RSS feed for Getting started with Spanish 2

Introduction

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

¡En marcha! Let's get up and running!

This is the second beginners Spanish course, Getting started with Spanish 2. You might have already gone through the previous course in this program or you might be joining us now for the first time. Regardless, we hope you enjoy the course and find it useful.

This two-week course is the next step in your learning journey. Each week comprises 3–4 hours of interactive activities, explanations, exercises and tips about language-learning. It’s a good idea to keep notes either on paper in a notebook or on your preferred digital device; in any case each week you’ll be encouraged to add to your own personal phrase book and decide how best you can go about memorising and practising key phrases and vocabulary. There is also a weekly quiz for you to practise what you’ve been learning.

You’ll start by learning how to tell the time in Spanish, but first of all, take some time to decide how you’ll allocate your time to your studies. Learning Spanish, like learning any language, is a gradual process; it’s often described as ‘a marathon, not a sprint.’ ‘Little and often’ is the best approach, so if at all possible spread your 3–4 hours over the week, rather than devoting one whole afternoon or evening. This will give you plenty of opportunities to revisit vocabulary and language structures, to revise quickly what you did last time and above all to practise and consolidate. This is the best way to learn vocabulary and perfect your accent.

After studying this course, you should be able to:

ask the time, and tell the time to others
develop pronunciation, fluency and intonation through practice
conjugate verbs in the present tense
report on daily routines and favoured activities
appreciate the different 'r' sounds in the Spanish language

Open Centre for Languages and Cultures

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

This course has been developed from extracts of LXS002 - Beginners Spanish 2: ¡En marcha!. The Open University have launched a dedicated learning centre called The Open Centre for Languages and Cultures. OpenLearn is supporting this project and is providing extracted units of all courses on The Open Centre in our dedicated Language and Cultures Hub.

The Open Centre for Languages and Cultures is the exciting new home for non-accredited language and intercultural communication short courses. You can study a wide range of language and language related subjects with us anywhere in the world, in any time zone, whatever your motivation – leisure, professional development or academic.

It’s the one stop shop for engaging with languages, professional communication and intercultural dialogue.

Our short courses allow us to be agile and responsive to the needs of learners who want to be part of a global society. We offer non-accredited short courses in a range of subjects including modern languages, and languages for business and the workplace. We are also leading the way in developing short courses for academic research methods and pre-sessional English with IELTS, which will be available for registration in due course.

The Open Centre for Languages and Cultures is an international leader in online language learning and intercultural communications, built on our pioneering pedagogy and research.

What makes the Open Centre different?

The OU is the leader in online learning and teaching with a heritage of more than 50 years helping student achieve their learning ambitions.
The short courses are underpinned by academic rigour and designed by native speakers experienced in producing engaging materials for online learning of languages and cultures.
The graduating nature of the courses means that learners can build up their language and skills over time.
Learners will also gain a better understanding of the culture(s) associated with the language(s) they study enabling the development of intercultural communication skills.
Learners can mix and match the short courses and study more than one course at a time.

Once this course is complete you will be directed to OpenLearn's hub for language content where you will be able to build on your newly found language skills.

Now that you’re fully prepared, it’s time to start on Week 1.

Introduction

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

¡Bienvenido/a a semana 1! Welcome to Week 1!

In this first week, you will learn how to tell the time in Spanish, including asking other people and answering others' questions about the time. You will practise this through a variety of speaking and listening activities.

Enjoy the week!

This OpenLearn course is an adapted extract from the Open University course LXS002 Beginners Spanish 2: ¡En marcha!

1 What time is it?

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Let’s make a start by listening to a group of school children that are learning how to tell the time.

Activity _unit2.2.1 Activity 1

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk1_act_aud001.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen to these children and their teacher telling the time.

TEACHER:

Miguel, ¿qué hora es?

MIGUEL:

Las doce en punto.

TEACHER:

Alba, ¿qué hora es?

ALBA:

La una en punto.

TEACHER:

Carolina, ¿qué hora es?

CAROLINA:

Las once y media.

TEACHER:

¿Qué hora es?

