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      People and places: 'ser' and 'estar' singular and plural persons

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can describe places and people using a variety of adjectives and the verbs ‘ser’ and ‘estar’.

      Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

      Key learning points

      1. The weak vowel [i] when next to [a], [e] and [o] become a single syllable.
      2. The verb 'ser' means 'to, be, being' and it is used to describe permanent traits.
      3. The verb 'estar' means 'to, be, being' and it is used to describe temporary states/moods.
      4. In Spanish, adjectives must agree with the nouns they accompany in gender and number.

      Keywords

      • Weak vowel - vowel that is not strong or dominant in pronunciation. e.g. the letter [u]

      • Strong vowel - vowel that is strong in pronunciation. e.g. [a], [e], [o]

      • Ser - verb 'to be, being' used to describe permanent traits

      • Estar - verb 'to be, being' used to describe temporary state/mood and location

      Common misconception

      When a weak vowel is next to a strong vowel, we pronounce them separately.

      When a weak vowel is next to a strong vowel, like for example [i] next to [a], [e] or [o], it merges with them to make a single syllable.

      Teacher tip

      For Task A2, the teacher might want to play just one round and put all the sentences on one slide.

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0
      except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions
      (Collection 2).

      Lesson video

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      Prior knowledge starter quiz

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the English and Spanish.

      Correct Answer:to learn, learning,aprender
      Correct Answer:to have dinner, having dinner,cenar
      Correct Answer:to run, running,correr
      Correct Answer:to sleep, sleeping,dormir
      Correct Answer:to write, writing,escribir

      Q2.
      Select the word which means the same as 'normalmente'.

      nunca
      Correct answer: generalmente
      algo
      después
      siempre

      Q3.
      Select the word which means the opposite to 'igual'.

      parque
      pelo
      Correct answer: diferente
      idioma
      así

      Q4.
      'Camina por la ciudad.' Which words could replace 'por'?

      de
      Correct answer: en
      con
      Correct answer: fuera de

      Q5.
      Translate into English: 'Estás triste hoy.'

      Correct Answer: You are sad today.

      Q6.
      Translate into Spanish. 'She is clever.'

      Correct Answer: Es lista.

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the Spanish and English.

      Correct Answer:triste,sad
      Correct Answer:limpio,clean
      Correct Answer:listo,smart, ready
      Correct Answer:malo,sick, bad
      Correct Answer:sucio,dirty
      Correct Answer:seguro,safe, certain

      Q2.
      What does 'quizás' mean?

      according to
      generally
      Correct answer: maybe
      the same
      like this

      Q3.
      Match the English and Spanish.

      Correct Answer:I am (trait),soy
      Correct Answer:I am (state),estoy
      Correct Answer:you are (trait),eres
      Correct Answer:you are (state),estás
      Correct Answer:we are (trait),somos
      Correct Answer:we are (state),estamos

      Q4.
      Match the Spanish and English.

      Correct Answer:Soy malo.,I'm a bad person.
      Correct Answer:Estoy malo.,I'm ill.
      Correct Answer:Es seguro.,It's safe.
      Correct Answer:Está seguro.,He is certain.
      Correct Answer:Son listos.,They are intelligent.
      Correct Answer:Están listos.,They are ready.

      Q5.
      Translate into Spanish: 'She is calm'.

      Correct Answer: Es tranquila., Élla es tranquila.

      Q6.
      Translate into Spanish: 'The parks are dirty.'

      Correct Answer: Los parques están sucios.

      To help you plan your 8 Spanish lesson on: People and places: 'ser' and 'estar' singular and plural persons, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...