Cover lesson · MFL: Spanish · Year 10 · Intermediate
DCF: Interacting and collaborating → Communication
Name: Class: Date:
What this practises: WJEC GCSE Spanish (Made for Wales), Unit 4 Reading and Writing: reading factual texts such as an e-mail and a web page, answering in English, and writing in Spanish “in a range of formal and informal contexts”. Broad theme: language for travel (a hostel). Grammar: the modes of address tú and usted (Appendix A). This is exam practice, not NEA work.
Print: this sheet, one per pupil, and the stimulus sheet “Trip to Cádiz”, one between two. No computers are needed. Calculators help with Step 1 (g). Pupils may not use dictionaries or translation apps: the GCSE bans them in every unit, and there is a word list on the stimulus sheet.
Run: 5 min read “What you are doing” aloud, then pupils read the stimulus in pairs · 10 min Step 1, the web page questions · 6 min Step 2, formal or informal · 7 min Step 3, the right tool for the job · 7 min Step 4, automatic replies · 14 min Step 5, the formal e-mail, alone and in silence · 6 min Step 6, the message to Lucía. Total 55 min.
Collect: this sheet, for the class teacher to mark against the worked example.
Your class is going to stay in a youth hostel in Cádiz, in the south of Spain. You will read the hostel’s web page and an automatic reply, decide which way of getting in touch suits each job, and then write two messages in Spanish: a formal e-mail to the hostel, using usted, and an informal message to a Spanish pupil, using tú. Choosing the right tool and the right tone is what people do every day at work and online.
(a) How far is the hostel from the beach?
(b) What is included in the price of every room?
(c) Name two things that every guest can use for free or share.
(d) What is the earliest time you can arrive, and by what time must you leave your room?
(e) What are guests not allowed to do?
(f) How should a school group book, and how quickly does the hostel reply?
(g) Your group needs two 6-bed dormitories for the 12 pupils and one double room for the 2 teachers, for 3 nights. Work out the total cost with the school group discount. Show your working.
Write each phrase in the right column. Then answer the question underneath.
| Estimada señora: | ¡Hola, Lucía! | Le escribo para reservar… | Te escribo porque… |
| ¿Puede usted confirmar el precio? | ¿Puedes venir a la estación? | Me gustaría saber si… | ¡Qué guay! |
| Muchas gracias por su ayuda. | Gracias por tu mensaje. | Un saludo cordial, | Un abrazo, |
| Formal: e-mail to the hostel (usted) | Informal: message to Lucía (tú) |
|---|---|
Which two small words tell you that “Gracias por su ayuda” is formal and “Gracias por tu mensaje” is informal? What does each one mean?
For each job, choose the best way to get in touch: e-mail, the web page, web form, phone call, WhatsApp to the hostel, chat message to Lucía or automatic reply. Use the Contacto section of the web page. Give a reason each time.
| Job | Best tool | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Book 3 nights for 14 people and ask two questions. | ||
| Find out how much a bed in a 4-bed dormitory costs. | ||
| You have a booking. Your train is late, and you will arrive at 22:30 instead of 18:00. | ||
| It is 22:50. You are lost in the old town and reception closes at 23:00. | ||
| Tell Lucía which day you arrive. | ||
| You will be away from your e-mail for a week and want people to know. |
Read text B. Your teacher sent the hostel a question on 2 July.
(a) Why did your teacher get an answer one second later? Who, or what, sent it?
(b) From what date will the hostel answer? Should your teacher phone instead? Explain.
(c) Write your own automatic reply in Spanish, in 3 sentences. Say thank you, say you are away from 20 to 27 July, and say when you will answer. Use text B to help you, but change the details.
Write to the hostel to book for your group. Work alone. Include:
Para: reservas@albergue-marazul.example
Asunto:
Reply to Lucía (text C). Answer both her questions, say yes or no to the beach on Saturday with a reason, and ask her one question. Use tú.