CAROLINA:

Las diez y media.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Can you identify how the teacher asks the time? Listen and select the question she asks.

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk1_act_aud001.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen to these children and their teacher telling the time.

TEACHER:

Miguel, ¿qué hora es?

MIGUEL:

Las doce en punto.

TEACHER:

Alba, ¿qué hora es?

ALBA:

La una en punto.

TEACHER:

Carolina, ¿qué hora es?

CAROLINA:

Las once y media.

TEACHER:

¿Qué hora es?

CAROLINA:

Las diez y media.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Listen to the recording again and select the two expressions the children use after the time.

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

2 Asking and telling the time

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

To ask and tell the time (la hora) in Spanish, use the following expressions.

¿Qué hora es? What time is it? / What’s the time?
La una. / Es la una. It’s one o’clock.
Las dos. / Son las dos. It’s two o’clock.
Las tres. / Son las tres. It’s three o’clock.

Notice that the article la / las is always used with times. It is feminine because it refers to the noun hora / horas.

Note that the answer is in the singular (Es la una) for one o’clock and in the plural for all other times (Son las dos / tres / cuatro…).

More precise time is given in the following way.

Long description

3 Practising times

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Match the following times with their equivalents in digits. Choose from the list.

Activity _unit2.4.1 Activity 2

Question 1

Las ocho y veinte = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 2

La una menos cuarto = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 3

Las tres y veinticinco = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 4

Las siete y cuarto = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 5

Las nueve en punto = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 6

Las doce menos veinte = las _________

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Question 7

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 8

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 9

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 10

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

4 Listening practice

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

This activity will give you some practice in telling the time as part of spoken conversation.

Activity _unit2.5.1 Activity 3

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk1_act_aud002.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

SPEAKER 1:

Español de bolsillo

SPEAKER 2:

¿Qué hora es?

Son las doce en punto.

Son las doce y diez.

Son las doce y media.

Es la una menos veinte.

Es la una menos cuarto.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Listen to the recording and select all the times mentioned.

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

5 Speaking practice

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Look at the following clock faces and practise saying the times aloud.

You may want to record yourself and then listen to the recording.

Activity _unit2.6.1 Activity 4

Long description

Reflection

Note that with the 24-hour clock the time can also be given by reading the numbers; for example:

2:50 – (Son) las dos cincuenta
20:35 – (Son) las veinte treinta y cinco

Discussion

The times are as follows, with alternative ways of saying them.

The answers in brackets refer to the 12-hour clock.

a.Las cinco y cuarto. Son las cinco y cuarto.
b.Las trece cincuenta. Son las trece cincuenta. (Son las dos menos diez).
c.La una y diez. Es la una y diez.
d.Las dieciséis veinte. Son las dieciséis veinte. (Son las cuatro y veinte).
e.Las siete menos cuarto. Son las siete menos cuarto.
f.Las diez y cuarto. Son las diez y cuarto.

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Activity _unit2.7.2 Activity 6

6 (Ask Ángeles.)

SPEAKER:

Ángeles, ¿qué hora es?

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

7 a.m. and p.m.

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Listen to the following times and try to determine the expressions used to indicate whether it is a.m. and p.m.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk1_act_aud014.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen to the following times.

Son las cuatro de la mañana.

Son las diez de la mañana.

Son las tres de la tarde.

Son las cinco de la tarde.

Son las once de la noche.

Son las doce de la noche.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Activity _unit2.8.1 Activity 7

1. The expression for a.m. is …

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

2. There are two expressions for p.m., they are …

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

Discussion

These expressions distinguish different parts of the day: morning, afternoon and evening/night. The next section will explore this more closely.

8 Times at different stages of the day

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

When using the 12-hour clock the expressions de la mañana, de la tarde or de la noche are frequently added to indicate whether it is a.m. or p.m.

Box _unit2.9.1

Son las ocho y media de la mañana. It’s half past eight in the morning.

Son las dos de la tarde. It’s 2 p.m.

Son las diez de la noche. It’s 10 p.m.

Son las doce. Es mediodía. It’s 12 p.m. It’s midday.

Son las doce de la noche. Es medianoche. It’s 12 a.m. It’s midnight.

