level one spanish

Platte River Corridor Project Level One Training Workshop

Basic Conversational Spanish for

Educators

Summer 2002

2002 Donna Shelton, PhD

Table of Contents

Spanish Pronunciation .....................................................................................................1

Greetings and Introductions........................................................................................5

Health Inquiries ............................................................................................................ 12

Family and School Relationships................................................................................ 17

Numbers......................................................................................................................... 25

School Places and Objects ........................................................................................ 26

Supplemental Vocabulary ............................................................................................ 31

Spanish Pronunciation The Spanish alphabet serves as a good introduction to Spanish pronunciation. Scan the letters in the first column. What differences do you find between the Spanish and English alphabets?

Letter of the Alphabet Name of the Letter (what you say when you spell out loud)

Pronunciation Examples

A a casa, taza B be (be burro) bien, bebé C ce casa, cine CH che chico, leche D de día, verdad E e mesa, cine F efe café, fruta G ge jugo, general H hache hola, hijo I i cine, hijo J jota hijo, jugo K ka kilo, kiosko L ele hola, leche LL elle calle, llama M eme mesa, llama N ene noche, nada Ñ eñe señor, niño O o niño, hola P pe papá, peso Q cu queso, quién R ere señor, fruta RR erre perro, carro S ese casa, señor T te taza, fruta U u jugo, mucho V ve (ve vaca) vaso, vive W doble ve whiski X equis México, excelente Y i griega ya, Yucatán Z zeta taza, azúcar

Vowels

Spanish vowels are very distinct and they are always pronounced in the same way. They are not stretched out, nor do they sound alike as English vowels often do.

1. The Spanish A has a sound similar to the English A in the word FATHER.

casa llama nada taza banana vaca

2. The Spanish E is pronounced like the English EI in the word EIGHT.

leche bebé tres entre este excelente

3. The Spanish I is pronounced like the English EE in the word SEE.

sí cine difícil kilo ir tiza

4. The Spanish O is similar to the English O in the word NO, but without the glide.

ocho dos como rojo solo bonito

5. The Spanish U is similar to the English UE sound in the word SUE.

mucho uno fruta usted blusa azul

Consonants

Here are some guidelines for pronouncing certain Spanish consonants.

1. The Spanish consonants B and V have little or no difference in sound. They are pronounced like a soft English B.

sábado viernes bandera valor bueno veinte

2. The Spanish C before the vowels A, O, and U and before consonants sounds like an English K.

calendario cosa cuaderno cliente criatura

3. The Spanish C before the vowels E and I sounds like an English S.

cine nacional necesario precio centro

4. The Spanish G before the vowels A, O, and U and before consonants sounds like the G in the English word SUGAR.

tengo gusto gasto gris negro

5. The Spanish G before the vowels E and I sounds like an English H.

general gerente gente marginal ingeniero

6. The Spanish H is always silent.

hola hijo hacienda hermano hombre

7. The Spanish J also sounds like an English H, regardless of the letter that follows.

hija trabajo jornada jefe ejecutivo

8. The Spanish LL and Y both sound like the English Y is YES.

llamo yo llegar ya lluvia

9. The Spanish Ñ sounds like the NY combination in the English word CANYON.

señora niña enseñar campaña español

10. The Spanish RR is pronounced with a strong trill, as is the Spanish R at the beginning of a word.

regular reloj perro corriente carro

Accentuation Every word in Spanish has one syllable that is pronounced with more force than the other syllables. To pronounce a word correctly, it is necessary to know which syllable receives the stress. You will notice that syllable division in Spanish is somewhat different from the system used in English.

1. If a word ends in a vowel, an N or an S, the next-to-the-last syllable will receive the stress.

casa trabajo cine buenos noches hablan

2. If a word ends in a consonant other than N or S, the last syllable receives the stress.

señor usted nacional regular pared

3. Any word that breaks the above rules will have a written accent mark over the vowel in the syllable that is to receive the stress.

México Querétaro están lápiz bolígrafo

Accent marks are also used on interrogatives and to distinguish between two words of otherwise identical spelling.

Qué Cómo Quién si sí tu tú

Accentuation Practice

Pronounce these Hispanic first names, placing the stress on the proper syllable.

