KS3 · Spanish · Year 9
Past experiences of work: -ar verbs imperfect tense 1st person singular
Past routines and past events: imperfect tense
Learn it. Recall it. Make it stick.
IllumED Slides
IllumED · 1/8
Your learning goal
I can describe what was happening and what happened at work using the preterite and imperfect.
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Past experiences of work: -ar verbs imperfect tense 1st person singular: slides adapted from the imported teaching text; recall questions created from its keywords, learning points and common mistakes. Self-check practice, with no automatic grading or XP. Answers stay on this page and are cleared when you leave.
Original teaching resources
The original illustrated PowerPoint is available as well as the IllumED text slides. It retains the publisher’s design and credits.
Download original PowerPoint ↓What you’ll learn
I can describe what was happening and what happened at work using the preterite and imperfect.
Key learning points
- The two different [r] sounds sometimes change the meaning of a word, e.g. 'pero' - 'but', 'perro' - 'dog'.
- To talk about a completed event in the past, we use the preterite tense, e.g. 'mandé un correo ayer'.
- To talk about something that used to happen repeatedly in the past, we use the imperfect tense, e.g. 'mandaba'.
- In the imperfect tense, the verb 'estar' can be translated with 'was, were' or 'used to', e.g. 'estaba feliz'.
Words to know
- preterite tense
- tense used for events completed in the past
- imperfect tense
- tense used to describe how things were or used to be in the past
Common mistakes
It doesn't matter if the action was completed or repeated - I can use any past tense verb.
In Spanish, we choose between the preterite and imperfect based on how the action happened in the past. Use the preterite to communicate an action that happened once and the imperfect for actions that were repeated over a period of time.
For parents, carers and teachers
- It's worth continuing to encourage pupils who cannot yet roll their 'r' to keep practising; this is the last sound that Spanish children acquire too, and it will come over time, with practice. In addition, teachers might consider providing students with a copy of the text for Task C3b.