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YEAR 12/13 SPANISH

Congratulations on choosing to study Spanish A Level at Heathside. The best
way to prepare yourself is to ensure that you have a firm grasp of the language
and skills which you have already used at GCSE. Thorough revision of these
over the summer will make you more confident when you start the course in
September and prepare you for a more independent approach to learning.

A well organised file is the key to success at A Level. If you keep to these
guidelines you will have no difficulty in keeping yourself prepared for lessons
and keeping up with what is expected of you.
Please label your file dividers as follows:

1. Theme 1: La evolución de la sociedad Española

2. Theme 2: La cultura política y artística en el mundo
hispanohablante.
3. Theme 3: La inmigración y la sociedad multicultural española
4. Theme 4: La dictadura franquista y la transición a la
democracia.
5. Grammar
6. Translations
7. Oral work & oral exam preparation

Looking after your file

 When you are given handouts, please ensure that they are filed in the
appropriate section of your folder. If you miss a lesson for any reason, it
is your responsibility to get a copy of anything handed out.

 It is essential that you bring your file to every lesson.

 It is your responsibility to purchase your own text books / literature

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  The text books are:

Edexcel A Level Spanish - ISBN- 978-1-4718-5831-4

La Casa de Bernada Alba - ISBN: 9780713686777 (Bilingual version)
La casa de Bernarda Alba: Literature Study Guide for AS/A-level Spanish
(Film and literature guides) 978-1471891960
El laberinto del fauno: Film Study Guide for AS/A-level Spanish (Film and
literature guides) 978-1471891724

Acción Gramática - ISBN No 978-0-340-91526

Palabra por palabra (Sixth Edition)

ISBN No-978-151-043-4837

 Use your private study time to develop your independent study skills (not
just to complete homework!). Use online resources such as Kerboodle for
explicit exam practice, or for more general information read Spanish
newspapers or blogs.

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Spanish A Level Pre-course Requirements - How to prepare for Spanish at A
Level
The leap from GCSE to A Level is significant. This booklet contains links to a huge range of
media, most of which is available for free online as well as tasks to complete before
September. In order to keep pace, it is vital that you work through the tasks. Little and often
is better than cramming this all. Try to build some of them into your daily routine…

What is in this pack?

How to prepare your file for Spanish at A Level......................................... 1

Looking after your file ………………………………………………………………………………… 2
How to prepare for Spanish at A Level /What’s in the pack?………………. 3
Watch…...
Television................................................................................................................4
Movies ....................................................................................................................5
DVDs .......................................................................................................................5
Listen to the radio...............................................................................................5
Sign up to Twitter................................................................................................6
Veinte minutos …………………………………………………………………………………………………7
Newspapers and Magazines................................................................................7
Websites.................................................................................................................7
Websites for research ………………………………………………………………………………….7
On-line dictionary …………………………………………………………………………………………..8
A Level Spanish Course Publications ……………………………………………………9-10
Course outline ……………………………………………………………………………………………11-12
Grammar Practice What should I know by now?........................................13
Links to Grammar Practice Exercises ……………………………….........................13
Handy Vocab..................................................................................................14-21
Summer Homework……………………………………………………………………………………...22
Task Log 1./Task Log 2....................................................................................23

Tip Number 1

Watch… Television
Watch the latest news in Spanish http://www.rtve.es/ , or even just the weather forecast
http://www.rtve.es/eltiempo/ . Take in some culinary delights with Spanish Master Chef
http://www.rtve.es/television/masterchef/ or some football
http://www.rtve.es/deportes/champions-league/ . Or watch some cartoons in Spanish with
your baby brother or sister; you can both learn some Spanish http://www.rtve.es/infantil/ .
You will recognise some of the programmes – any guesses what Sam el bombero is ?

