Colombia, with lunchtime conversation sessions via Zoom. The new partnership with the Colegio Lauretta Bender school in Cali enables our pupils to hone their listening and speaking skills, speaking to girls and boys of the same age. The partnership was initiated by our new Spanish Language Assistant, Miss Burton, a former pupil at South Hampstead who went on to study History and Spanish at Leeds University.

One of our A Level students, Filipa, commented: “We chat about mask-wearing and our morning routines, football and our favourite TV shows… Despite being culturally and geographically distant, it’s comforting to find so many similarities. I can’t wait to continue with these sessions next term, not only to improve my spoken Spanish speaking, but also to get to know them better as individuals.”

In the run up to Christmas, Year 7 and 8 Spanish students have been writing letters to elderly care home residents in Spain, practising the vocabulary and grammar they have learnt so far and bringing smiles to the faces of many who remain isolated.