My grandfather's workshop
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 grandfather was a carpenter all his life and never wanted to work in a factory. He used to say a craft is learned…
Text
- Mi abuelo fue carpintero toda su vida y nunca quiso trabajar en una fábrica. Decía que un oficio se aprende con las manos y que las máquinas no enseñan nada. En su taller olía a madera y había herramientas colgadas por toda la pared, cada una en su sitio. Los vecinos le traían sillas rotas, y él nunca ponía precio: cobraba lo que la gente le quería dar. Mi padre, en cambio, se hizo mecánico y luego electricista, y hoy trabaja en el mantenimiento de un hospital. A mí me gustaba más el taller, pero acabé estudiando y ahora soy traductora en una empresa pequeña. Cuando algo se rompe en casa, sigo llamando a mi padre; cuando algo se rompe por dentro, me acuerdo del abuelo.My grandfather was a carpenter all his life and never wanted to work in a factory. He used to say a craft is learned with the hands and that machines teach nothing. His workshop smelled of wood, and tools hung all over the wall, each in its place. The neighbors brought him broken chairs, and he never set a price: he took what people gave him. My father, on the contrary, became a mechanic, then an electrician, and today works in the maintenance service of a hospital. I liked the workshop better, but in the end I got a degree and now I work as a translator in a small firm. When something breaks at home I still call my father; when something breaks inside, I remember my grandfather.
Comprehension questions
The questions are asked in Russian on purpose: we test your understanding of the text, not your ability to read the question.
- What was the grandfather?
- What did the grandfather think about the factory?
- How did the grandfather charge the neighbors?
- What did the narrator become?
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.