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You can also access the TV using: • Your own TV. If you get Euronews, you can put it into
Spanish by pressing the red button • Look at
http://broadcast-live.com/television/spanish.html. This website gives you access to the TV
stations that are streaming TV including http://www.canalsur.es/portada-2808.html •
Another TV station is http://www.antena3.com/ . This gives you access to loads of soaps
and dramas etc as well as Downton Abbey in Spanish! • BBC Website
http://www.bbc.co.uk/education/subjects/z4dqxnb . If you have trouble bringing the
website up, type in www.bbc.co.uk/education . Then select England GCSE and scroll down
until you find Modern Foreign Languages. Behind both the Speaking and Listening tabs there
are loads of great videos to watch that only last a few minutes and they are a great way to
practise your listening skills.

Movies- Spanish movies are available on Netflix.com

8 Best Spanish Films Currently Available on Netflix
 “Amores perros” (Mexico) ...
 “La Lengua de las mariposas” (Spain) ...
 “Como agua para chocolate” (Mexico) ...
 “Biutiful” (Spain) ...
 “Hecho en Mexico” (Mexico) ...
 “Una Noche” (Cuba) ...
 “Eva” (Spain) ...
 “Calle 54“
 “El Ciudadano Ilustre” (The Distinguished Citizen) Latido Films. ...
 “Perdiendo el Norte” (Off Course) Filmfest Hamburg. ...
 “Roma. ” Netflix. ...
 “Durante la tormenta” (Mirage) Movie Trailers9. ...
 “Soltera Codiciada” (How to Get Over a Breakup) ...
 “El Hijo” (The Son) ...
 “Tarde Para la Ira” (The Fury of a Patient Man) ...
 “Carteristas” (Pickpockets)
 “El Hoyo” The platform
 “Toc toc”

DVDs
The Language Dep has a range of DVDs in Spanish – Most of these have been uplodaded and
you can access them via Office365.
The links are as follows:
1. “Todo Sobre Mi Madre” https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/80c7270b-4322-
4ccf-92ed-36ee8bae5ecf
2. “Como Agua Para Chocolate”

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 https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/89a53f61-2261-4aef-84bf-9a92b0fa4e3d
3. “Volver”
https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/ec6a2551-3a45-4675-aff2-22f19614a97a
4. “Motor cycle diaries”
5. https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/7c7f9554-4ba3-4b94-8dc3-eaa297089e45
6. “Zipi y Zape y el club de la canica”
https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/5ee1ef32-8b4e-4f28-9380-9a0117a3c5c0
7. “Zipi Y Zape y la Isla del Capitán”
https://web.microsoftstream.com/video/73859413-0a44-40b6-856b-a00e97b4cbbe

Listen to the radio The great thing about listening to the radio is that you can get on with
something else at the same time (tidying your room???). Listen live using the Eschuchar
Ahora or the En directo button. It sometimes takes a while to buffer so be patient.

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Sign up to Twitter
Sign up to Twitter for authentic text that you can quickly flick through. They will help you
pick up the language even when lazily browsing twitter. Some ideas are: @Spain - The
official Twitter for tourism in Spain @LaFraseDelDia_ - Más que palabras. A Spanish site
which tweets inspirational sayings for each day. @spanishlanguage – Official Twitter account
for Transparent Language Spanish. Learn the language with free resources, social media,
and research-based software that works. Tweets expressions, phrases, words and articles in
Spanish. @spanishaddicts – El español de la calle (typical spoken spanish). Esto no son
simples traducciones literales, es mucho más que eso. Spanish phrases, vocab, articles and
more. @spanishxxx2 – Free Spanish Sentences Vocabulary Pronunciation Grammar Tests.
Tweets vocab, articles, and quizzes. @muyinteresante – Revista de ciencia, historia,
tecnología, salud, psicología, innovación y curiosidades. A Spanish news organisation that
tweets in Spanish only. Great for practicing your reading skills.

Excellent site for news and views. You can also follow on Twitter or Facebook.
http://facebook.com/20minutos.es

Write: Keep your own vocabulary book for new expressions you come across –You could
order it alphabetically, by topic area based on what we are going to study or just use it as a
diary and scribble away your Spanish development in it.

