The nature of the learners

Children enter the early years of schooling with established communication skills in one or more languages and varying degrees of early literacy capability. For young students, learning typically focuses on their immediate world of family, home, school, friends and neighbourhood. They are learning how to socialise with new people, share with others, and participate in structured routines and activities at school. Typically, they have little to no experience of Modern Greek language and culture.

Modern Greek language learning and use

Modern Greek is learnt in parallel with English language and literacy. While the learning of Modern Greek differs from the learning of English, each supports and enriches the other. Modern Greek is used in classroom interactions, routines and activities, supported by the use of materials and resources, gestures and body language. At this stage, there is a focus on play, imaginative activities, games, music, dance and familiar routines, which provide scaffolding for language development. Learners listen to the sounds and patterns specific to the Modern Greek language and try to reproduce them through activities such as rhymes, songs, clapping and action games. Repetition and consolidation help learners to identify high-frequency words and simple phrases, and to recognise the purpose of simple texts. Learners identify and use Modern Greek non-verbal communication strategies, including gestures, and experiment with one- or two-word responses and simple expressions when prompted. They progress to using Modern Greek for functions such as greeting, asking and answering questions (Πώς σε λένε; Τι κάνεις; Τι κάνετε;), responding to directions (έλα, έλατε, κάθισε, καθίστε, σήκω, σηκωθείτε), singing songs, and taking turns in games and simple shared tasks. There is a natural transition from spoken to written language. Learners use a variety of cues, including images, context and frequently used word patterns, to comprehend texts and communicate.

Contexts of interaction

Learners interact with each other and the teacher within the learning environment. The use of information and communication technologies (ICT) enriches the experience of Modern Greek language and culture by providing alternative modes of learning, numerous resources and opportunities to access authentic language in different contexts.

Texts and resources

Learners engage with a variety of spoken, written and visual texts such as traditional children’s songs and nursery rhymes, stories from big books, plays and interactive resources. Writing skills progress from alphabet recognition to tracing, labelling and copying letters, then to constructing simple, short texts using familiar vocabulary.

Features of Modern Greek language use

Learners become familiar with the sound system of the Modern Greek language, such as syllables using consonants and vowels, and new sounds, such as the guttural γ, ρ and γκ and ξ and ψ in words. They learn to identify and write letters, words and simple sentences using the Greek alphabet, making comparisons with the English alphabet. They begin to notice that Modern Greek speakers may communicate in ways which are different to their own, and that language can be used in a variety of ways.

Level of support

Rich language input characterises the first stages of learning. Learning experiences are supported by the teacher through scaffolding, modelling, cueing, monitoring, feedback and encouragement. Multiple and varied sources of input and stimulus are used, including visual cues and resources such as pictures, realia, objects, maps and charts.

The role of English

Modern Greek is used whenever possible as the medium for class interaction. English is used for discussion and explanation. This allows learners to share ideas about differences and similarities between Modern Greek and other languages and cultures, and how language and culture are interconnected, giving them opportunities to consider perspectives other than their own and to reflect on their learning.