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

Refresh your KS3 music words.

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 banda sonora — Lucía

Higher

Bad Bunny: el rey global del reguetón — 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

Mi playlist — Carlos

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

Rosalía y la nueva ola española — 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 & streaming and the kind of questions you'll be asked.

Foto AA teenager listening to Spotify on her phone with headphones, on a bus
Foto BA packed Bad Bunny concert crowd at night with phone lights
  1. 1.¿Qué hay en las fotos? Describe las dos fotos. Compulsory
  2. 2.¿Qué tipo de música sueles escuchar y cuándo?
  3. 3.¿Has ido a algún concierto o festival? Cuenta tu experiencia.
  4. 4.¿Qué piensas de la música en español como Bad Bunny o Rosalía? (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 music. 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

    La música y el streaming

    ≈ 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

    La música y el streaming (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.

    ← Back to Travel & Tourism
    Bonus · Cultural read

    Bad Bunny, Rosalía y la conquista latina

    How Spanish-language music became the soundtrack of the planet.

    Spotify's most-streamed artist three years in a row wasn't Taylor Swift or Drake — it was Bad Bunny, who sings entirely in Spanish. Rosalía has worked with Travis Scott and Billie Eilish. Reggaetón beats are everywhere. Knowing these names — and being able to say a paragraph about them in Spanish — gives any exam answer real punch.

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