Activity _unit2.9.1 Activity 8

Es la una de la mañana.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

9 This week's quiz

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Check what you’ve learned this week by taking the end-of-week quiz. This is optional practice, but will help to consolidate what you've learned.

Week 1 quiz

Open the quiz in a new window or tab (by holding ctrl [or cmd on a Mac] when you click the link), then return here when you have done it.

10 Summary of Week 1

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Now you have reached the end of Week 1, reflect a little on what you have learnt. In the box below, note down what you have found easy, useful or fun, and what was more difficult.

Activity _unit2.11.1 Week 1 Reflection

What was easy, useful or fun this week?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What was more difficult?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What do I need to practice?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

¡Enhorabuena!

You have come to the end of Week 1. Next week you’ll be learning how to talk about everyday activities, you’ll learn about the sound of the r and you’ll be able to work further on your pronunciation and listening skills.

¡Hasta la semana que viene!

You can now move on to Week 2.

Introduction

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

¡Bienvenido/a a semana 2! Welcome to Week 2!

Long description

You will see that this week introduces quite a bit of new vocabulary and grammar, especially the conjugation of new verbs in the present tense. It is really important that you learn these, as there is nothing more frustrating when learning a new language than starting to say a sentence and getting stuck because you can’t remember the word or the verb form you need!

Have you got a good dictionary? Do you use a dictionary online? You might need to refer to one for at least one of the activities this week, so think about how you plan to look words up when you need to. There are many online dictionaries available, or perhaps you prefer to use a printed version. Either way, find a dictionary that suits you and that is also reliable and accurate.

Enjoy the week!

This OpenLearn course is an adapted extract from the Open University course LXS002 Beginners Spanish 2: ¡En marcha!

1 Everyday activities

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

In this activity you will learn vocabulary relating to everyday activities and how to say when you usually do them.

Activity _unit3.2.1 Activity 1

Listen to this clip as various people are asked about their everyday activities. Then look at the drawings below, which depict some of these activities. Drag and drop the descriptions to the matching drawings underneath.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud001.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

INTERVIEWER

Señora, ¿usted qué hace normalmente por la tarde? ¿Pasea, lee, estudia?

PERSON 1

Paseo, paseo por el parque, paseo a mi perro por el parque.

INTERVIEWER

Y usted, ¿qué hace?

PERSON 2

Yo leo, normalmente leo.

INTERVIEWER

¿Usted lee?

PERSON 3

No, no, yo trabajo en un restaurante.

INTERVIEWER

Y usted, ¿qué hace? ¿Trabaja, estudia?

PERSON 4

Estudio en la biblioteca.

INTERVIEWER

¿Y usted, señora, qué hace por las tardes?

PERSON 5

Veo la televisión.

INTERVIEWER

¿Y Juan? ¿Qué hace Juan por las tardes?

PERSON 6

Juan escribe, escribe novelas.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Long description

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

2 Saying what you do

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

To say what you do on a regular basis, use the verb in the present tense (el presente).

¿Qué haces normalmente? What do you usually do?
Paseo. I go for a walk.
Estudio. I study.
Veo la televisión. I watch television.

You can also talk about a specific time in the day.

¿Qué haces normalmente a las diez de la mañana? What do you normally do at ten o’clock in the morning?
Desayuno a las diez de la mañana. I have breakfast at ten o’clock in the morning.

To say what you do in a specific part of the day:

¿Qué haces normalmente por la tarde? What do you normally do in the afternoon?
Por la tarde paseo. I go for a walk in the afternoon.

Note the contrast between a las dos de la tarde, to refer to a specific time in the afternoon (Como a las dos de la tarde), and por la tarde, to refer to what you do in the afternoon in general (Estudio por la tarde).

3 Daily routines

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Listen to this audio clip, then answer the questions in the activity beneath.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud002.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

What does each person do?

SPEAKER 1:

Gerardo, ¿tú qué haces normalmente por la mañana? ¿Paseas, lees, trabajas?

GERARDO:

Trabajo, normalmente trabajo en una oficina.

SPEAKER 1:

Y tú Iker, ¿qué haces?