Hugo Hu-go Nicanor Ni-ca-nor

Isabel I-sa-bel Salvador Sal-va-dor

Maricruz Ma-ri-cruz Tomás To-más

Yolanda Yo-lan-da Fernando Fer-nan-do

Francisco Fran-cis-co Bárbara Bár-ba-ra

Elvira El-vi-ra Joaquín Joa-quín

Greetings and Introductions Listen to the following dialogues carefully. Try to understand the communicative purpose behind the phrases; it is not always necessary to know the meaning of each word.

Helen Jamison is introducing herself to the mother of a Spanish-speaking child in her class.

Helen Buenas tardes. Me llamo Helen Jamison.

¿Cómo se llama usted?

Sra. Gómez Soy Estela Ibarra de Gómez. Mi hijo

Carlos está en su clase.

Helen Mucho gusto.

Sra. Gómez Igualmente, señora Jamison.

1. The greeting used in the first line is appropriate for any time from noon until dusk. The three greetings related to the time of day are the following:

Buenos días. Good morning.

Buenas tardes. Good afternoon.

Buenas noches. Good evening/night.

2. Spanish makes a distinction between formal and familiar forms of address. Use the formal forms when you are speaking to someone you do not know well and also to show respect. In this dialogue the request for a name is formal. There are two ways to respond to this question.

¿Cómo se llama usted? What is your name?

Me llamo / Soy _____ My name is/I am ______

3. There are a number of phrases appropriate for responding to introductions:

Mucho gusto. Nice to meet you.

Igualmente. Likewise.

El gusto es mío. The pleasure is mine.

4. For the most part, Spanish punctuation is the same as English. There are, however, two major differences: the “upside-down” question marks and exclamation points. They provide a signal of what’s coming up.

¿Cómo se llama usted?

¡Hola!

5. When meeting a Spanish-speaking person, be sure to shake his or her hand. Hispanics appreciate physical contact more than most European-Americans, and for this reason they shake hands when meeting someone for the first time, when greeting an acquaintance, and when saying goodbye. Friends and relatives often embrace upon meeting, and women will kiss each other on the cheek.

The next morning Helen speaks to a new student at her school, a Hispanic child who has not yet begun to speak English.

Helen Buenos días. Soy la señora Jamison.

¿Cómo te llamas?

Juan Carlos Me llamo Juan Carlos.

Helen Juan Carlos, ¿cuál es tu nombre completo?

Juan Carlos Juan Carlos Cruz Rojas.

Helen ¿Cómo se llama tu padre?

Juan Carlos Se llama Manuel Cruz Torres.

Helen ¿Y tu madre?

Juan Carlos Mi madre es Lupe Rojas de Cruz.

Helen Gracias, Juan Carlos.

1. When speaking to a child, a friend, or a relative, use the familiar form of address. Notice the difference between the formal and familiar ways of requesting a name:

¿Cómo se llama usted? Formal

¿Cómo te llamas? Familiar

2. The request for the child’s full name is also familiar. Note the difference between it and the formal version of the question:

¿Cuál es tu nombre completo? Familiar

¿Cuál es su nombre completo? Formal

3. There are a number of titles denoting marital and professional status used in Spanish. They are not capitalized except when abbreviated.

señor Sr. Mr.

señora Sra. Mrs.

señorita Srta. Miss

doctor Dr. Dr.

doctora Dra. Dr.

Titles are quite important to Spanish-speakers as countries such as Mexico have hierarchical societies in which those of higher rank and status, including school personnel, are shown great respect.

4. To provide the name of a third party, there are two appropriate expressions:

Mi padre se llama Manuel Cruz Torres.

Mi madre es Lupe Rojas de Cruz.

5. These dialogues contain a few vocabulary words for family members. Other words will be learned later.

mi padre my father

mi madre my mother

mi hijo my son

mi hija my daughter

6. Hispanics have two last names, and it is important to understand how this system of names works. Take another look at the names of the people mentioned in the dialogue:

Padre: Manuel Cruz Torres

Madre: Lupe Rojas de Cruz

Hijo: Juan Carlos Cruz Rojas

Juan Carlos takes his first last name from his father and the second one from his mother. Some Hispanics use only the father’s last name, some use both. Juan Carlos might call himself simply “Juan Carlos Cruz,” depending on family traditions. When alphabetizing, the father’s last name is the one that determines the placement of the name. A married woman, such as Lupe in the example given above, may add her husband’s first last name after the preposition de (of), and she would be known as Sra. Cruz.

