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Year 9 - Spanish

Diana Trujillo: 'fue', 'hizo' and 'tuvo'

Inspiring people: 3rd person singular and plural preterite

Unit Summary

This unit revisits singular forms of regular -ar, -er, -ir verbs and irregular verbs in the preterite. It revisits question words, direct object pronouns, and contrasts the third person plural present with the preterite. Pupils exploit texts to learn about Diana Trujillo.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to use the preterite tense of regular and irregular verbs to talk about other people's past actions and achievements.

Key Notes

  • The preterite tense is used to describe completed events in the past.
  • To mean 'she, he, it' remove the -er/-ir and add -ió. e.g. nació
  • To mean 'they' remove the -er/-ir and add -ieron. e.g. nacieron
  • Use the DOP 'lo' for him/it (masculine) and 'la' for her/it (feminine) – the thing or person receiving the action
  • Some verbs are irregular. Use fue, hizo and tuvo to say he/she went, did and had in the past.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • preterite tense: a tense used for events completed in the past
  • direct object pronoun: person, animal or thing that receives the action of the verb
  • irregular verb: a verb that does not follow the regular rules

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • To form the preterite tense I just take off the -er/-ir and add the correct ending (-ió - for she, he, it) to all the verbs.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain what you can now say or understand in this lesson.

The preterite tense is used to describe completed events in the past. To mean 'she, he, it' remove the -er/-ir and add -ió. e.g. nació.

2. Define this key language word and use it in context. 'preterite tense'

a tense used for events completed in the past. Say or write it in a short sentence so you use the word actively.

3. Correct this common language-learning mistake.

Mistake: To form the preterite tense I just take off the -er/-ir and add the correct ending (-ió - for she, he, it) to all the verbs. Correction: Some verbs are irregular and don't follow the pattern. e.g. hacer - hizo, tener - tuvo, ir - fue.

More Lessons In This Unit

Browse all guides in the Year 9 Spanish guide library.