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      Entre amigos: present and imperfect continuous, extended writing (Edexcel)

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can complete exam-style writing tasks on the topics of friends, family and festivals.

      Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

      Key learning points

      1. To form the present continuous, use the present tense of 'estar' followed by the present participle.
      2. To form the imperfect continuous, use the imperfect tense of 'estar' followed by the present participle.
      3. To form the present participle of -ar and -er/ir verbs, remove the infinitive ending and add -ando or -iendo.
      4. Some verbs have spelling changes in the present participle e.g. 'construyendo', 'leyendo', 'pidiendo'.
      5. The BORDER acronym is a useful tool to respond fully and accurately to bullet point with writing prompts.

      Keywords

      • Present continuous - verb tense used to describe actions happening right now, e.g. 'I am doing'

      • Imperfect continuous - verb tense used to describe ongoing actions in the past, e.g. 'I was doing'

      • BORDER - acronym used to respond fully and accurately to bullet point writing prompts

      Common misconception

      The present participle of 'leer' is 'leiendo'.

      As the stem of 'leer' ends in a vowel, it has a spelling change in the present participle, forming 'leyendo'. This is the same with other verbs with a stem ending in a vowel e.g. 'construyendo' from the verb 'construir'.

      Teacher tip

      Task A1 vocabulary can be easily adapted for the needs of your students.

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), 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.
      Which word means 'crime'?

      prueba
      familia
      hermana
      película
      Correct answer: delito

      Q2.
      'Ella __________ el Día de los Muertos cada año.' Which word completes this sentence?

      celebro
      celebras
      celebramos
      Correct answer: celebra
      celebran

      Q3.
      Match the Spanish to the English.

      Correct Answer:investigar,to investigate, investigating

      to investigate, investigating

      Correct Answer:occurir,to happen, happening, to occur, occurring

      to happen, happening, to occur, occurring

      Correct Answer:reunir, reunirse,to gather, to bring together, gathering, bringing together

      to gather, to bring together, gathering, bringing together

      Correct Answer:sentir,to feel, feeling

      to feel, feeling

      Correct Answer:perder,to lose, losing

      to lose, losing

      Correct Answer:repetir,to repeat, repeating

      to repeat, repeating

      Q4.
      Order the words to say 'my family live in the outskirts of Madrid'.

      1 - mi
      2 - familia
      3 - vive
      4 - en
      5 - las afueras
      6 - de
      7 - Madrid

      Q5.
      Order the words to say 'your father committed a crime when he was younger'.

      1 - tu
      2 - padre
      3 - cometió
      4 - un delito
      5 - cuando
      6 - era
      7 - joven

      Q6.
      'Where do you (2nd person singular) spend Christmas?' Translate this sentence into Spanish.

      Correct Answer: Dónde pasas la Navidad, Dónde pasas Navidad

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Which word is a preposition?

      abuelo
      Correct answer: por
      pasado
      televisión
      por supuesto

      Q2.
      Match the Spanish to the English.

      Correct Answer:acordar, acordarse,to agree on, to remember, agreeing on, remembering

      to agree on, to remember, agreeing on, remembering

      Correct Answer:resultar,to be, to turn out, being, turning out

      to be, to turn out, being, turning out

      Correct Answer:robar,to rob, to steal, robbing, stealing

      to rob, to steal, robbing, stealing

      Correct Answer:echar,to throw, to cast, throwing, casting

      to throw, to cast, throwing, casting

      Correct Answer:entrar,to enter, entering

      to enter, entering

      Correct Answer:morir,to die, dying

      to die, dying

      Q3.
      Order the words to say 'How many exciting films did you watch last week?'.

      1 - cuántas
      2 - películas
      3 - emocionantes
      4 - viste
      5 - la
      6 - semana
      7 - pasada

      Q4.
      Order the words to say 'your younger brother is as tall as my older sister'.

      1 - tu hermano
      2 - menor
      3 - es
      4 - tan alto
      5 - como
      6 - mi hermana
      7 - mayor

      Q5.
      Order the words to say 'yesterday, a thief stole my keys'.

      1 - ayer
      2 - un
      3 - ladrón
      4 - me
      5 - robó
      6 - mis
      7 - llaves

      Q6.
      'My grandfather has lost his glasses.' Translate this sentence into Spanish.

      Correct Answer: Mi abuelo ha perdido sus gafas

      To help you plan your 11 Spanish lesson on: Entre amigos: present and imperfect continuous, extended writing (Edexcel), download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...