Some Hispanics living in the United States have abandoned this system because of the difficulty in filling out forms and the desire to fit in. If you’re not sure what last name someone wishes to use, ask “¿Qué apellido prefiere usted usar?”

Practice Exercises

A. What is the appropriate greeting for the time of day indicated?

9:20 AM 1:00 PM 8:05 AM 7:15 PM 11:30 PM 4:45 PM

B. What is the correct question for asking the name of the following individuals?

1. A 20-year-old man who wants to enroll in an ESL program.

2. An 8-year-old child who has arrived late for school.

3. A grandmother who has brought a child to the free clinic.

4. A mother who has called about a school lunch program.

5. A sixth grader caught fighting with another child.

C. One evening at a Cinco de mayo celebration Helen meets a new neighbor. Complete their conversation by filling in the missing phrases.

Helen _____________________. Me llamo Helen Jamison.

Marta ________________ Marta Pedroza. Mucho gusto.

Helen ______________________________, Marta.

D. Respond to the following questions.

1. ¿Cómo se llama usted?

2. ¿Cuál es su nombre completo?

3. ¿Cómo se llama su padre?

4. ¿Cuál es el nombre completo de su madre?

5. ¿Cómo se llama su hijo? ¿Y su hija?

E. Study the model, and then fill in the blanks to determine the complete names of each family member.

Model:

Me llamo Jorge Sandoval Vásquez. Mi padre es Mario _______ Reyes. Mi madre se llama Ana ___________ Quinteros de Sandoval.

Me llamo Jorge Sandoval Vásquez. Mi padre es Mario Sandoval Reyes. Mi madre se llama Ana Vásquez Quinteros de Sandoval.

1. Me llamo Remedios Ochoa ___________. Mi padre es Roberto Ochoa Hernández. Mi madre se llama Alicia Torres de Ochoa.

2. Me llamo Héctor Valenzuela García. Mi madre es Laura _________ de _____________. Mi padre se llama Antonio Valenzuela Martínez.

3. Me llamo Alberto ____________ _____________ . Mi padre se llama Ricardo Montoya Tellez. Mi madre es Pilar Sánchez Molina.

F. Work with a colleague to prepare and present dialogues on the following situations.

1. Outside of school one afternoon you see the parent of a student coming to pick up the child. Since you are aware that the parent does not speak English, greet the individual and introduce yourself in Spanish. The parent’s name is Roberto (Teresa) Robles.

2. A Spanish-speaking student you haven’t met before is ill and needs to go home. Ask for his or her name and the name of the mother so that you can call her. The child’s name is Luis (Luisa), and the mother’s name is Isabel Chávez.

3. A Hispanic couple with limited English skills comes to your office one morning to enroll a child in school. Greet them, introduce yourself, and ask for their full names. They are Ramón Hernández and his wife Silvia.

4. You’re at a professional meeting when one of the other participants, a woman from Guadalajara, Mexico, comes over and introduces herself to you. Her name is Lourdes María Benítez. Respond appropriately to the introduction.

5. In the cafeteria one day two children are misbehaving. Go over to them and ask for their names. The children are Armando (Rosita) Guzmán and Luisa (Pedro) Ibarra.

6. A 13-year-old boy from Guatemala enrolled at the middle school yesterday, and this morning he’s in your office because he arrived late. Greet him, introduce yourself, and ask his name. You will also need his parents’ names. The boy is Pablo and his parents are Óscar González Vera and his wife Amalia Guerrero de González.

7. At a parents’ meeting one evening you see a man waiting in the hallway, uncertain as to whether he should come in. Greet him, introduce yourself, and ask his name. He is Emilio Mondragón.

Vocabulary: Greetings and Introductions Buenos días. Good morning.

Buenas tardes. Good afternoon.

Buenas noches. Good evening / night.

Hola. Hello / Hi.

¿Cómo se llama usted? (formal) What is your name?

¿Cómo te llamas? (familiar) What is your name?

¿Cuál es su nombre completo? (formal) What is your full name?

