Hillside Espanol — lengua, cultura, curiosidad
Step 1 · Vocabulary you already know

Refresh your KS3 deportistas.

You met all of these in Years 7–9. 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.

Step 2 · New for GCSE

Twenty new GCSE words.

Straight from the AQA prescribed vocabulary list. Each card shows the word, its meaning, a model sentence and its tier — F Foundation & Higher, H Higher only. Tap to listen.

Step 3 · Reading comprehension

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.

Foundation

Mi héroe Messi — Sofía

Higher

Alcaraz, el nuevo Nadal — Mateo

Step 4 · Listening comprehension

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.

Foundation

Tres deportistas a seguir — Carlos

Foundation passage · ~45 words · 0:18Carlos speaks.
Higher

¿Por qué nos importan tanto? — Valentina

Higher passage · ~70 words · 0:31Valentina speaks.
Step 5 · Translation

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.

Spanish → English

Translate into English

English → Spanish

Translate into Spanish

Step 6 · Photo card (Paper 2 · 25 marks)

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 sports stars and the kind of questions you'll be asked.

Foto ACarlos Alcaraz celebrating a Grand Slam title, raising his trophy in the air
Foto BA packed stadium during a Real Madrid v Barcelona Clásico match
  1. 1.¿Qué hay en las fotos? Describe las dos fotos. Compulsory
  2. 2.¿Qué deportista famoso/a admiras más y por qué?
  3. 3.¿Has visto en directo a un deportista famoso? Cuenta tu experiencia.
  4. 4.¿Crees que los deportistas merecen ganar tanto dinero? (opinión + razón)
Step 7 · Role-play (Paper 2 · 10 marks)

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.

The situation

You are talking to a Spanish friend about sports stars. Your teacher will play the part of the friend.

    Step 8 · Writing (Paper 4)

    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.

    Foundation · Q2

    Los famosos del deporte

    ≈ 50 words · 5 bullets · 10 marks

    Escribe sobre tus vacaciones. Menciona los cinco puntos. Escribe aproximadamente 50 palabras en español.

    0 words · aim ~50
    Higher · Q2 overlap

    Los famosos del deporte (Higher)

    ≈ 90 words · 3 bullets · 15 marks

    Escribe sobre tus vacaciones. Menciona los tres puntos. Escribe aproximadamente 90 palabras en español.

    0 words · aim ~90
    Foundation vs Higher — what's the difference?

    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.

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    Bonus · Cultural read

    España y los reyes del deporte

    Why Spain produces so many world champions across so many sports.

    Most British students know Messi is Argentinian and Nadal is Spanish — but few realise quite how dominant Spain has been in global sport. From football to tennis, basketball to motorsport, Spain has spent the last twenty years on top of the world. Here are the names every Spanish teen knows and why.

    Throughout the article, the useful Spanish words and phrases are highlighted (with their meaning in brackets). Tap the on any phrase to hear it.