Everydaymfl

I know in parts of south of Germany they have "three quarters past" but i'm a bit suspect of that mexican a las siete moins le quart

I have never cared for the term. In schools where cold call is the default 6 lessons a day of suddenly being picked on and revisited if unsure (Lemov's no opt out often accompanies cold call) could be demoralising for some. It's one item in a teacher's tookit. There are others.

Fighting the language decline 2026 edition 10 years ago I wrote a post about fighting the decline in languages with an aim to giving practical strategies to build student competence, confidence and engagement. I thought I would revisit it 10 years later to see if older, wiser me had any better ideas. Shortly after results day 2015 the Guardian ran a piece here reporting a continued decline in students taking GCSE languages.  

Fighting the language decline 2026 edition

10 years ago I wrote a post about fighting the decline in languages with an aim to giving practical strategies to build student competence, confidence and engagement. I thought I would revisit it 10 years later to see if older, wiser me had any better…

Definitely had build up to exams in mind but agree it ahoyld ve built in

#TeamLanguages #MFLBlueSky trying to spark activity on here.
What is your go to activity for revision lessons? Any skill. Go for it!
@spsmith45.bsky.social @theniceman.bsky.social @nowmrsmfl.bsky.social @helenmyers.bsky.social
@bethlingual.bsky.social @misterjgarcia.bsky.social

Hopefully. I'm sure there are more people on here but maybe it just needs a suitable topic and a few people to really kick start something?

A Quiet MFL – enabling quieter and introverted students to thrive in a languages classroom This post has been inspired by reading Jamie Thom's "A Quiet Education". Quotes are taken from the book. You can find more of his thoughts on Twitter @teachgratitude1. As I have drafted and redrafted this blog over this year, I think it is fair to say that in places the lines between properly "introverted" and "quiet" do blur occasionally. As a former Head of Year and an MFL teacher, Jamie Thom's book piqued my curiosity.

A Quiet MFL – enabling quieter and introverted students to thrive in a languages classroom

This post has been inspired by reading Jamie Thom's "A Quiet Education". Quotes are taken from the book. You can find more of his thoughts on Twitter @teachgratitude1. As I have drafted and redrafted this…

Happy Christmas to all!

Cultural Capital: Strategies for Language Classrooms Other cultures have always fascinated me ever since learning about Norway in Year 5 or tasting a Stollen in German class in Year 7.     My experience of teaching secondary languages suggests that t…

Most popular posts this year for #MFLBlueSky #TeamLanguages:

everydaymfl.com/2024/08/13/e...

everydaymfl.com/2021/08/19/e... - amazed this one from 2021 still makes the top three

everydaymfl.com/2025/05/27/g...

Favourite one to write:
everydaymfl.com/2025/10/14/c...

5 MFL Games I have been playing this week

Since my PGCE, I've always thought that games have a place in MFL teaching and learning but they must have a purpose. That purpose could be: the practice of vocabulary or structures, practising spontaneity or revision of vocabulary. Variations on Sentence…

9 New ideas for Navidad, Noel & Weihnachten Ideas for teaching Christmas for teachers of French, Spanish and German

Normally, I save these and then remember to post them too late (e.g. last week of term). Seems like everyone is going early this year so two blogs for #MFLBlueSky. One newer...
everydaymfl.com/2024/11/26/9...
One older...
everydaymfl.com/2015/12/02/9...

Whilst I prefer written, I think there has also been a definite shift to audio/visual mediums such as podcasts and youtube channels. Some edu-bloggers have also moved to substack so not as easily accessible.

9 New ideas for Navidad, Noel & Weihnachten Ideas for teaching Christmas for teachers of French, Spanish and German

Normally, I save these and then remember to post them too late (e.g. last week of term). Seems like everyone is going early this year so two blogs for #MFLBlueSky. One newer...
everydaymfl.com/2024/11/26/9...
One older...
everydaymfl.com/2015/12/02/9...

Time-Saving Tips for Teachers: Work Smarter, Not Harder The aim in this post is simple: to save you some time somewhere. Teacher workload is high and has been for a long period. The DofE set up task forces dedicated to looking at workload around plannin…

Has the autumn term hit hard for you? Some ideas to tavkle workload for the #MFLBlueSky and #UKed communities everydaymfl.com/2025/06/03/t...

Been going to your blog since I discovered it around 2011-2012! It occurs to me I have never properly acknowledged that so thank you Steve for all you do with the site, learnt a lot from it especially in the early days and over the years.