¿Cuál es tu nombre completo? (familiar) What is your full name?

Me llamo ___________. My name is _______ .

(I call myself ______ . )

Soy ____________ . I am _____________ .

el nombre (de pila) first name

el apellido last name

Mucho gusto. Nice to meet you.

El gusto es mío. The pleasure is mine.

Igualmente. Likewise.

Por favor. Please.

Gracias. Thank you.

De nada. You’re welcome.

Health Inquiries Marta greets her daughter Elena as she comes into the kitchen for breakfast.

Marta Hola, Elena. ¿Cómo estás?

Elena Muy bien, mami. ¿Y tú?

Marta Bastante bien, hija, gracias.

1. Since Marta is addressing her child, she uses the familiar form of the question. Her daughter uses a shortened version of the question as part of her reply.

¿Cómo estás? How are you?

¿Y tú? And you?

2. There are a number of possible responses to this question, depending upon one’s state of health:

Bien. Fine / well.

Bastante bien. Fairly well.

Muy bien. Very well.

Regular. OK.

Mal. Bad / Poor.

George Lawrence, a grade school principal, greets the parents of a boy who has been having trouble in school.

Mr. Lawrence Buenos días. Soy el señor Lawrence, el director de la escuela.

Sr. Huerta Soy Eduardo Huerta. Le presento a mi esposa Lupe.

Mr. Lawrence Mucho gusto. ¿Cómo está usted, señora Huerta?

Sra. Huerta Regular, gracias.

Mr. Lawrence ¿Y usted, señor Huerta?

Sr. Huerta Bien, señor Lawrence. La maestra de Juanito dice que . . .

1. The formal question to ask about someone’s health is used in the same circumstances as the formal question for requesting a name. The responses are the same as listed above.

¿Cómo está usted? Bien, gracias.

2. There are various phrases for introducing another person, some simple and some quite elaborate. Note the difference between the formal and familiar versions of a simple expression:

Le presento a ____________ . (formal)

Te presento a ____________ . (familiar)

3. Listed below are some vocabulary words for school personnel. Others will be studied later.

el director the principal (male)

la directora the principal (female)

el maestro the teacher (male)

la maestra the teacher (female)

4. To ask for a repetition, for the speaker to proceed more slowly, or to express a general lack of comprehension, it’s useful to memorize these phrases:

Cómo? How was that?

Otra vez, por favor. Again, please.

Más despacio. Slower.

No comprendo. I don’t understand.

No hablo español. I don’t speak Spanish.

No hablo inglés. I don’t speak English.

5. Two important points should be made about conversing with Hispanics, especially for conversations in which the English-speaking participant holds the position of power and/or when a difficult issue must be discussed. First, it is important to attend to all of the courtesy requirements of the situation and to engage in some small talk, even if it’s just to ask how the person feels, before getting to the main point. Secondly, most Hispanics are taught to respect authority figures such as principals and supervisors, and they may show this respect by acting in a passive manner and looking down or only intermittently at the face of the person speaking.

Practice Exercises

A. How would you ask the following people how they feel?

1. The six-year-old child who lives next door.

2. The father of a child being home-schooled due to an injury.

3. Your sister-in-law, a woman originally from Guanajuato, Mexico.

4. The younger brother of a teenager who babysits for you.

5. The owner of a new business in town.

6. A high school student helping her mother with a younger child.

B. Sr. Huerta is greeted one morning by a coworker who has been trying to learn Spanish. Complete their conversation by filling in the missing phrases.

Tom ___________________, Eduardo. ¿Cómo está usted?

Sr. Huerta Pues, ______________, gracias. ¿Y usted?

Tom Más despacio, ___________________, Eduardo.

Sr. Huerta. Muy bien, gracias. ¿__________________________ ?

Tom Oh. Um, estoy bien, __________________ .

C. With a colleague, prepare and present dialogues for the following situations:

1. Graciela Flores, the mother of a fourth grader, brings the boy’s lunch to the school office because he’s left it at home. Greet her and ask her how she feels.

2. You pass Jorge, Graciela’s son, in the hallway later that day. Greet him and ask how he feels.

3. Tomás Suárez, the father of a family just moved to the area, comes in one morning to register his son Miguel for school. Although Miguel speaks some English, his father does not seem to know any. Greet them, introduce yourself, and ask their names and how they are.