Read:
Newspapers and Magazines Read a foreign language newspaper – El Pais in Spanish is
available in larger paper shops. El Pais has its own website http://elpais.com/ so that you
can read the paper online. You do not have to read the paper cover to cover, just scan the
headlines and pick out ONE article that grabs your attention. This website gives you access
to newspapers all over the world. Here is the link to a range of Spanish papers.
http://www.mediatico.com/en/newspapers/europe/spain/national/
In Spain there is also a news website for young people: http://primerasnoticias.com/ . It has
sections on the Internet and Mobile Technology; Science and Wildlife; Education; Culture;
Sport; Society and Health.

Websites:
Switch to Spanish browsers such as http://www.terra.es/ and http://es.yahoo.com/ or
www.yahoo.es as well as www.google.es . This way, you will read Spanish every time you
log on and it will become part of your everyday activity. Look at the BBC website
http://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/spanish/tv/onlinenews.shtml for links to Spanish
programmes available on line. And http://www.bbc.co.uk/mundo/ takes you through to
news in Spanish.

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Websites for research
Once you actually start your AS Level in September, your will realise that you are almost
completing a mini Sociology/Literature/History and Film Studies A Level in Spanish. It is
fascinating and you will learn all about the history and culture of Spanish speakers. Here are
some websites bursting with information about Spain. Always start your research with these
websites as it is easy to get bogged down when looking for help on the internet.

If you are searching for information, try switching to the Spanish www.es.wikipedia.
Remember that anyone can write on Wikipedia so you must validate your research
elsewhere and never quote from it! It is a good place to start though.
A Spanish government run website: www.mec.es (Consejería de Educación) A website in
English with some great links to various topics: http://spanish.about.com/ British Council
support available from http://schoolsonline.britishcouncil.org/ Keep your eyes peeled as
they often have trips to Spain for free! You have to apply for them but they are an amazing
opportunity to build your Spanish skills. There is no better way to learn a language than by
spending time in that country. The National Centre for Languages
http://www.cilt.org.uk/home.aspx for information on how to set up blogs and also further
links to grants for trips to Spain etc.

TOP TIP:
Don’t look up every word you are not sure of when reading an article/ book Yep… you read
that right. When you are reading articles etc, try not to look up every word as it will take you
forever. Skim and scan the text to get the gist. Remember to use the context or the article,
cognates and common sense to figure out what the article is saying. Pick out a couple of
words that you like the look of, that you feel may be real hurdles to getting the idea of the
text, look them up carefully and add them to your vocab booklet. The aim at this stage is to
get the gist of the article, not be able to translate it completely. Translation is a whole
different ball game and you will learn it soon enough. You will be surprised how much more
enjoyable reading will be if you really pay attention to this tip.

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 A Level Spanish Course Publications

The Course Book :- Edexcel A Level Spanish

ISBN- 978-1-4718-5831-4

This is the Text Book you will

mostly use for your Course. Work
will be supplemented from Boost
Learning online exercises.

Literature:- “La Casa de Bernada Alba”

A drama about women in the villages of Spain, or La casa de Bernarda Alba, is a play by
Spanish poet, dramatist, and director, Federico García Lorca, that explores themes of
sexual repression, inheritance, and violence among three generations of women in rural
Spain. The play was Lorca’s last, completed in 1936 only months before his murder at the
hands of right-wing nationalist forces at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War. No one
produced it until 1945. Lorca did not intend for this play to be included in his unfinished
“trilogy for the Spanish land,” but today it is commonly grouped with his plays Blood
Wedding and Yerma in a supposed “rural trilogy,” as it shares many themes and subjects
and a rural setting with these two plays.
Please buy the Spanish/English biligual version of the book: ISBN: 9780713686777
A film based on the book can be seen on YouTube/Teams.

Film Study:- “El Laberinto del Fauno”

In the Falangist Spain of 1944, the bookish young stepdaughter of a sadistic army officer
escapes into an eerie but captivating fantasy world. In 1944 Falangist Spain, a girl, fascinated
with fairy-tales, is sent along with her pregnant mother to live with her new stepfather, a
ruthless captain of the Spanish army. During the night, she meets a fairy who takes her to an
old faun in the center of the labyrinth. He tells her she's a princess, but must prove her
royalty by surviving three gruesome tasks. If she fails, she will never prove herself to be the
true princess and will never see her real father, the king, again.

