Summary
Why does the unknown trigger the subjunctive in Spanish? And what is the subjunctive, anyway? This lesson introduces the present subjunctive inductively through authentic Spanish songs as contextual materials. Students examine lyrics from the songs "Quiero un amor" and "Necesito una compañera" to identify present subjunctive verb patterns, then discover rule formulation and application. Students practice the present subjunctive using guided conversations, integrated cultural content, and the voices of fictional personas to help them express desires about potential characteristics in relationships and sharpen the focus of their own dreams and possibilities.
Essential Question(s)
How do you express in Spanish what you hope for or are looking for?
Snapshot
Engage
Students complete a Word Cloud to anticipate and practice theme vocabulary.
Explore
Students listen to two songs in Spanish and analyze the lyrics to begin to recognize how verbal form communicates meaning in the present subjunctive.
Explain
Students analyze prompts from a Magnetic Statements activity they complete to generate rules and compare them to a comprehensive explanation of the present subjunctive.
Extend
Students create a persona and conduct a Gallery Walk to make friendship matches.
Evaluate
Students justify why they made friendship matches between personas and, in an Exit Ticket, draft a personal response to what makes a pareja perfecta.
Materials
Lesson Slides (attached)
Note Catcher handout (attached; one per student)
Canciones handout (attached; one per student)
Magnetic Statements signs (three for display; to be prepared)
Primeros pasos al presente del subjuntivo handout (attached, one per student)
¿Quién es la pareja perfecta? handout (attached, one per student)
Galería de personajes ficticiosos student
presentation slides (attached)
Markers or highlighters
Poster paper
Engage
30 Minute(s)
Begin the class by showing slide 2’s question: What kinds of words or phrases would you expect to hear in a song entitled “Quiero un amor”? Have students respond to the prompt using Collaborative Word Clouds (software instructions below). Allow a few minutes for student responses, and then discuss the word cloud results.
Display slide 3 to prepare students for Majo Aguilar’s song “Quiero un amor” by introducing and reviewing core vocabulary. Allow students to form small groups and hand out the Note Catcher handout (or simply ask students to use their notebooks to record the vocabulary and take notes), matching the words and images on the slide. Scaffold their learning by providing hints and support when necessary. Display slide 4 and repeat. When adequate time has passed, review the vocabulary.
Transition through slides 5–7 to review the lesson title, essential question, and learning objectives.
Explore
40 Minute(s)
Tell students they will listen to a song entitled “Quiero un amor.” Use the link or embedded video on hidden slide 8 (art on slide 9 will display) to play the song once. Encourage students to stretch themselves to listen for the things the singer says she wants, jotting down any words they understand on their Note Catcher handout. Allow the song to play until the first bridge, about 01:46. Conduct a brief discussion, then pass out the lyrics sheet (the Canciones handout) and highlighters. Move to slide 10 and explain the Categorical Highlighting strategy, in which students will mark with one color just the verbs that indicate what the singer wants, and with another marker all the verbs in the yo form. Play the song a second time from hidden slide 8, pausing when necessary to allow students time to comprehend the reading.
Display slide 11 and introduce the “I Notice, I Wonder” strategy. Working with an Elbow Partner, have students make a T-chart to analyze their highlights and jot down their ideas. Then, working as a whole class, record a list of “notices” and a list of “wonderings” on the board. If the class has laptops available, you may choose to use Padlet to jot down their ideas.
Switching gears, tell students they’re going to hear another perspective on the same theme. Ask students to silently read the lyrics of “Necesito una compañera” on page 2 of the Canciones handout and move to hidden slide 12 to play the song just to the beginning of the third stanza, and repeat. (As before, slide 13 will display.) Move on to slide 14 and explain that they’re going to do a second Categorical Highlighting on this text: one color for the qualities of a compañera and, as before, a second color for verbs that express the subject yo.
Move to slide 15 and, on the lyrics page for “Necesito un amor,” have students write in or “caret in” the subject pronoun of the verbs in the second color they highlighted (most of these will be ella) and the infinitive form of the verb they come from. Transition to slide 16 and assign elbow partners. Have them analyze these verbs and pose potential reasons for what they are: present time? have they seen the form before? etc. Don’t do any explaining here as students are negotiating meaning and discovering the rules inductively.
Explain
50 Minute(s)
Display slide 17 and introduce the Magnetic Statements strategy. Ask students to consider what they might want in a friend—someone who talks a lot? someone who does their homework for them?—and direct them to the three signs posted around the room to indicate their honest response with “Estoy de acuerdo,” “No estoy de acuerdo,” and “No me importa mucho.” Use the following prompts to guide students to one of the three stations; repeat each prompt clearly just one time and pause to allow students to make their choice. For each prompt, elicit information to confirm that students understand the prompt. For instance, ¿cuáles videojuegos quieres que tu amigo/a juegue contigo?, ¿Juegas en casa, o en línea?, etc.