4. Ana Ortiz de Iglesias, a woman whose children attend the high school, comes in at 3:00 PM to discuss a problem you’re having with one of them. Greet her and ask her how she feels.

5. At a soccer game on Saturday morning, you see Mateo, a boy who attends your school. He’s accompanied by an older man who speaks only Spanish. Greet Mateo and ask how he is, then introduce yourself to the older man, whose name is Néstor Macías Ortiz. Ask him how he feels also.

6. One evening while shopping you see Angélica, a ninth grader, with a girl of preschool age. Greet them, ask Angélica how she is, and then ask the child her name.

Vocabulary: Health Inquiries ¿Cómo está usted? (formal) How are you?

¿Cómo estás? (familiar) How are you?

¿Qué tal? (familiar) How’s it going?

Bien. Fine / well.

Bastante bien. Fairly well.

Muy bien. Very well.

Regular. Okay.

Así-así. So-so.

Mal. Bad / poorly.

Le presento a ____________ . (formal) This is ___________ .

Te presento a ____________ . (familiar) This is ___________ .

Cómo? How was that?

Otra vez, por favor. Again, please.

Más despacio. Slower.

No comprendo. I don’t understand.

No hablo español. I don’t speak Spanish.

No hablo inglés. I don’t speak English.

Family and School Relationships Estela Martínez has brought her new neighbor, Beatriz, to a school carnival. Beatriz doesn’t speak English well, but her oldest child is about to start school and she wants to know the names of the people who work there.

Beatriz Estela, ¿quién es ese señor?

Estela Es el señor Lawrence, el director de la escuela.

Es muy amable.

Beatriz ¿Y la señora allí?

Estela Es la señora Jamison, una de las maestras del

segundo grado. Mi hija Rebeca está en su clase.

Beatriz ¿Quién es la maestra del kinder? Sabes que mi

hijo Julio va a asistir a esta escuela.

Estela Hay dos, la señorita Williams y la señora Taylor.

Son las mujeres cerca del director. Son muy

buenas maestras.

There are several basic grammatical concepts that can be learned from Estela’s identification of the people at a school event. These concepts are essential for even simple forms of communication.

1. All nouns in Spanish have gender. They are either masculine or feminine. Nouns that identify male persons are masculine and those that identify female persons are feminine. The gender of nouns that describe things and places must be memorized.

2. Articles and adjectives reflect the gender and number of the nouns they modify. Definite articles are el, la, los, and las, and indefinite articles are un, una, unos, and unas.

el maestro the teacher (male)

un maestro a/one teacher (male)

la maestra the teacher (female)

una maestra a/one teacher (female)

3. Most nouns referring to professions or family relationships have both a masculine and a feminine form.

el hijo la hija

el hermano la hermana

el secretario la secretaria

4. If a noun indicating a profession ends in -dor or -tor, an -a is added to produce the feminine form.

el director la directora

5. A few nouns indicate gender only through the article used.

el estudiante la estudiante

6. Both nouns and articles have plural forms in Spanish. If a noun ends in a vowel, an -s is added to form the plural. Nouns that end in a consonant need an -es.

la madre las madres

una madre unas madres

el padre los padres

un padre unos padres

el director los directores

un director unos directores

Before starting the exercises, review the vocabulary at the end of this section.

Practice Exercises

A. Complete the following paragraph with the correct definite articles.

__________ directora de la escuela es _________ señora Silvia Montoya de Ruiz.

__________ maestros del sexto grado son Enrique Ramos y Marta Benítez.

____________ hijo de _________ directora, Juanito, está en la clase de __________

señorita Benítez. ____________ estudiantes de su clase son muy buenos.

B. Make the articles and nouns in parentheses plural to complete the sentences.

1. (La amiga) _______________________ son Inés y María.

2. (El señor) ______________________ son Fernando y Antonio.

3. (El director) _____________________ son Héctor y Esteban.

4. (La hermana) __________________ son Carolina y Elena.

5. (El estudiante) ___________________ son Sergio y Alfredo.

Now let’s take a look at another basic grammatical concepts, possessive adjectives.

