Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries - Worksheets, Questions and Revision

8 original exam-style questions - 5 pages of questions with a full mark scheme - free printable PDF.

Download PDF Jump to mark scheme (page 6)Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries revision guide

This topic is chapter 9 of GCSE Spanish: Writing Practice Book.

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6.9 Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries

AQA 8692 · about 60 minutes

Total Marks

Name: _______________________________ Date: ____ / ____ / ______

Accents, the enye and inverted punctuation are used correctly in the printed Spanish prompts; write them correctly in your own answers too. Questions 10 and 11 must be full paragraphs in Spanish. Spend about 50 minutes on the whole pack.

Structured writing task, 40-50 words. Describe how a specific festival in a Spanish-speaking country is celebrated in your chosen town or region. You must include present and past tenses and mention at least one food or decoration. Use about 40-50 words in Spanish.

(Total for Question 1 is 16 marks)

Extended writing task, 90-150 words. Compara una celebración del Reino Unido que conoces con una celebración de un país de habla española. Da tu opinión y justifica por qué prefieres una u otra. Usa presente, pretérito y futuro, conecta ideas y incluye frases de opinión. Write about 90-150 words in Spanish.

(Total for Question 2 is 16 marks)

Translate into Spanish these short sentences about festivals. Each sentence is worth 2 marks.

(a)1) We sing carols on Christmas Eve.(2)

(b)2) Last year we ate traditional sweets.(2)

(Total for Question 3 is 6 marks)

Photo caption task. Look at a photo showing a street parade with people in costume, music, and decorated floats. Escribe cuatro frases cortas en español que describan la escena. Menciona: los trajes, la música, la gente y un elemento decorativo. Each bullet is worth 2 marks for communication.

(a)Frase 1: Describe the costumes you see (los trajes).(2)

(b)Frase 2: Describe the music (la música).(2)

(c)Frase 3: Describe the people (la gente).(2)

(d)Frase 4: Mention one decorative element you see (un elemento decorativo).(2)

(Total for Question 4 is 8 marks)

Word families: give the missing noun or adjective that matches the prompt about festivals. Context: words used when describing celebrations.

(a)celebrar (verb) -> la acción de celebrar (noun): la ______(1)

(b)tradicional (adjective) -> lo que es típico de la tradición (noun): lo ______(1)

(c)decorar (verb) -> el resultado de decorar (noun): la ______(1)

(d)festivo (adjective) -> el día festivo (noun): el ______(1)

(Total for Question 5 is 4 marks)

Fill the gaps in the short passage about Día de los Muertos using words from the box. Box: altares, calaveras, recuerdos, pan de muerto, ofrendas. Passage context: a Mexican family preparing for Día de los Muertos.

(a)Gap 1: En casa de Ana preparan (1) ______ con fotografías y flores.(1)

(b)Gap 2: Sobre los altares ponen (2) ______ como comida y fotos.(1)

(c)Gap 3: También compran (3) ______, un pan tradicional.(1)

(d)Gap 4: Las (4) ______ de azúcar son decorativas.(1)

(e)Gap 5: La familia comparte (5) ______ de los seres queridos.(1)

(Total for Question 6 is 5 marks)

Short reading comprehension: Read this sentence about Navidad in Spain and answer in English. Context: a Spanish family on Christmas Eve.

(a)Sentence: 'La Nochebuena es cuando la familia cena junta y canta villancicos antes de abrir algunos regalos.' What does 'La Nochebuena' refer to and what two activities are mentioned? Answer in English.(4)

(Total for Question 7 is 4 marks)

Short translation into English. Translate the Spanish sentence about Three Kings Day into English. Context: a Spanish town's cabalgata.

(a)Translate: 'Cada año la cabalgata llega al centro de la ciudad y los Reyes tiran caramelos a los niños.'(4)

(Total for Question 8 is 4 marks)

Mark scheme · 6.9 Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries

Question 1

Content and communication (AO4, 10 marks)
- Level 3 (8-10): The candidate describes how the festival is celebrated with relevant detail, uses both present and past tenses correctly in most sentences, and mentions a food or decoration.
- Level 2 (4-7): Description covers the festival but with limited development; present and past tenses are attempted though with errors; a food or decoration may be mentioned briefly.
- Level 1 (1-3): Only a basic description is given, little or no use of multiple time frames, and minimal reference to food or decoration.
- Level 0 (0): No creditable content or irrelevant material.
Range and accuracy of language (AO4, 6 marks)
- Level 3 (5-6): Language is accurate and varied for the task; verbs in present and past are generally correct; vocabulary appropriate to festivals is used accurately.
- Level 2 (3-4): Some variety of vocabulary and structures; several verb forms are correct though there are noticeable errors.
- Level 1 (1-2): Limited vocabulary and frequent errors that sometimes obscure meaning.
- Level 0 (0): Language too limited or inaccurate to convey basic meaning.
Indicative content:
- Specific present-tense statements about what happens each year, for example 'En mi pueblo se celebra... cada año'.
- A past-tense reference to something that happened last year or in the past, for example 'El año pasado hubo una procesión o comimos pan de muerto'.
- Mention of a typical food or decoration, for example 'comimos turron', 'decoramos altares con flores' or 'hay carrozas decoradas'.
- Reference to who participates, for example 'las familias, los jóvenes, las bandas'.
- Use of simple connectives such as 'y', 'pero', 'porque' to link ideas.

