Modern Languages
The commitment of Hutchesons' Grammar School to Modern Languages is reflected in one of the largest Modern Language Departments in the United Kingdom.
Building on the strengths of professional capability, enthusiasm and ready access to native speakers, the department aims to inspire in our pupils a life-long confidence in learning modern foreign languages and a love of the languages themselves. Around 20 full-time and part-time members in the department specialise in French, German and Spanish, with Italian also available as an interest course in S6, timetable permitting.
Primary pupils at Kingarth Street from P5 now follow a course that covers an even wider range of languages, helping them to gain confidence in the transferrable skill of learning a foreign language, along the way experiencing elements of Latin and Japanese, among other languages, as well as German, Spanish and French.
Whatever a pupil's language background, the courses in S1 and S2 will include a balance of grammar, vocabulary and cultural context that form the basis of a successful and fulfilling foreign language experience at the school.
S1 and S2
Pupils study a modern language for 3 hours per week in S1 and for 4 hours per week in S2.
At the beginning of S1 all pupils have the opportunity of taking either French, German or Spanish through two years of in-depth study, building on their existing knowledge to develop a confidence and enthusiasm for the study of foreign languages. Although key to this confidence is a good grounding in grammar and linguistic patterns, the department brings the world of languages alive through its use of real world topics
"C'était fantastique!" S6 Pupils at Paris Conference
Primary Word of the Week: singen, chanter, cantare, cantar
Gordon Smith, Chief Executive of the SFA, urges Hutchesons' pupils to speak foreign languages