1. Possessive adjectives indicate the owner of the item in question and they reveal if the item is singular or plural. Only one possessive adjective, nuestro/a/s, shows both number and gender.

mi/s my tu/s your (familiar) su/s his/her/their/your (formal) nuestro/a/s our mi padre my father mis primos my cousins su secretaria his/her/their/your secretary sus hermanos his/her/their/your brothers nuestro maestro our teacher nuestra familia our family nuestros vecinos our neighbors nuestras hijas our daughters

2. Because Spanish has no apostrophe, it is necessary to use a prepositional phrase with de to indicate possession with a noun or a name. If de is followed by the article el, the contraction del must be used.

Miguel Bermúdez es el padre de Luis.

La directora es la hermana de la Sra. Chávez.

Ramón es el hijo del maestro.

Practice Exercises

A. Complete this family description with the appropriate possessive adjectives.

(My) _________ familia es de Querétaro, México. (My) _________ padres son Matilde

y Hernando. (My) _________ padre es director. (His) ____________ escuela es grande.

(My) _________ hermanos son maestros allí. (Their) __________ hijos son estudiantes

en la escuela.

B. Translate the phrases in parentheses into Spanish. Be sure to use the contraction del when necessary.

1. Isabel es (the principal’s secretary). ____________________________

2. El señor Álvarez es (Jaime’s father). ____________________________

3. Beatriz es (Estela’s neighbor). ____________________________

4. La señora Castillo es (Berto’s teacher). __________________________

There’s one last grammatical concept to be covered in this section: the verb ser.

1. The verb ser, one of two verbs in Spanish that mean “to be,” identifies people, describes their characteristics, and tells where they are from. Ser is the infinitive of the verb; it must be conjugated to be used to form a sentence. Ser is irregular as are many of the most common verbs in Spanish (and English), and its forms have to be memorized because they do not follow any of the patterns used to conjugate regular verbs. Study the English and Spanish subject pronoun and verb paradigms below:

yo soy I am

tú eres you are (familiar)

él es he is

ella es she is

usted es you are (formal)

nosotros/as somos we are

ellos son they are

ellas son they are (female)

ustedes son you are (formal or familiar)

2. Since the verb form alone may clearly indicate the subject, subject pronouns are often omitted in Spanish.

Soy Mario Fuentes. Soy de Guadalajara.

Somos maestros. Somos de México.

Es Pedro. Es mi hermano.

3. To make any sentence negative, simply put the word no before the verb.

No soy de México.

Marta no es mi hermana.

4. The interrogative quién is used to ask who someone is. Its plural form is quiénes.

¿Quién es la amiga de Beatriz?

Es Estela.

¿Quiénes son los estudiantes?

Son Teresa y Esteban.

Practice Exercises

A. Practice ser by changing the subject of the sentence and providing the new form of the verb.

1. Soy de Chihuahua.

nosotros, el señor Hernández, ellas, yo

2. Soy de Guatemala.

tú, mis vecinos, mi maestra, yo

3. Soy estudiante. (¡Ojo!)

mis hermanos, nosotras, él, yo

C. Complete the paragraphs below by filling in the missing words or phrases, and then use them as models for a description of your own family and professional life.

Me ____________Teresita Robles. ______________ de San Antonio, Texas. Soy

estudiante en una ______________ secundaria. _____________ padres se llaman

Roberto y Adela. Mi hermano Alejandro ______________ estudiante también.

Soy Carlos Ramírez Luján. _____________ el director de una escuela en San Diego,

California. __________ familia es originalmente de Hermosillo, México. Mi

_____________ es enfermera y nuestros ______________ son estudiantes en la

universidad.

