Advanced, Task 14

Simplified and native speakers:

• Simplified example
• Carlos M.
• Oswaldo Z.
• Ana G.
• Mónica V.
• Antonio F.

Click red links to download .m4v files for use in iPod:

• Simplified example
• Carlos M.
• Oswaldo Z.
• Ana G.
• Mónica V.
• Antonio F.

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Key vocabulary for this task

Example phrases for this task

Grammar points for this task



		Simplified Example "Soy de Buenos Aires, Argentina..."



		Carlos M. Puerto Rico, San Juan "Yo soy original de Puerto Rico. Nací en San Juan de Puerto Rico..."

		Oswaldo Z. México, Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua "Antes de venir a la Universidad de Texas..."

		Ana G. Guatemala, Guatemala "Bueno, en Guatemala, antes de venir a Austin..."

		Mónica V. Bolivia, La Paz "Bueno, yo soy boliviana. Y viví toda mi vida en Bolivia..."

		Antonio F. Cuba, La Habana "Bueno soy estudiante aquí en la Universidad de Texas en Austin..."

bachillerato (m)		highschool
biología (f)		biology
ciencia política (f)		policital science
ciencias sociales (f)		social sciences
crecer/criarse		to grow/to be raised
cursar		to take classes
escuela de derecho (f)		law school
escuela de medicina (f)		medical school
escuela preparatoria (f)		highschool
escuela primaria (f)		elementary school

escuela privada (f)		private school
escuela pública (f)		public school
escuela secundaria (f)		high school, middle school
filosofía y letras (f)		the humanities
física (f)		physics
graduarse		to graduate
ingeniería (f)		engineering
matemáticas (f)		mathematics
nacer		to be born
psicología (f)		psychology
química (f)		chemistry
título (m)		degree

Me gradué de la preparatoria en 1993.	I graduated from Highschool in 1993.
Mis padres quieren que yo estudie derecho pero quiero cursar filosofía y letras.	My parents want me to study law but I want to take classes in the humanities.
En la escuela primaria me encantaba leer cuentos de aventuras.	In elementary school I loved to read adventure stories.
Tu hermano está estudiando biología en la universidad, ¿verdad?	Your sister is studying biology at the university, right?
Mucha gente enmarca su título y lo pone en la pared.	Many people frame their degree and put it on the wall.
Nací en Sevilla y me crié en Córdoba.	I was born in Sevilla and raised in Córdoba.
Mi primo nació en Chihuahua y creció en El Paso.	My cousin was born in Chihuahua and raised in El Paso.
La preparación que uno recibe en una escuela privada es muy buena.	The preparation you get from a private school is very good.
Me interesan mucho las clases de filosofía griega.	I'm interested in Greek philosophy courses.
No es nada fácil entrar en una escuela de derecho.	It's not at all easy to get into law school.

Verbs whose use is different than in English

In order to speak about your personal history you will need to know how to use certain verbs. For example:

nacer to be born

crecer to grow, to grow up

criarse to grow up (Spain)

pasar to spend (time)

realizar to achieve, to carry out, to make true

There are several points to keep in mind while using the verbs nacer and pasar. A common mistake for native English speakers is the use of ser or estar (to be) with nacer. Here are some examples of common mistakes and their correct form:

I was born in 1975.

Nací en 1975. (RIGHT) Estuve nacido en 1975. (WRONG)

The baby will be born on Monday.

El bebé nacerá el lunes. (RIGHT) El bebé será nacido el lunes.(WRONG)

Another common mistake occurs when one wants to express the idea of spending time. The Spanish verb gastar is used only when speaking about spending money. To speak about spending time you should use the verb pasar.

I spent a year in Spain.

Pasé un año en España. (RIGHT) Gasté un año en España. (WRONG)