Las estrellas de la música y el cine

Step 1 · Vocabulary you already know

Refresh your KS3 cantantes y actores.

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

Rosalía, mi inspiración — Lucía

Higher

Almodóvar, el director de los Óscar — 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

Mis estrellas favoritas — Carlos

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

Higher

Penélope Cruz, una carrera de oro — 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 music & film stars and the kind of questions you'll be asked.

Foto A

Rosalía performing on a huge stage with dramatic lighting and Spanish lyrics behind her

Foto B

Penélope Cruz on the Cannes red carpet in an elegant Spanish-styled dress

1.¿Qué hay en las fotos? Describe las dos fotos. Compulsory
2.¿Quién es tu cantante o actor/actriz favorito/a y por qué?
3.¿Crees que la música en español está dominando el streaming? ¿Por qué?
4.¿Quién es el mayor icono cultural del mundo hispano para ti? (opinión + razón)

Describing the two photos — model answer

The first question is compulsory: say at least one thing about each photo. Here is a model description of each one — tap the speaker to hear it.

Foto A. En la primera foto se ve a Rosalía, la cantante española, actuando en un escenario gigante. Lleva un vestuario impresionante y la iluminación es muy dramática. Detrás de ella se ven letras de canciones en español proyectadas en pantallas enormes. El público levanta los móviles encendidos creando un mar de luces. Es una imagen del éxito mundial de la música en español.
In the first photo you can see Rosalía, the Spanish singer, performing on a giant stage. She's wearing an impressive outfit and the lighting is very dramatic. Behind her you can see Spanish lyrics projected on enormous screens. The audience holds up their phones creating a sea of light. It's an image of the global success of Spanish-language music.

Foto B. En la segunda foto se ve a Penélope Cruz, la actriz española, posando en la alfombra roja de Cannes. Lleva un vestido elegante con detalles que evocan el flamenco. Los fotógrafos la rodean. Su pose es relajada y profesional. Es una imagen de cómo Penélope representa a España en los grandes eventos del cine mundial.
In the second photo you can see Penélope Cruz, the Spanish actress, posing on the Cannes red carpet. She's wearing an elegant dress with details that evoke flamenco. The photographers surround her. Her pose is relaxed and professional. It's an image of how Penélope represents Spain at the big events of world cinema.

Useful vocabulary & phrases

Para empezar: en la primera / segunda foto hay… (in the first/second photo there is) · se ve(n)… (you can see) · al fondo (in the background) · en primer plano (in the foreground) · parece (it looks like)

Describir el concierto (Foto A): Rosalía actuando · un escenario gigante · una iluminación dramática · letras en español · el público con los móviles · un mar de luces

Describir la alfombra roja (Foto B): Penélope Cruz · la alfombra roja de Cannes · un vestido elegante · los detalles del flamenco · los fotógrafos · representar a España

Verbos clave: hay (there is/are) · se ve(n) (one can see) · está(n) + gerundio (is/are -ing) · lleva(n) (is/are wearing) · parece(n) (seems/look)

Then the conversation

Q2 — your typical holiday: Normalmente voy a la playa con mi familia en agosto. Pasamos una semana en un hotel.
Q3 — be specific: name the country and the people: Suelo ir al sur de España con mis padres y mi hermano, en avión.
Q4 — opinion + reason (where Higher students score): Prefiero las vacaciones de aventura porque me parecen más interesantes y conoces lugares nuevos.
Higher tier: add a tense beyond the present — El año pasado fui a Italia y lo pasé genial (preterite) or Me gustaría hacer un crucero por el Caribe (conditional + infinitive).

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 chatting to a Spanish friend about music and film 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

≈ 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

Las estrellas de la música y el cine (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.

Bonus · Cultural read

La conquista latina del entretenimiento global

How Spanish-language music and cinema took over the world.

In 2024 the world's most-streamed musical artist on Spotify was, for the third year running, Bad Bunny — a Puerto Rican who has refused to sing in English. Pedro Almodóvar has two Óscars. Penélope Cruz and Javier Bardem are Hollywood A-listers. The dominance of Spanish-language entertainment is no accident.

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

Las estrellas de la música y el cine.