Vocabulary: Family Relationships el abuelo grandfather

la abuela grandmother

los abuelos grandparents

el esposo husband

la esposa wife

la familia family

el hermano brother

la hermana sister

los hermanos brothers and sisters

el hijo son

la hija daughter

los hijos children

el nieto grandson

la nieta granddaughter

los nietos grandchildren

el padre father

la madre mother

los padres parents

el primo (male) cousin

la prima (female) cousin

los primos cousins

el sobrino nephew

la sobrina niece

los sobrinos nieces and nephews

el tío uncle

la tía aunt

los tíos aunts and uncles

el/la amigo/a friend

Vocabulary: School Personnel el/la alumno/a student

el/la asistente de clase teaching assistant or aide

el/la consejero/a counselor

el/la conserje janitor

el/la director/a principal

el/la enfermero/a nurse

el/la estudiante student

el/la maestro/a teacher

el/la médico/a physician

el/la psicólogo/a psychologist

el/la secretario/a secretary

el/la subdirector/a assistant principal

el/la superintendente superintendent

Numbers 0 cero 16 diez y seis*

1 uno 17 diez y siete*

2 dos 18 diez y ocho*

3 tres 19 diez y nueve*

4 cuatro 20 veinte

5 cinco 21 veinte y uno*

6 seis 22 veinte y dos*

7 siete 23 veinte y tres*

8 ocho 24 veinte y cuatro*

9 nueve 25 veinte y cinco*

10 diez 26 veinte y seis*

11 once 27 veinte y siete*

12 doce 28 veinte y ocho*

13 trece 29 veinte y nueve*

14 catorce 30 treinta

15 quince 31 treinta y uno

*These numbers can also be spelled as one word, but the spelling shown here is easier to remember and sufficient for those are concentrating more on speaking and listening skills.

School Places and Objects Alba Esquivel, a teacher at Wilson School, describes the local district and her school to a new Latino resident of the town. Notice how she incorporates numbers in her description, along with the verbs ser and hay.

Hay 10 escuelas primarias y 4 secundarias, 3 para los estudiantes de 12 a

14 años, y una para los estudiantes de 15 a 18 años. Soy maestra de

tercer grado en la escuela Wilson. Mi escuela es pequeña, y hay

solamente 14 maestros. Hay una biblioteca, un gimnasio y una cafetería.

También hay una oficina para la secretaria y otra para la directora. En mi

clase hay 21 estudiantes. Mi sala de clase es grande.

1. With the exception of 11 (once), when used with a noun numbers ending in 1 will show gender agreement with that noun.

1 (male) principal un director

1 (female) principal una directora

21 (male) students veinte y un estudiantes

21 (female) students veinte y una estudiantes

2. Numbers are sometimes used with the verb hay (there is or there are) to indicate the number of items / people / places present or available. Hay, from the infinitive haber, is an archaic verb and is invariable in form.

Hay 1 escuela secundaria en el distrito.

Hay 21 estudiantes en la clase.

Hay 14 maestras en la escuela.

3. To ask How much? or How many?, use the correct form of the interrogative ¿Cuánto? Note that it shows agreement in number and gender with the noun that follows.

¿Cuántas escuelas secundarias hay? Hay cuatro.

¿Cuántos maestros hay en la escuela? Hay catorce.

4. In Alba’s description, the verb hay is used to indicate the existence of people, places, or things, while forms of the verb ser are used to describe or to identify.

Soy maestra de tercer grado.

Mi escuela es pequeña.

Hay una oficina para la secretaria.

Hay 21 estudiantes.

5. Her description also contains a number of commonly used prepositions.

para for, used to indicate purpose or use

de of or from, used to indicate possession,

origin, category, or material

en on, in, or at, used to indicate a fixed

location

a at or to, used to indicate movement or

a point in time

6. To understand the Mexican and Central American immigrants coming to the US, it’s important to know about the educational systems in those countries. Education is compulsory until about age 14, depending upon the country. Unfortunately, in some areas attendance falls off quite sharply even before that age, because economically disadvantaged children must often help their parents support the family. In rural areas there may not be sufficient schools for all the children, and even when there is a school, it may be poorly equipped and staffed with untrained teachers. For these reasons, many of the Hispanics coming into this country have only grade school educations and low levels of literacy, making it harder for them to learn English and find skilled employment.

Before beginning the practice exercises, study the school places and objects vocabulary at the end of this section.

Practice Exercises

A. Study the model, then identify the classroom objects indicated by the instructor.

Model: ¿Qué es esto? Es un libro.

What is this? It’s a book.

¿Qué es esto? Es una bandera.

What is this? It’s a flag.

B. Following the model below, ask a classmate how many items, places, or people there are.

Model: salas de clase / 6

¿Cuántas salas de clase hay? Hay seis.

