Cross - curricular teaching
Children are naturally curious about the world around • Cross-curricular texts provide useful context for
them. They want to know how nature works and how
humankind’s inventions function, they are drawn to
the exciting stories which show human scientific and
artistic achievement, and they enjoy learning about the
fascinating landscapes and the customs of far-away
places. It seems natural and appropriate that the
foreign language classroom should provide children with
opportunities to explore Natural Science, Social Science,
Technology, ICT, Art and Music, and that it should
integrate their resulting knowledge and understanding
with their language learning.
The practice of Content and
Language Integrated Learning
(CLIL)
• Pupils bring content-related knowledge and
interest into the language-learning classroom.
Start each lesson with an activity to engage pupils’
prior knowledge, through whole-class, pairwork
or groupwork communicative activities. Use visual
prompts to stimulate pupils’ interest. Ask questions,
for example, What can you see in the picture? Who …?
Where …? How much/many …? Why …? When …?
Encourage all pupils to respond, using L1 if necessary.
• Content-rich texts can be found in a variety of
text types. Encourage pupils to identify the text type
they read in the lesson, e.g. blog post. Have a class
discussion about where they can find and read similar
texts in English, and invite pupils to engage in further
reading outside the classroom.
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the development of content-related vocabulary.
Elicit the meaning of unknown words by engaging
pupils in vocabulary-building activities. For example,
working out the meaning of a word through its context
in the text, matching words and definitions, and using
words in example sentences. Ask pupils to create their
own dictionaries, including all new vocabulary with
accompanying definitions and example sentences.
They can add to their dictionaries throughout the year.
• Cross-curricular texts provide opportunities for
the development of reading skills. Before reading a
text, invite pupils to interpret clues such as pictures
and headings to predict what they think the text is
about. Ask gist questions to encourage pupils to read
for general understanding. While reading a text, pause
at key points to ask questions to check meaning.
After reading a text, engage pupils in comprehension
questions to develop their ability to read for specific
information. Use the text as a vehicle for language
development, inviting them to identify examples of use
of vocabulary and grammatical structures. Ask pupils
to participate in personalisation activities, to relate the
content to their own experience and knowledge.
• Cross-curricular texts can act as a stimulus for
the development of critical thinking skills. Develop
pupils’ ability to think critically about what they read.
Encourage them to consider the source of a text and
how reliable it might be. Invite them to think carefully
about whether or not they agree with what the writer
says, giving reasons for their opinion. Ask them to
make inferences or predictions based on what they
have read.
Most importantly, encourage your pupils to enjoy
reading and to develop their ability to read for both
information and for pleasure!
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