Question 2

Content and communication (AO4, 10 marks)
- Level 4 (8-10): All bullet points are fully addressed with developed comparison, clear opinión and justification. Ideas are well organised and relevant examples are given from both celebrations.
- Level 3 (5-7): Comparison covers both celebrations with relevant detail; opinión is stated and a reason is given, though development may be uneven.
- Level 2 (2-4): Some comparison is attempted but with limited development; opinión may be simple and justification brief.
- Level 1 (1): Very basic comparison or one-sided description with minimal relevance.
- Level 0 (0): No creditable content.
Range and accuracy of language (AO4, 6 marks)
- Level 4 (5-6): A wide range of vocabulary and verb tenses including present, preterite and future used accurately; connectives and opinión phrases are used effectively.
- Level 3 (3-4): Some variety of tense and vocabulary; present and past are generally correct and future attempted; errors do not prevent communication.
- Level 2 (1-2): Limited range of language; frequent tense errors; meaning sometimes unclear.
- Level 0 (0): Language limited or inaccurate to the point of preventing communication.
Indicative content:
- Comparison of two celebrations naming key features of each, for example family meals, processions, music, costumes, or altars.
- Use of the preterite to describe what happened at a recent celebration, for example 'El año pasado fui a...'.
- Use of the present to describe habitual features, for example 'En el Reino Unido celebramos...'.
- Use of the future to indicate plans or preferences, for example 'El año que viene iré a...'.
- Clear personal opinión with justification using porque or ya que, for example 'Prefiero X porque...'.
- Use of connectives to compare and contrast, for example 'sin embargo', 'aunque', 'mientras que', 'por otro lado'.

Question 3

(a) B1 Correct Spanish translation of 'We sing carols' eg 'Cantamos villancicos'
(a) B1 Correct expression of 'on Christmas Eve' eg 'en Nochebuena' or 'la Nochebuena'
(a) Answer: Cantamos villancicos en Nochebuena.
(b) B1 Correct past tense 'Last year' eg 'El año pasado'
(b) B1 Correct preterite of comer and phrase 'dulces tradicionales' eg 'comimos dulces tradicionales'
(b) Answer: El año pasado comimos dulces tradicionales.
(c) B1 Correct future tense eg 'El año que viene iremos'
(c) B1 Mentions 'to the procession' and 'together' eg 'a la procesión juntos'
(c) Answer: El año que viene iremos a la procesión juntos.

Question 4

(a) B1 Content: mentions costumes or clothing evident in the photo
(a) B1 Communicative clarity: a grammatically recognisable Spanish phrase that identifies costumes
(a) Answer: Hay personas con trajes coloridos y máscaras tradicionales.
(b) B1 Content: refers to music being played or heard
(b) B1 Communicative clarity: a recognisable Spanish phrase about music
(b) Answer: Se oye música en vivo con tambores y trompetas.
(c) B1 Content: mentions people watching or participating
(c) B1 Communicative clarity: phrase communicates who the people are or what they do
(c) Answer: La gente celebra en la calle y muchas familias participan juntas.
(d) B1 Content: names a visible decorative element such as flores, globos, pancartas, carrozas
(d) B1 Communicative clarity: phrase makes clear reference to the decorative item
(d) Answer: Hay carrozas decoradas con flores y luces.

Question 5

(a) B1 celebración
(a) Answer: celebración
(b) B1 tradicional
(b) Answer: tradicional
(c) B1 decoración
(c) Answer: decoración
(d) B1 festivo
(d) Answer: festivo

Question 6

(a) B1 altares
(a) Answer: altares
(b) B1 ofrendas
(b) Answer: ofrendas
(c) B1 pan de muerto
(c) Answer: pan de muerto
(d) B1 calaveras
(d) Answer: calaveras
(e) B1 recuerdos
(e) Answer: recuerdos

Question 7

(a) B1 Identifies La Nochebuena as Christmas Eve
(a) B1 Mentions that the family have dinner together
(a) B1 Mentions that they sing carols (villancicos)
(a) B1 Mentions opening some presents afterwards
(a) Answer: La Nochebuena is Christmas Eve; the family have dinner together, sing carols and open some presents.

Question 8

(a) B1 Each year the parade arrives in the town centre (or city centre)
(a) B1 and the Kings throw sweets to the children
(a) B1 Communicates natural English word order
(a) B1 Uses correct meaning for cabalgata and caramelos
(a) Answer: Each year the parade arrives in the town centre and the Kings throw sweets to the children.

Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries - Worksheets, Questions and Revision

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6.9 Customs and Festivals in Spanish-Speaking Countries

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