The village house
A short in Spanish text at level A2. The translation sits next to it: reading with a dictionary is still too early at this level, and without support it will not happen at all. My grandmother was born in a village on the plain and spent her whole childhood and youth there. In those days there…
Text
- Mi abuela nació en un pueblo de la llanura y pasó allí toda su infancia y su juventud. En aquella época no había ni teléfono en casa, y las cartas tardaban una semana en llegar a la ciudad. A los diecinueve años terminó el instituto, se fue a la capital y encontró su primer trabajo en una fábrica de zapatos. Nos enseñaba una foto antigua de la casa del pueblo y siempre contaba la misma historia del burro y de las cabras del vecino. Decía que todo había cambiado mucho, y que para bien, aunque a veces echaba de menos aquellos veranos.My grandmother was born in a village on the plain and spent her whole childhood and youth there. In those days there was not even a telephone at home, and letters took a week to reach the city. At nineteen she finished school, left for the capital and found her first job at a shoe factory. She used to show us an old photograph of the village house and always told the same story about the donkey and the neighbor's goats. She said everything had changed a lot, and for the better, although sometimes she missed those summers.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- Where was the grandmother born?
- What was missing at home in those days?
- What did she do at nineteen?
- How did she assess the changes?
Frequently asked
What level do you need to read this text in Spanish?
A2. That means: you know the letters and have a stock of everyday words — about two or three hundred.
How to read a text in an unfamiliar language usefully?
First all the way through without peeking at the translation — just to catch the familiar words. Then with the translation. Then all the way through again: the second pass brings noticeably more, and that feeling matters more than any rule.