Barcelona 2016 - Sagrada Familia

The Altar of the Cript

John Fisher Students at the Sagrada Familia´s Cript

The main entrance to the Basilica

One of the side chapels of the Cript

Another side chapel at the Cript

The tomb of Gaudi, arquitect of the Sagrada Familia

Side chapel

Barcelona 2016

John Fisher Spanish students visiting the Basilica of La Sagrada Familia

Important points for an A/A* speaking exam

Use a range of questions that allows a range of tenses and grammar structures, fulfilling your targets of A/A* in the criteria table. Subjunctive is not essential, you can get A/A* without it, but you need sentences with two different tenses (Cuando era pequeño, fui a ver Toy Story al cine con mi familia. Me encantó)

Questions should link together a strong narrative, a coherent and original conversation.

Check that your set of questions is within the time limit (between 5.30 and no more than 6 minutes). Time management.

Fluency - pronunciation, no hesitation, ´muletillas´ are very important. Make sure you don´t string a series of monologs. It is a conversation, keep your answers limited to one line, two maximum, chunk up what you want to say.

Spontaneity - you need to answer the questions, not repeat a memorised sentence. Try to sound natural, ask questions, interrupt, make it feel like a real conversation. 

How to create a great set of questions

• Use a range of questions that allows a range of opinions and tenses, fulfilling your targets in the criteria table.
• Questions should link together, strong narrative, coherent conversation.
• Check that your set of questions is within the time limit (6 minutes). Time management.
• Choose questions that are personally relevant to you.

Subjunctive: Part I

The Forms of the Present Subjunctive / Las formas del presente del subjuntivo

	present indicative	PRESENT SUBJUNCTIVE
ayudar poner seguir	yo ayud-ø   yo pong-ø   yo sig-ø	ayude ayudes ayude ayudemos ayudéis ayuden ponga pongas ponga pongamos pongáis pongan siga sigas siga sigamos sigáis sigan

In order to form the present subjunctive, use the first person singular of the present indicative –the yo form–, remove the -o, and add endings in -e for -ar verbs, and endings in -a for -er and -ir verbs. This change of vowel may involve some spelling changes:
pag-ø  pague busc-ø  busque empiez-ø  empiece

• Stem-changing verbs in -ar and -er change their stems in the same way and in the same cases as in the present indicative:

piense vuelva

pienses vuelvas

piense vuelva

pensemos volvamos

penséis volváis

piensen vuelvan

• Stem-changing verbs in -ir, whatever the change that occurs in the present indicative, change the stem of thenosotros and vosotros forms of the present subjunctive from e to i and from o to u. (see complete rules.)

muera sienta pida

mueras sientas pidas

muera sienta pida

muramos sintamos pidamos

muráis sintáis pidáis

mueran sientan pidan

Only six verbs do not follow the rules above to form the present subjunctive:

ir  →  vaya, vayas, vaya, vayamos, vayáis vayan ser  →  sea seas sea seamos seáis sean estar  →  esté estés esté estemos estéis estén saber  →  sepa sepas sepa sepamos sepáis sepan haber  →  haya hayas haya hayamos hayáis hayan (subjunctive for hay) dar  →  dé des dé demos deis den

Subjunctive?

All the verbs we have studied so far have been in the Indicative Mood because they indicate states or actions that are presented as factual. The Subjunctive Mood is used, mostly in dependent clauses, after verbs that suggest non-factual events, such as indirect commands, doubts, subjective perception, etc. Compare the following two groups of sentences:

Presented as factual (indicative):	Desired, doubted (subjunctive):
I insist that he is here. Insisto en que está aquí.	I insist that he be here. Insisto en que esté aquí.
I believe he did it. Creo que lo hizo.	I demand that he do it. Exijo que lo haga.
I know he is here. Sé que está aquí.	I doubt he'll be here. Dudo que esté aquí.

Source and Original website + exercises here.

Expresiones con infinitivo

Acabar de + Infinitive

Volver a + infinitive

Explanation for para + infinitive

How to blog

Follow the link to find the presentation about blogging and a manual on how to start blogging. Of course, you can always go to our old post on blogging to see the video on how to create a blog.