1. escuelas secundarias / 5

2. gimnasios / 3

3. maestros / 24

4. estudiantes / 29

5. directores / 10

6. mesas / 18

7. libros / 31

C. Answer these questions about the district and/or school where you work. Use complete sentences.

1. ¿Cuántas escuelas primarias hay? ¿Y secundarias?

2. ¿Cómo se llama su escuela? ¿Es grande o pequeña?

3. ¿Cuántos maestros hay allí?

4. ¿Cuántos secretarios hay? ¿Cómo se llaman?

5. ¿Quién es el director o la directora?

6. ¿Cuántos estudiantes hay normalmente en una clase?

7. ¿Hay una cafetería? ¿Es grande o pequeña?

8. ¿Hay una biblioteca? ¿Es grande o pequeña?

9. ¿Hay computadoras? ¿Cuántas?

10. ¿Hay una enfermera? ¿Cómo se llama?

E. Read this description of a classroom, then use it as a model for a description of your office, classroom, or other location in your school.

En mi sala de clase hay una silla y un escritorio para la maestra. Hay veinte sillas y mesas para los estudiantes. Hay tres ventanas grandes y dos puertas. En la pared hay mapas y un calendario. Hay cinco computadoras, también. En las mesas hay libros, cuadernos y lápices.

Vocabulary: School Places and Objects el baño/los servicios bathroom

la biblioteca library

la cafetería cafeteria

el distrito escolar school district

la escuela primaria elementary school

la escuela secundaria secondary school

la escuela superior high school (invented term used in parts of US)

el gimnasio gymnasium

la oficina office

la sala de clase classroom

la bandera flag

el calendario calendar

la computadora computer

el escritorio desk

el mapa map

la mesa table

la pared wall

la pizarra/el pizarrón chalkboard

la puerta door

la silla chair

el tablón de anuncios bulletin board

la televisión television

la ventana window

el bolígrafo/la pluma pen

el cuaderno notebook

el diccionario dictionary

el lápiz pencil

el libro book

el papel paper

Supplemental Vocabulary School Subjects la clase class

la clase de __________ ____________ class

la clase de salud health class

el alemán German

el álgebra algebra

el arte art

la biología biology

la ciencia science

la computadora computer

la educación física physical education

el español Spanish

los estudios sociales social studies

el francés French

la geografía geography

la geometría geometry

el gobierno government

la historia history

la informática computer science

el inglés English

el inglés como segundo idioma English as a Second Language (ESL)

la lectura reading

las matemáticas math

la música music

la ortografía spelling

School Documents las calificaciones grades la copia certificada certified copy

los expedientes transcripts

las notas grades

el número de seguro social Social Security number

la partida de nacimiento birth certificate

el registro de vacunas vaccination record

School Events el almuerzo lunch

la asamblea assembly

la cita appointment

el desayuno breakfast

el grado grade level

la graduación graduation

la inscripción enrollment

el kinder (el jardín infantil) kindergarden

la reunión meeting/conference

el examen final final exam

el examen físico physical examination

el partido game between teams

el primer día de clase first day of class

el último día de clase last day of class

las vacaciones de invierno winter break

las vacaciones de primavera spring break

las vacaciones de verano summer vacation

las vacaciones de Día de Thanksgiving break

Acción de Gracias

las vacaciones de Navidad Christmas break

el Día de Trabajadores Labor Day

The Months of the Year

enero January

febrero February

marzo March

abril April

mayo May

junio June

julio July

agosto August

septiembre September

octubre October

noviembre November

diciembre December

Days of the Week

lunes Monday

martes Tuesday

miércoles Wednesday

jueves Thursday

viernes Friday

sábado Saturday

domingo Sunday

Other Time-Related Expressions el año year

el año que viene next year

el día day

la hora hour

la mañana morning

el mes month

el mes que viene next month

la noche night

la semana week

la semana que viene next week

la tarde afternoon

hoy today

mañana tomorrow

Larger Numbers

30 treinta 40 cuarenta

31 treinta y uno 50 cincuenta

32 treinta y dos 60 sesenta

33 treinta y tres 70 setenta

34 treinta y cuatro 80 ochenta

35 treinta y cinco 90 noventa

36 treinta y seis 100 cien

37 treinta y siete

38 treinta y ocho

39 treinta y nueve