IKER:

Pues normalmente estudio Matemáticas.

SPEAKER 1:

Juana, ¿y tú qué haces?

JUANA:

Yo trabajo, trabajo en un bar.

SPEAKER 1:

Señor Redoli, ¿usted qué hace por la mañana?

SEÑOR REDOLI:

Paseo, paseo por la plaza.

SPEAKER 1:

¿Y la señora Redondo qué hace? A ver, ¿usted qué hace, doña María?

SEÑORA REDONDO:

Ah, yo leo novelas de misterio y escribo cartas. ¿Y tú, Nuria?

NURIA:

Yo estudio, estudio Psicología y Francés.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Activity _unit3.4.1 Activity 2

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Reflection

You will have noticed that in your answers the form of the verb always ends in -o (trabajo, estudio, paseo, leo, escribo). That is because you are saying ‘I work’, ‘I study’, ‘I go for a walk’, ‘I read’, ‘I write’, and the ending for the first person (I = yo) of regular verbs in the present is always -o.

Listen again to each person talking about what they do in the morning and repeat out loud their answers.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud002.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

What does each person do?

SPEAKER 1:

Gerardo, ¿tú qué haces normalmente por la mañana? ¿Paseas, lees, trabajas?

GERARDO:

Trabajo, normalmente trabajo en una oficina.

SPEAKER 1:

Y tú Iker, ¿qué haces?

IKER:

Pues normalmente estudio Matemáticas.

SPEAKER 1:

Juana, ¿y tú qué haces?

JUANA:

Yo trabajo, trabajo en un bar.

SPEAKER 1:

Señor Redoli, ¿usted qué hace por la mañana?

SEÑOR REDOLI:

Paseo, paseo por la plaza.

SPEAKER 1:

¿Y la señora Redondo qué hace? A ver, ¿usted qué hace, doña María?

SEÑORA REDONDO:

Ah, yo leo novelas de misterio y escribo cartas. ¿Y tú, Nuria?

NURIA:

Yo estudio, estudio Psicología y Francés.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

4 The present tense of regular verbs

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Verbs have two parts: a stem and an ending. To find out what the stem of a verb is, drop the -ar, -er or -ir of the infinitive (trabaj-, com-, viv-). For regular verbs the stem does not change. To form the present tense, just add the present tense endings of the respective conjugation to the stem. The endings show the person and the number (for example, trabajo = first person singular).

Table _unit3.5.1
	-ar	-er	-ir
	trabaj-ar	com-er	escrib-ir
(yo)	trabaj-o	com-o	escrib-o
(tú)	trabaj-as	com-es	escrib-es
(él/ella, usted)	trabaj-a	com-e	escrib-e
(nosotros/-as)	trabaj-amos	com-emos	escrib-imos
(vosotros/-as)	trabaj-áis	com-éis	escrib-ís
(ellos/ellas, ustedes)	trabaj-an	com-en	escrib-en

Verbs whose infinitives end in -ir have the same endings as -er verbs in the present tense, except for the nosotros and vosotros forms.

5 Reading comprehension

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Read this brief email sent by Verónica to her friend Marta. First concentrate on understanding the gist – there is some vocabulary provided below to help. When you have a rough idea of the email's meaning, try completing the multiple choice questions underneath.

Activity _unit3.6.1 Activity 3

Box _unit3.6.1

Hola Marta:

Soy miembro de Acción Solidaria en Chile. El objetivo de nuestra organización es facilitar y ayudar con trabajar distintos a los discapacitados. ¡Quieren y pueden trabajar! Ofrecemos cursos para fabricar objetos, aprender carpintería, informática y hacer repostería. Los discapacitados fabrican objetos, aprenden carpintería y a usar computadoras. Es bonito. Todos aprendemos mucho.

También trabajamos en escuelas especiales con niños de todas las edades con limitación físicas o mentales. Tenemos colaboradores que usan la lengua de señas en las clases cuando los niños tienen discapacidad auditiva. Los niños aprenden mucho y están contentos.

Mi hermano también colabora con la asociación. Él da clases de carpintería y yo contacto con nuestros colaboradores para organizar actividades. ¿Colabora con nosotros?