GCSE: Teaching the Celebrity Culture topic For a topic like this, it makes sense to start with three very simple questions: How is this going to be assessed? What vocabulary will they need to do well? What obstacles might I encounter in tea…

New GCSE Posts (some old GCSE but still work)
wp.me/p6sFvg-1cA - Celebrity Culture
wp.me/p6sFvg-1aV - New GCSE
wp.me/p6sFvg-12x - Festivals
wp.me/p6sFvg-11R - Environment
wp.me/p6sFvg-13g - School+Work
wp.me/p6sFvg-13w - Relationships

EverydayMFL Mystery Inspiration Posts for the #MFLBluesky community.
5 posts with a selection of random ideas to try with your classes.
wp.me/p6sFvg-1e5
wp.me/p6sFvg-19v
wp.me/p6sFvg-13P
wp.me/p6sFvg-13s
wp.me/p6sFvg-12J

Transforming Language Teaching: Insights from Other Subjects The author, an experienced teacher, reflects on their diverse teaching background and shares insights gained from various subjects. Key takeaways include the importance of structured questioning in…

Some MFL pedagogy posts for #MFLBluesky and #TeamLanguages #mflthreads
wp.me/p6sFvg-17u - Lessons from other subjects
wp.me/p6sFvg-13F - Develop TL Teaching 1
wp.me/p6sFvg-16d - Develop TL Teaching 2
wp.me/p6sFvg-17L - Evolution of Starters/Do nows

Cultural Capital: Strategies for Language Classrooms Other cultures have always fascinated me ever since learning about Norway in Year 5 or tasting a Stollen in German class in Year 7.     My experience of teaching secondary languages suggests that t…

everydaymfl.com/2025/10/14/c... Some thoughts on teaching culture for #MFLBluesky #TeamLanguages #mflthreads #mfl

Cultural Capital: Strategies for Language Classrooms Other cultures have always fascinated me ever since learning about Norway in Year 5 or tasting a Stollen in German class in Year 7.     My experience of teaching secondary languages suggests that this fascination is true for our students as well.   Was Norway where this fascination with other cultures started? Possibly! It's still on the list to visit... We teach culture to build enthusiasm interest and develop the cultural capital of our students.

Cultural Capital: Strategies for Language Classrooms

Other cultures have always fascinated me ever since learning about Norway in Year 5 or tasting a Stollen in German class in Year 7.     My experience of teaching secondary languages suggests that this fascination is true for our students as…

#UKEd

Agree but hope it changes here. Facebook groups seems like the best method. LinkedIn is a jungle i haven't conquered yet. Threads just feels like one network too many Trying to be part of solution. Education voices on X are fewer and further between. Mainly keep it for football transfer windows...

My old department used it as an end of y9 walk away with sonething qualification. Probably not the intended. I think any alternative to gcse probably needs to lean towards the practical and immediately deployable once abroad over a topic based approach.

Really enjoyed reading this. I hope-as you say- the quick win of sorting out grading is taken. An alternative qualification would be a good step although having experienced fcse, entry level and asset languages, i'm not sure this nut has quite been cracked yet! Music grades approach could work.

Transforming Language Teaching: Insights from Other Subjects The author, an experienced teacher, reflects on their diverse teaching background and shares insights gained from various subjects. Key takeaways include the importance of structured questioning in History, developing student oracy in Drama, and using visual aids like flowcharts in Computer Science. Adapting strategies from different disciplines can enhance language teaching effectiveness.

Transforming Language Teaching: Insights from Other Subjects

The author, an experienced teacher, reflects on their diverse teaching background and shares insights gained from various subjects. Key takeaways include the importance of structured questioning in History, developing student oracy in…

The Language Gym by Gianfranco Conti, PhD. Co-author of 'The Language Teacher toolkit', 'Breaking the sound barrier: teaching learners how to listen', 'Memory: what every teacher should kno…

2 recent fascinating reads on grammar teaching that will interest #MFLBlueSky. Think i've done many of these over the years. gianfrancoconti.com

Mfl fantasy football has definitely increased in numbers. Might manage a respectable mid table finish this year.

Culture slide after starter and before main part of lesson. Some facts about each country or festivals. "Yipao" (Colombia), Carnival de Oruro and día de amistad (Bolivia) always well-received. Use listenings with South American pronunciation (this is language and voki used to be good for it)

Heard of schools doing ir but can't recall mfl teacher speaking about it positively. Has Steve ever blogged about it? Can see benefits for PE+tech. If facing it, I would approach as 2 lessons maybe even with 2 different seating plans to retain attention. Good for KS4 exam practice but KS3 tough

Practical suggestions for grading your Year 10 students taking the new GCSE ML It's the time of year when teachers ask questions on various fora about how to interpret assessment data and how to respond to management,...

Teachers and HoDs are likely to be being asked to give grades for the Year 10 students taking the new GCSE in French, German and Spanish. This post aims to give some practical suggestions on how to do so. helenmyers.blogspot.com/2025/06/prac... #MFLBluesky