Title: Learning Foreign Languages in Primary School

Edited by: Maria del Pilar and Garcia Mayo

Website: www.multilingual-matters.com

Nadine Chadier

French teacher, Rhodes Avenue Primary School

This collection of 12 evidence based research papers both challenged me and gave me much sought after food for thought whilst making me look differently at my primary pupils’ social, linguistic and cognitive abilities. As each paper is around 20 pages, it is more than manageable to grasp the content and reflect on the application of the insights into one’s own methodology. I was thrilled to explore in more depth a wide variety of concepts such as, Metalinguistic Language Awareness, CLIL, Intercultural Issues, Narrative Development, Oral Output and Diagnostic Tests all researched within a primary context.

I would not recommend this as a light bedtime reading, but as an essential reference for practitioners who wish to shed some light on key pedagogical questions they encounter daily in the primary classroom. I would love to hear from other ALL members, how each piece of research can help them practically within their classroom.

I will certainly get back to this collection of treasures over and over again until I have explored its full depth!

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