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A good Spanish –English dictionary and possibly a verb booklet are also required.

A-Level Spanish
Modern Languages (Edexcel) Course outline

Paper 1 – Listening, Reading and Translation

Duration of exam:2 hours
Weighting: 40%
Marks: 80 marks

 Section A – Listening (30 marks)

 Section B – Reading (30 marks)
 Section C – Translation into English (20 marks)

Paper 2 – Written response to works and translation

Duration of exam:2 hours, 40 minutes
Weighting: 30%
Marks: 120 marks

 Section A – Translation into Spanish (20 marks)

 Section B – Written response to works (literary texts)
 Students write an extended response on “La Casa de Bernada Alba” – 50
marks
 Section C – Written response to works (films)
 Students write an extended response on “El Laberinto del Fauno” by
Guillermo Del Toro – 50 marks

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Paper 3 – Speaking
Duration of exam:21-23 mins (including 5 mins prep time)

Weighting: 30%
Marks: 72 marks
 Task 1 – discussion on a theme from the specification, based on a
stimulus containing 2 different statements (student chooses)
 Task 2 – i) Independent research presentation – Students present a
summary of at least two of the written sources they have used for their
research and give a personal response to what they have read
ii) Discussion on independent research – students answer questions on
their presentation and have a wider discussion on their research.

A Level Themes
Papers 1 and 3 will be based on the following themes

Theme 1: La evolución de la sociedad Española. Theme 1 is set in the context

of Spain only. This theme covers social issues and trends.

Theme 2: La cultura política y artística en el mundo hispanohablante Theme 2

is set in the context of Spanish-speaking countries and communities.
This theme covers artistic culture (through music and festivals and traditions)
and political and artistic culture (through media).

Theme 3: La inmigración y la sociedad multicultural española

Theme 4: La dictadura franquista y la transición a la democracia This theme is

set in the context of Spain only.

Grammar Practice What should I know by now?

This is a common question asked by students about to start their A level. You should be able
to: Give opinions with reasons • A range of opinion expressions • Positive and negative
reasons for opinions • To be able to agree and disagree

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 TOPIC CONTENT
Recognise and use a range of tenses Regular –AR, -ER, -IR verbs: Tenses: Present
with regular verbs. Preterite Imperfect Near Future (ir + a + inf.)
Future (eg. Será) Conditional (eg. sería)
Recognise and use a range of tenses Common irregular verbs: ser, estar, tener,
with irregular verbs. hacer, ir
Tenses: Present Preterite Imperfect Near Future (ir +
a + inf.) Future (eg. Será) Conditional (eg.
sería)
Give opinions with reasons A range of opinion expressions • Positive and
negative reasons for opinions • To be able to
agree and disagree

Links to Grammar Practice Exercises

Languages on line: The Grammar Revision resources on www.languagesonline.org.uk are
great as you can then select what tense you want to revise, read the explanations and
complete the exercises. You can do these as often as you like and it gives you a percentage.
Another useful tactic is to translate the examples and exercises into English to ensure you
understand the meaning of each tense.

Vocabulary for use in Alevel Spanish speaking: Please Learn!

Según el primer párafo/texto/árticulo…

According to the first paragraph/text/article
En cuanto se concierne el primer párafo/texto/árticulo…
As far as the first paragraph/text/article is concerned
Me da la impresión de que … I get the impression that…
Destacan los puntos siguientes…The following ponts stand out
Por un lado…On the one hand
Por otro lado… On the other hand
Las ideas claves son…The main ideas are…
Este es un problema polemico que existe desde hace mucho tiempo
This is a controversial issue which has existed for a long time
Estoy de acuerdo con la afirmación porque
I agree with the statement because…
No estoy de acuerdo con la afirmación porque
I disagree with the statement because…
Pensándolo bien, NO CREO QUE + subjunctive- Thinking hard on it I don’t
believe that…
Un gran porciento de la gente cree que…
A large percentage of people think/believe that…
En actualidad At present
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Hoy en día Nowadays
En años más recientes In recent years
Se han incrementado los incidentes de….. Incidents of ……have increased
Se han aumentado las posibilidades de … The chances of ….. have increased
La situación ha cambiado/ha transformado completamente en cuanto a….
The situation has completely changed with regard to..
Existen cada vez más oportunidades de ……
There are more and more opportunities to..

