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      Una historia de inmigración: 'ser' and 'ir' preterite

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can use plural forms of ‘ser’ and ‘ir’ in the preterite tense in the context of stories of immigration.

      Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

      Key learning points

      1. In Spanish, it is important to differentiate between vowel sounds in a diphthong.
      2. The verbs ‘ser’ and ‘ir’ have the same preterite tense conjugations.
      3. The singular preterite tense forms of ‘ser’ and ‘ir’ are ‘fui’, ‘fuiste’ and ‘fue’.
      4. The plural preterite tense forms of ‘ser’ and ‘ir’ are ‘fuimos’, ‘fuisteis’ and ‘fueron’.
      5. Preterite tense of ‘ser’ can be used to describe completed events or situations in the past.

      Keywords

      • Diphthong - sound created by two vowels together in the same syllable

      • Ser - verb meaning to be, being for general traits

      • Ir - verb meaning to go, going

      • Preterite - verb tense used to talk about something completed in the past

      Common misconception

      The only translation of 'fuimos' is 'we went'.

      'fuimos' can mean 'we went' or 'we were' depending on the context. The verbs 'ser' and 'ir' are identical in the preterite tense.

      Teacher tip

      You may need to repeat the sentences in Task A1 at a slower pace depending on the needs of your class. You could consider using mini whiteboards for Task B1 to assess for whole-class learning.

      Content guidance

      Depiction or discussion of sensitive content

      Supervision

      Adult supervision recommended

      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 Spanish and English.

      Correct Answer:el patio,playground
      Correct Answer:el recreo,break (school)
      Correct Answer:el barco,boat
      Correct Answer:el barrio,neighbourhood
      Correct Answer:el país,country
      Correct Answer:la isla,island

      Q2.
      Match the Spanish and English.

      Correct Answer:ser,to be, being for general traits
      Correct Answer:ir,to go, going
      Correct Answer:soy,I am
      Correct Answer:voy,I go

      Q3.
      To which verb tense do 'fui', 'fuiste' and 'fue' belong?

      present
      Correct answer: preterite
      imperfect

      Q4.
      What are the possible meanings of 'fuiste'?

      I was
      I went
      Correct answer: you were
      Correct answer: you went

      Q5.
      Complete the sentence to say 'I went to buy chips': a comprar patatas fritas.

      Correct answer: fui
      fuiste
      fue
      ir
      voy

      Q6.
      Complete the sentence using the correct form of 'ser' in the preterite tense. ¡Nuestro intercambio escolar genial! (our school exchange was great!).

      Correct Answer: fue

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the Spanish and English.

      Correct Answer:el cliente,client
      Correct Answer:el recuerdo,memory
      Correct Answer:los padres,parents
      Correct Answer:familiar,relating to family
      Correct Answer:viejo,longstanding
      Correct Answer:fuerte,strong

      Q2.
      A diphthong is the sound created by the combination of two in the same syllable.

      Correct Answer: vowels

      Q3.
      Which Spanish words contain diphthongs?

      Correct answer: paciente (patient)
      Correct answer: diferencia (difference)
      triste (sad)
      histórico (historical)

      Q4.
      Match the preterite forms of 'ser' and 'ir'.

      Correct Answer:fuimos,we were, we went
      Correct Answer:fuisteis,you (pl) were, you (pl) went
      Correct Answer:fueron,they were, they went

      Q5.
      What is the meaning of 'fuimos' in this sentence? Fuimos los peores estudiantes de la clase ese año.

      they were
      they went
      Correct answer: we were
      we went

      Q6.
      Complete the sentence with the correct preterite form of 'ir'. Mis primos a buscar trabajo en Francia (my cousins went to find work in France).

      Correct Answer: fueron

      To help you plan your 10 Spanish lesson on: Una historia de inmigración: 'ser' and 'ir' preterite, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...