Un abrazo,

Vero

Table _unit3.6.1
Vocabulario
ayudar	to help
discapacitado	a disabled
hacer repostería	baking
la computadora (LAm)	computer
la lengua de señas	sign language
la discapacidad auditiva	hearing disability

Which statement best describes what the email is about?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What does Acción Solidaria do in special schools?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What does Verónica’s brother do?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

6 Finding verbs in a dictionary

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

When you want to look up a verb in the dictionary, you will generally find only the infinitive form. So, if you are reading a text and come across a verb you don’t know, such as corremos, you first need to detach the ending (in this case -emos) to get the stem (in this case corr-) from which you get the infinitive correr (‘to run’); you know it’s an -er verb because of the e in -emos. Now you can look up the verb correr in the dictionary.

If the verb form you are looking up happens to be irregular, this procedure for finding the stem may not work. For example, if you have the verb form es, you need to know that es is the third person singular of ser.

7 Using the present tense

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Complete the following sentences with the correct form of the verb in brackets. Remember to remove the -ar from the infinitive to get the stem and then add the appropriate ending for that person. Remember the accent for the vosotros form.

Box _unit3.8.1

If you don’t already know how to type accented and special characters (covered in Getting started with Spanish 1), then you should find out now. Make sure you can type all of these characters: á é í ó ú ü ñ ¿ ¡

On most mobile devices, press and hold a letter on the touchscreen keyboard and you get a popup showing all the possible accents. On a Mac computer or most mobile devices, hold down the letter and select an accent from the pop-up. On a PC, hold down the Alt key and type on the numeric keypad a number code. A further option for both PCs and Macs is to set your computer to use a Spanish keyboard layout; on a PC, go to ‘Start’ and open the ‘Control Panel’, then click on ‘Date, Time, Language, and Regional Options’ (‘Region and Language’ then ‘Keyboards and languages’ in Windows 7).

Activity _unit3.8.1 Activity 4

Question 1

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 2

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 3

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 4

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 5

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 6

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 7

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 8

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 9

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Question 10

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

8 Speaking practice

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Now try the following activity for some speaking practice.

Activity _unit3.9.1 Activity 5

Listen and answer the questions, following the prompts as in the example you hear.

Example

You hear: ¿Qué haces normalmente en la oficina?

You hear: (trabajar con computadoras)

You say: Trabajo con computadoras.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud003.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen to these questions about what you usually do and answer following the prompts, as in the example.

SPEAKER 1:

Ejemplo

¿Qué haces normalmente en la oficina?

SPEAKER 2:

(trabajar con computadoras)

Trabajo con computadoras.

NARRATOR:

Now it’s your turn.

SPEAKER 1:

A - ¿Qué haces normalmente en la escuela?

SPEAKER 2:

(enseñar informática)

Enseño informática.

SPEAKER 1:

B - ¿Qué haces normalmente a las diez de la mañana?

SPEAKER 2:

(hablar con el secretario)

Hablo con el secretario.

SPEAKER 1:

C - ¿Qué haces normalmente a las tres y media?

SPEAKER 2:

(terminar de trabajar)

Termino de trabajar.

SPEAKER 1:

D - ¿Qué haces normalmente a las nueve de la mañana?

SPEAKER 2:

(llamar por teléfono a mi jefe)

Llamo por teléfono a mi jefe.

SPEAKER 1:

E - ¿Qué haces por las mañanas?

(estudiar)

Estudio.

SPEAKER 1:

F - Y por las tardes, ¿qué haces?

SPEAKER 2:

(trabajar en un hospital)

Trabajo en un hospital.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

9 The correct present tense form

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Have a go at this activity to practise the present tense form.

Activity _unit3.10.1 Activity 6

Complete the sentences below with the correct present tense form of the verb in brackets. Choose from the drop-down menu.

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

10 Sounds for the letter ‘r’

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Listen to the following pairs of words, in which the only difference is the sound of the letter r.

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud004.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen for the difference in these pairs of words.