Hay cada vez más/menos…….. There are more and more/less and less…
Sigue existiendo… There are still…
Todavía existe.. There are still…
Para conseguir igualdad/empleo etc hay que/se debería +infin
To achieve equality/emplyment etc we have to…
El problema es tan grave como antes… The problem is as bad as before
El problema ya no es tan grave como antes The problem isn’t as bad as before
No sólo trata de …… sino es cuestión de ……también
It’s not only about ….but its also about …..aswell
La situacón ha mejorado/empeorado porque/ a causa de/debido a
The situation has improved/got worse because/due to..
Depende del punto de vista It depends on your point of view
Las cifras confirman/demuestran…… The figures prove/show
Crecer/Aumentar To grow
Reducir/Disminuir To diminish
Hay efectos positivos pero a la vez existen efectos negativos
There are psotive effects but at the same time there are negative affects
Hay grandes impactos tanto positivos como negativos
There are positive as well as negative results
Se han visto enormes cambios en la sociedad hispana…
Spanish Society has seen enormous changes
X juega/desraolla un papel muy importante
A pesar de los cambios en la sociedad los festivales/las celebraciones/la música
sigue(n) teniendo una gran importancia hoy en día
Despite changes in society the festivals/celebrations/music continue to be
important nowadays
Ha habido un gran aumento/crecimiento en el número/la tasa de …
There has been a big increase in the number/rate of…
Hay que que tener en cuenta You have to bear in mind..

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Vale la pena decir que… It’s worth saying that…
Más vale decir que.. It would be better to say that
Comenzar/Empezar/poner en marcha To begin
Que yo sepa – As far as I know
Cueste lo que cueste - Whatever the cost
Pase lo que pase - Whatever happens
Como si fuera lo único que importara – As if it were the only thing that
mattered
Es una lástima que + subj It’s a shame that…
Es necesario que + subj = It's neccessary that...
Es imprescindible que + subj = It's essential that
Es esencial que + subj - It's neccessary that...
Es importante que + subj It's important that...
puesto que = Given that
dado que ""
ya que

Essay expressions
Openings remarks
Éste es un tema que ya lleva algunos meses apareciendo en los medios…
This is a topic which has been in the media for some months now…
Se suele afirmar que…
It is often said that…
Uno de los temas que más preocupa a la opinión pública es el de…
One of the issues which the public is particularly concerned about is…
Empecemos diciendo que…
Let us begin by saying that…
Para comenzar, debemos hacer hincapié en…
First of all, … must be emphasized.
Centrémonos primero en el problema de…
First, let’s concentrate on the problem of…
En primer lugar conviene examinar si…
First, we need to consider whether…

Moving your argument on…

Existe una gran diferencia de opiniones sobre…
There are many different opinions about…
Sin embargo, cabe preguntarse si…

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However, we should perhaps ask ourselves whether…
Pasemos ahora a considerar otro aspecto del tema…
Let’s move on to another aspect of the issue…
Dirijamos la atención a…
Let’s turn our attention to…
Es preciso advertir, no obstante, que…
It should be pointed out, however, that…
Otro dato a tener en cuenta es…
Another factor to take into account is…
Otro factor es que…

Another factor is that…

Cabe destacar también que…
It should also be noted that…
Giving examples
Sirva de ejemplo…
As an example, let’s take…
Veamos un ejemplo…
Let’s look at an example
Pongamos por caso…
Let’s consider…
Según cifras oficiales…
According to official figures…
Es un hecho que…
It’s a fact that…

Expressing opinions
Soy de la opinión de que…
I am of the opinion that…
A mi parecer…
In my opinion…
Yo opino que… / creo que… / pienso que… / a mí me parece que…
I think that…
Desde mi punto de vista…
From my point of view…
Estoy de acuerdo con los que…
I agree with those who…
Estoy a favor de…
I’m in favour of…
Estoy en contra de…

