KS5 Spanish through song
Below are examples of songs that I have used in my teaching of Spanish at KS5. They either relate to grammar or cultural aspects that I wished to highlight as part of a topic.
REMINDER: All of these songs are available on iTunes.
Julieta Venegas
The song “Limón y Sal” is quite simple and sung at a pace which allows students to pick out words, but the great thing about the song is the video. It’s a bit naff in some ways, but I have used it as an activity for the new AS students to get them into learning new vocabulary and identifying sounds.
Transcript
The video can be found quite easily on YouTube.
VIDEO Limón y Sal ANSWERS.doc
A Powerpoint to give the answers to the worksheets.
Limón y Sal – Julieta Venegas.ppt
El Canto del Loco
The song “Aquellos Años Locos” is ideal for the teaching of the imperfect tense.
Transcript
aquello años locos ANSWERS.doc
Transcript with blanks + contextual questions
The song “Contigo” can be used for the teaching of the prepositions.
Transcript
Verbs in the song
Transcript with blanks + questions about the group.
The song “Puede Ser” can be used for revision of tenses.
Transcript
Transcript with blanks
La Oreja de Van Gogh
The song “Lo que te conté mientras te hacías la dormida - Bonus Track” does not perfectly fit into a particular topic. I used it as part of the topic of culture and as an example of a successful Spanish band.
Transcript
Card activity - they put the words in card in order according to how they think they start each of the sentences. They do this BEFORE hearing the song as a test of their understanding of the lyrics.
Worksheet - this contains the transcript with blanks as well as a reading task and a prose translation. there are two versions of this - one is a simplified worksheet.
Skakira
Of course, some of knew all about Shakira back in the mid 90s when she was big in South America. That aside, her popularity has made her a useful example of a famous Spanish-speaker.
The song “Tortura” is familiar to many students as it was heavily played on MTV without being released as a single in the UK. Also it introduces students to Alejandro Sanz, a huge star in Spain. I also had a copy of the video which came on DVD when I bought the album. Although I’m not a fan, forever the teacher, I bought it with lesson opportunities in mind!
The song, however, is available for download on iTunes.
Transcript
Video worksheet
The song “Estoy aqui” is the perfect song for teaching the present continuous.
Transcript
Transcript with blanks
The song “Suerte” has examples of the subjunctive.
Transcript
Transcript with blanks + questions
Luz Casal
The songs that have featured in Pedro Almodovar films are the most useful.
The song “Un Año de Amor” is perfect for teaching the future tense.
Transcript
Transcript with blanks
Ska P
This anarcho-punk band made a few good songs. I used the song titled “McDolar” as part of the topic of globalisation. Point out to students the word play in the band’s name (ska - type of music v. the pronunciation which sounds like “escape”).
Worksheet - song + reading about McDonalds.
Duncan Dhu
This 80s band produced some songs that are clearly sung. “No Puedo Evitar (Pensar en Ti)” is a short song and is good as a filler. I originally made this worksheet for my Year 11 group as an activity to get them to identify different elements of grammar. The second and third pages are for OHT or for projection on a whiteboard.
Worksheet
Albert Pla
This singer normal performs in Catalan, however this song which featured in the Almodovar film “Carne Tremula” is ideal for presenting the subjunctive after QUERER”.
El Gran Combo
This song is great for teaching reflexive verbs.
La música en español