Prompts: Quiero / Necesito / Busco un/a amigo/a que…
que juegue videojuegos conmigo
que estudie conmigo después de la escuela
que sólo me hable por Zoom o Facetime
que sea honesto/a conmigo
que vaya al cine y al centro comercial conmigo
que me lea libros infantiles
que se enamore de alguien que me gusta también
que se le olvide mi cumpleaños
que siempre tenga tiempo para mi
que me diga la verdad
Add other prompts as you see fit.
Display slide 18 to recap the prompts you used for the Magnetic Statements activity. Ask students to form groups and come up with one rule about how these verbs are formed for the first five examples. Allow time for students to analyze the list and for them to write their rule(s) on the board, eliciting their ideas without confirming their attempts to define a rule.
Distribute the Primeros pasos al presente del subjuntivo handout and ask students to read the document together, then adjust and confirm their rule(s). Conduct a discussion, asking students to explain how they can apply their rule(s) to the examples from the Magnetic Statements activity.
Pass out the ¿Quién es la pareja perfecta? handout. Frame this activity by asking what they might want in the perfect spouse or life partner, suggesting that it might be all right to exaggerate a little or think outside the box. Allow time for students to work quietly, then find an elbow partner for Part 2. Use Part 3 as an Exit Ticket; if time permits, engage in class discussion.
Replay the songs for verb reinforcement.
Extend
50 Minute(s)
Ask students to create an original persona—an invented character with their own unique identity—that they will present either online or on poster paper. Each student should design a slide or poster featuring an artistic depiction of their personaje. Alongside the image, include a brief written section or bulleted list outlining the character’s likes and dislikes, favorite activities, personality traits, and future dreams or goals. Encourage students to be imaginative and bold in their presentations, pushing the boundaries of creativity. Remind them that describing physical characteristics is optional, as their artwork will already convey those details. Emphasize that their written descriptions should be detailed and thoughtful, reflecting the higher-level skills expected at the high school level.
If you choose to have students work on a digital presentation, use slide 19 to show them how they will open the Galería de personajes ficticiosos student presentation slide deck. Assign slides to students or allow them simply to upload their information to an open slide. Allow time for students to design their persona slide, offering correction when necessary and praise when appropriate. Alternatively, hide slide 19 if students will create posters.
When the personas are complete, have students select three or four blank strips of paper, then display slide 20. Ask students to use the slide prompts to write unique ideas, building on the idea in Part 3 of the ¿Quién es la pareja perfecta? handout. These sentences should correspond to what their created persona might say. Ask students to confirm the accuracy of their statements with an elbow partner, and then place their statement strips in the bucket.
Assemble all the slides and conduct a virtual Gallery Walk. Time permitting, you might pair this activity with a 30-Second Expert, in which students briefly describe, without notes, their personaje ficticioso.
Evaluate
20 Minute(s)
Display slide 21 and ask students to pull three different strips of paper from the bucket. Have students write a response to these three statements, proposing a match and a justification for each. Ask for volunteers to read their responses and justifications, and express a group opinion about the match.
On Part 3 of the ¿Quién es la pareja perfecta? handout, have students write a short paragraph as an Exit Ticket from either their perspective or that of an assumed persona on the theme “¿Qué buscas tú en una pareja?” To lower the affective filter, tell students that no one but you will see their responses.
Resources
Aguilar, M. (2022, November 15). Quiero un amor [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6nQFLWRM9OU
Danzza, B., Navarro, A., & Aguilar Carrillo, M. J. (n.d.). Quiero un amor [Lyrics]. www.musixmatch.com/lyrics/Majo-Aguilar/Quiero-Un-Amor
K20 Center. (n.d.). 30-second expert. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/1048
K20 Center. (n.d.). Bell ringers and exit tickets. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/125
K20 Center. (n.d.). Categorical highlighting. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/192
K20 Center. (n.d.). Collaborative word clouds. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/103
K20 Center. (n.d.). Elbow partners. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/116
K20 Center. (n.d.). Gallery walk/carousel. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/118
K20 Center. (n.d.). I notice, I wonder. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/180
K20 Center. (n.d.). Magnetic statements. Strategies. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/strategy/166
K20 Center. (n.d.). Padlet. Tech Tools. https://learn.k20center.ou.edu/tech-tool/1077
Perdidos de Sinaloa. (2021, February 26). Necesito una Compañera ft. Los Contacto [Video Oficial] [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9vQAOgVE2k
Solis, M. A. (2023, December 30). Los Bukis - Necesito una compañera | Lyric video [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g1o6SP6REnw