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I’m against…
Si no me equivoco
If I am not mistaken…
Si me acuerdo bien…
If I remember correctly…
Hay que tener en cuenta…
One has to bear in mind…
No hay/cabe duda de que…
There is doubt that…
No se puede negar que…
It cannot be denied that…
Resulta difícil creer que… (+subjunctive)
It is hard to believe that…
No estoy persuadido/a de que… (+subjunctive)
I’m not persuaded that
La solución obvia es…
The obvious solution is…
La situación va empeorando…
The situation is getting worse…
Las cosas van mejorando…
Things are getting better…
No podemos hace la vista gorda a…
We can’t turn a blind eye to…
… y por si eso fuera poco...
…and as if that weren’t enough…

Concluding remarks
Se trata, en suma, de…
In short, it’s a question of…
Todos los argumentos nos llevan a la misma conclusión…
All the arguments lead us to the same conclusion…
Llegamos así a la conclusión de que…
We are therefore drawn to the conclusion that…
Ojalá pudiera concluir diciendo que…
I wish I could conclude by saying that…

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Useful vocabulary
a corto plazo – in the short term
a fin de cuentas – at the end of the day
a largo plazo – in the long term
a pesar de – in spite of
a primera vista – at first sight
además – moreover, furthermore
afortunadamente – fortunately
al contrario – on the contrary, on the other hand
ante todo – first and foremost
asimismo – likewise
aunque (+ subjunctive) – even if
aunque (+I ndicative) – although
bien… bien… - either… or…
de hecho – in fact
de todas formas – in any case
de todos modos –in any case
desafortunadamente – unfortunately
desgraciadamente – unfortunately
en cambio – whereas, on the other hand
en comparación con – in comparison with
en conclusion - in conclusion…
en contraste con – in contrast with
en cuanto a – with regard to
en primer lugar – in the first place
en resumen - in short
en segundo lugar – in the second place
es decir – that is to say
finalmente – finally
hasta cierto punto – to a certain extent
mientras que – while
ni siquiera – not even
ni… ni... – neither… nor…
no obstante - neverthless
no sólo… sino también – not only… but also
o sea – or to put it another way
por consiguiente – consequently, therefore
por la mayor parte – for the most part
por lo tanto – therefore
por supuesto – of course
por último - lastly

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 por un lado… por otro… – on the one hand… on the other…
por una parte… y por otra… - on the one hand… and on the other…
primero – firstly
puesto que – since, because
que yo sepa – as far as I know
se trata de – it’s a question of
segundo – secondly
sin embargo – nevertheless
tanto… como… - both… and …
ya que – since, because

Learning from home-Homework

1. Purchase/ Acquire necessary books.

2. Read “La Casa de Bernada Alba”- You can also view the film online via
Teams/Youtube.
3. Summarise, in Spanish the film “El Laberinto del Fauno.” (c. 300 – 350 words)
4. Read and summarise, in Spanish, 2 articles (that were in Spanish!) that you
have read from one of the websites/ papers above and say why they interested
you. If you cannot print the article, make a note of the website.
5. Go onto www.languagesonline.org.uk . Complete 2 exercises a week. Each
exercise takes less than 5 minutes. Note down the exercise you did and your
score.
6. Read through the course overview so that you have an idea of what we will be
studying. This will also help you with task 4 above.
7. If you find any other websites/ links/ twitter feeds that you think are worth
sharing, note them down too.
8. Each time you pass a second hand shop pop in and see whether they have any
large dictionaries or any Spanish books – either fiction or grammar. You can
find old Spanish dictionaries worth £35 on sale for less than a fiver!
9. And finally…Remember, you will take from the course what you put in.
Students who put in plenty of independent work are always the most
successful. Enjoy!

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 SPANISH A LEVEL SUMMER PREPARATION- TASK LOG
Date Website /Source Comments
July Lightbulb languages Loads of info and quite fun. Looked at slides about
Civil War – need to find out more about this. Will
look it up on Wikipedia. Website more interesting
than I was expecting.

TASK LOG 2
Date Website /Source Comments

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