Lesson 4
Los trabajos y las profesiones.
Jobs, professions, salaries and what you'd like to do — the language for talking about the world of work. Work through the eight steps below: learn the words, read, listen, translate, then practise the photo card, role-play and writing exactly as they appear in the AQA exam.
Refresh your KS3 jobs words.
You met all of these in earlier years. Tap any word to hear it, and check the model sentence to see it in action. These are the building blocks — make sure they're solid before the new GCSE words.
Twenty new GCSE words.
Each card shows the word, its meaning, a model sentence and a tag: F on the AQA list (Foundation & Higher), H Higher only, útil not on AQA's list but very useful for speaking & writing. Tap to listen.
Read, then answer.
Two texts on the same topic — a Foundation text and a tougher Higher text. Read each one, then answer the questions in English underneath. They mark themselves: tap your answer and you'll see straight away if you're right.
Mi familia y el trabajo — Marcos
¿Qué importa en un trabajo?
Listen, then answer.
Press play to hear the passage read aloud, as many times as you need, then answer the English questions. You can reveal the transcript afterwards to check what you heard.
🎧 Native-quality audio. Play it as many times as you need — just like the real exam, where each recording is played twice.
Quiero ser enfermera — Lucía
Un trabajo creativo — Daniel
Translate both ways.
First Spanish → English (reading translation), then English → Spanish (the harder direction, tested in Paper 4). Have a go on paper, then tap to reveal the model answer and compare.
Translate into English
Translate into Spanish
Describe the photo card.
In the speaking exam you get a card with two photos from one theme. You must say at least one thing about each photo, then have a conversation on the topic. Here are two photos about jobs and professions and the kind of questions you'll be asked.
- 1.¿Qué hay en las fotos? Describe la escena. Compulsory
- 2.¿Qué trabajo te gustaría hacer en el futuro?
- 3.¿Tienes un trabajo a tiempo parcial?
- 4.¿Qué es lo más importante en un trabajo? (opinión + razón)
Describing the photos — model answer
The first question is compulsory: say at least one thing about each photo. Below are two model descriptions you can adapt to whoever is in the picture — tap the speaker to hear them.
Foto A — a lawyer. En la primera foto hay un hombre que trabaja de abogado en su despacho. Lleva un traje oscuro con corbata y está escribiendo en unos documentos. A su alrededor hay muchos libros de derecho, un ordenador portátil y una estatua de la justicia. Parece un trabajo serio, importante y bien pagado.
In the first photo there is a man who works as a lawyer in his office. He is wearing a dark suit with a tie and is writing on some documents. Around him there are lots of law books, a laptop and a statue of justice. It looks like a serious, important and well-paid job.
Foto B — a supermarket cashier. En la segunda foto se ve a una chica que trabaja de cajera en un supermercado, en este caso Mercadona. Lleva el uniforme de la empresa, un chaleco negro y verde, y una tarjeta con su nombre, Nerea. Está metiendo la compra en una bolsa y atendiendo a los clientes. Es un trabajo a tiempo parcial muy común entre los jóvenes.
In the second photo you can see a girl who works as a cashier in a supermarket, in this case Mercadona. She is wearing the company uniform, a black and green gilet, and a badge with her name, Nerea. She is putting the shopping into a bag and serving the customers. It's a part-time job that is very common among young people.
Useful vocabulary & phrases
Para empezar: en la primera / segunda foto hay… (there is) · se ve a… (you can see) · un hombre / una chica que trabaja de…
Los trabajos: trabajar de · el abogado / la cajera · la empresa · el sueldo · bien pagado · llevar uniforme
En el trabajo: atender a los clientes · ganar dinero · el horario · serio / duro / interesante
Opinar (tu turno): es un trabajo interesante / bien pagado · me gustaría ser… · …porque…
Then the conversation
- Q2 — the job you'd like: Me gustaría trabajar de ingeniero porque me apasiona la tecnología.
- Q3 — a part-time job: Los sábados trabajo de camarero en una cafetería para ganar dinero.
- Q4 — opinion + reason (this is where Higher students score): Para mí, lo más importante no es solo el dinero, sino disfrutar del trabajo.
- Higher tier: use the conditional — Si pudiera, montaría mi propio negocio… — contrast antes (imperfect) with ahora, and justify your opinion.
The role-play.
The instructions are in English. You must answer the prompts and ask one question (the ! bullet). Try it out loud first, then reveal the model answers.
Your Spanish friend asks you about jobs and what you want to do in the future. Your teacher plays your friend.
Model answers & tips
Write your answer.
Two tasks in the real exam style — a Foundation ~50-word task (five bullets) and a Higher ~90-word task (three bullets). Use the sentence starters (tap to drop them into the pad) and the useful vocab, then compare with a model answer.
El trabajo que me gustaría hacer
≈ 50 words · 5 bullets · 10 marksDescribe el trabajo que te gustaría hacer. Menciona los cinco puntos. Escribe aproximadamente 50 palabras en español.
Los trabajos y las profesiones
≈ 90 words · 3 bullets · 15 marksDescribe el trabajo que te gustaría, qué es lo más importante para ti y tus planes. Menciona los tres puntos. Escribe aproximadamente 90 palabras en español.
Foundation answers cover all the bullets with clear, accurate present-tense sentences joined by y, pero and porque, plus at least one opinion. Higher answers do all that and then reach further: more than one tense (e.g. imperfect vivía, near future voy a, conditional me gustaría), opinions with developed reasons, a wider range of connectives (aunque, sin embargo, además) and more ambitious vocabulary. The biggest single lift from Foundation to Higher is justifying opinions and using a second and third tense accurately.