GCSE Spanish

In this course, students are prepared for AQA GCSE Spanish (8698). The following units are studied sequentially over Years 10 and 11.

Year 10

Unit Content

Mi gente

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information about socialising, people, social networks, making arrangements, reading preferences, and their relationships with friends and family

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to oneself and one's family and friends
  • Understanding the present tense, ‘para’ + infinitive (in order to), the present continuous tense, how more advanced connectives are used, ‘ser’ and ‘estar’, and relationship-oriented verbs

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures to describe a photo, engage in a role play and develop conversation skills

Assessment: Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions in all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing).

Intereses e influencias

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information and descriptions about free-time activities, TV and film, what you usually do, sports, what’s trending, entertainment and inspirational people.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to the context of free time, popular culture and role models
  • Understanding the use of stem-changing verbs, adjectives of nationality, using ‘soler’ + infinitive (to usually do), the imperfect tense and the perfect tense

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding, including combining tenses, to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures to describe a photo, engage in a role play and develop conversation skills

Assessment: Students are assessed formally in Term 3. The assessment ranges across all four skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing), and includes an extended piece of writing and a conversation task. Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions involving all four skills.

Ciudades

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information and descriptions about places in a town, shops, features of a region, making plans, shopping for clothes and presents, problems where they live, and a visit that happened in the past.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to the context of home and region
  • Understanding the use of ‘se puede’, the future tense, demonstrative adjectives and the conditional tense
  • Understanding synonyms and antonyms

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding, including combining tenses, to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures to describe a photo, engage in a role play and develop conversation skills

Assessment: Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions in all four language skills (listening, speaking, reading and writing).

Year 11

Unit Content

De costumbre

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information and descriptions about mealtimes and different foods, ordering food, festivals, celebrations and musical events.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to the context of customs, traditions and musical events
  • Understanding the use of the passive voice, reflexive verbs in the preterite tense, superlatives and expressions followed by an infinitive

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures and vocabulary learned to develop conversation skills, to describe images shown in photocards and to engage in role play

Assessment: Students are assessed formally in Term 2. The assessment ranges across three language skills (listening, reading and writing) and takes the form of a previous year's full exam paper. Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

iA currar!

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information and descriptions about job preferences, earning money, work experience, applying for jobs (formally, in writing), the importance of learning languages, the notion of a gap year, and future plans and ambitions.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to the context of jobs, careers and ambitions
  • Understanding the use of different verbs forms, including ‘soler + infinitive’ to express what one usually does, how preterite and imperfect tense are combined, the present and present continuous, and the two verbs ‘to know’ (saber/conocer)
  • Understanding direct and indirect object pronouns, the subjunctive with ‘cuando’ to refer to the future, and the present continuous

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding, including combining tenses, to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures and vocabulary learned to develop conversation skills, to describe images shown in photocards and to engage in role play

Assessment: Students' speaking is assessed formally in Term 3 of Year 11. The assessment covers all three elements: a role play, photocard activity and general conversation. Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Hacia un mundo mejor

 

Students learn how to understand, express ideas and give information and descriptions about global issues, the environment, natural disasters, community projects, volunteering, large scale and international events, and health and wellbeing.

Key knowledge developed:

  • Knowing vocabulary and structures related to global issues, the environment, volunteering and health
  • Understanding the use of the present subjunctive, the imperative, formal structures to support the presentation of an argument, and how a variety of tenses can be combined
  • Understanding more advanced tenses such as the pluperfect tense and the imperfect continuous

Key skills developed:

  • How to understand a variety of spoken and written texts within the context described above
  • How to apply vocabulary knowledge and more complex grammatical understanding, including combining tenses, to translation and writing tasks
  • How to use key structures to describe a photo, engage in a role play and develop their conversation skills

Assessment: Informal assessment takes place throughout the unit, through interactive tasks and practice questions in listening, speaking, reading and writing.

Speaking exam & exam practice



 

In order to build on the detailed revision guidance given each week, students engage in the following, in the few weeks prior to formal examination:

  • Practice of speaking preparation across Themes 1-3
  • Bespoke conversation, role play and photocard practice for individual students
  • Speaking assessment
  • Interactive vocabulary revision, grammar practice, skills deepening and development, extended writing practice and translation
  • Exam style activities across themes and topic areas in listening, reading and writing, addressing strategy, application techniques and refinement of skills