SPEAKER 1:

pero – perro; cero – cerro; caro – carro; coro – corro; curo – curro

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Note that the difference in sound depends on whether the word is spelled with a single r or a double rr.

pero but
perro dog
cero zero
cerro hill
caro expensive
carro cart
coro choir
corro I run
curo I cure
curro slang word for 'work'

In these pairs the difference in sound and spelling gives a different meaning. Although in general the context would help a listener understand what you mean, you should be aware of the difference and practise these sounds as you come across them.

Box _unit3.11.1 Sounds for the letter ‘r’

The sound for r is produced by a single flap of the tongue against the roof of the mouth close to your gums, as in cero or pero.

The sound for double rr is produced in the same way, but by flapping the tongue several times, producing a stronger and longer sound as in cierra and cerrado.

When the letter r is at the beginning of a word it is pronounced with the strong sound of the double rr in the middle of a word; for example, rata, ratón.

11 Listen and repeat ‘r’ and ‘rr’

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

In this final activity, you will hear and practise the 'r' and 'rr' sounds.

Activity _unit3.12.1 Activity 7

Listen and repeat ‘r’

Read the following sequence of words with the softer and shorter sound for the letter r (ere), then listen and repeat out loud.

hora
abre
¿A qué hora abre?
¿A qué hora abre la panadería?
¿A qué hora abre la zapatería?
Abre por la tarde

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud005.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen and repeat the following sequence of words and expressions with the softer and shorter sound for the letter ere.

SPEAKER:

hora

abre

¿A qué hora abre?

¿A qué hora abre la panadería?

¿A qué hora abre la zapatería?

Abre por la tarde.

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

Listen and repeat ‘rr’

Read the following sequence of words with the stronger and longer sound for the letter r (erre), then listen and repeat out loud. When the sound occurs in the middle of the word, the word is written with the double rr.

Cierra
Correos
¿A qué hora cierra Correos?
Carrera
Correr
¿A qué hora corres?
¿A qué hora empieza la carrera?

Download this audio clip.Audio player: lxs002_wk2_act_aud006.mp3

Show transcript|Hide transcript

Transcript

NARRATOR:

Listen and repeat the following words with the stronger and longer sound of the letter erre.

SPEAKER 1:

cierra

Correos

¿A qué hora cierra Correos?

carrera, correr

¿A qué hora corres?

¿A qué hora empieza la carrera?

End transcript

Download

Interactive feature not available in single page view (see it in standard view).

11 This week’s quiz

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Check what you’ve learned this week by taking the end-of-week quiz. This is optional practice, but will help to consolidate what you've learned.

Week 2 quiz

Open the quiz in a new window or tab (by holding ctrl [or cmd on a Mac] when you click the link), then return here when you have done it.

11 Summary of Week 2

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

Now you’ve reached the end of Week 2, reflect a little on what you’ve been learning. In the box below, note down what you’ve found easy, useful or fun, and what was more difficult.

Activity _unit3.14.1 Week 2 Reflection

What was easy, useful or fun this week?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What was more difficult?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

What do I need to practice?

Interactive content appears here. Please visit the website to use it

¡Enhorabuena!

You have now reached the end of this course.

This OpenLearn course is an adapted extract from the Open University course LXS002 Beginners Spanish 2: ¡En marcha!

Visit the OpenLearn’s hub for language content where you will be able to build on your newly found language skills.

Acknowledgements

The Open University — Thu, 22 Apr 2021 09:55:56 GMT

This free course was first published in April 2021.

Except for third party materials and otherwise stated (see terms and conditions), this content is made available under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 Licence.

The material acknowledged below and within the course is Proprietary and used under licence (not subject to Creative Commons Licence). Grateful acknowledgement is made to the following sources for permission to reproduce material in this free course:

Images

Course image: Photo by Chait Goli from Pexels

Every effort has been made to contact copyright owners. If any have been inadvertently overlooked, the publishers will be pleased to make the necessary arrangements at the first opportunity.

Don't miss out

If reading this text has inspired you to learn more, you may be interested in joining the millions of people who discover our free learning resources and qualifications by visiting The Open University – www.open.edu/ openlearn/ free-courses.