Mastering a foreign language provides an opening to other cultures and fosters a global mindset in young learners in international schools in Hangzhou. At Wellington College International Hangzhou, we always focus on developing pupils' confidence and fluency in language acquisition.

Starting from this academic year, French and Spanish have been successfully introduced into our curriculum. It is amazing to see our pupils embracing learning a third language with continuing regular learning in English and Mandarin. When they graduate from the College, it enables our pupils to express their ideas and thoughts confidently and fluently in spoken and written languages. This is also central to our curriculum.

In this article, Ms. Catherine Rakotondradano, French and Spanish teacher, offers a brief introduction about the two additional languages now being offered in the secondary school.

In the subjects of French and Spanish, a pupil will plunge oneself in a programme of study that equally develops the skills of speaking, listening, reading and writing. Guided by the Cambridge IGCSE requirements and syllabus, this programme will enable our learners to reach a level of fluency which involves the following topics: family and friends, personal interests, health, school, holidays, future career, environment, to name but a few. Simple vocabulary and grammar will be introduced initially and revisited throughout the course, with more complex structures studied as we move forward.

Opportunities for all pupils, to become independent learners and achieve their potential through differentiated teaching approaches, will provide them with the experience of a challenging, stimulating and relevant learning environment that will fulfil their present and future needs, generating valuable and distinguished proficiency. The intercultural skill, fundamental component of learning any language will be a crucial part of the learning experience throughout the course; effective communication and cultural investigations are used to educate the pupils to develop an open-minded approach to the diversity of cultures.