Introduction

Relevance of the Topic

Mastering the vocabulary related to days of the week, dates, and hours is essential in learning Spanish. These structures are the basis for functional communication and allow you to talk about daily events, future plans, and schedules, while also enhancing your ability to read and understand texts in Spanish. Furthermore, knowledge about the weekly organization and the calendar system in Spanish gives us a broader insight into the culture and customs of Spanish-speaking countries.

Contextualization

Located at the beginning of the curriculum of the first year of high school, this lesson plays a crucial role in building the foundations of the Spanish language. It prepares students for more complex topics, such as verb tenses, where the ability to articulate days of the week, dates, and hours is essential. Additionally, these concepts are constantly used in daily life, making learning them immediately practical and applicable. This unit is the 'gateway' to the student's journey in the Spanish language.

Theoretical Development

Components

• Days of the Week: The week in Spanish starts with 'lunes' (Monday) and ends with 'domingo' (Sunday), following the same sequence as used in Portuguese. Learning the days of the week in Spanish is a matter of memory and practice, and it is important to note that, just like in Portuguese, they are all masculine.

• Dates: In the Spanish calendar system, the day is always mentioned before the month. For example, May 22nd is 'veintidós de mayo'. To express ordinal numbers (first, second, third...), the structure changes a bit, but the order of the elements remains the same, that is, day, month, year. For example, December 31st, 2022 is 'treinta y uno de diciembre de dos mil veintidós'.

• Time: Hours in Spanish are said similarly to Portuguese. The hour is indicated first, followed by the minute. When it comes to exact hours (e.g., 3:00, 7:00, 11:00), they can be expressed in two ways: 'son las' (with the verb 'ser', conjugated in the third person plural) or 'es la' (referring to a single hour). For example, 'son las tres en punto' and 'es la una en punto' both mean 'it is one o'clock'.

Key Terms

• Lunes, martes, miércoles, jueves, viernes, sábado, domingo: These are the translations for the days of the week in Spanish. Memorize them!

• Fecha: This word means 'date' in Spanish. Pay attention to the order of elements when writing dates.

• Hora: The term 'hora' means 'hour' in Portuguese.

Examples and Cases

• Days of the Week: To say 'I have Spanish class on Wednesday', in Spanish it would be 'Tengo clase de español el miércoles'. Note that 'miércoles' comes after the article 'el' (equivalent to 'on' or 'in' in Portuguese).

• Dates: To express your birthday date, for example, September 2nd, 2002, you would say 'Mi cumpleaños es el dos de septiembre de dos mil dos'. Again, observe the order and structure of the sentence.

• Time: If you want to say 'It is three thirty in the afternoon', in Spanish you would say 'Son las tres y media de la tarde'. Here, the verb 'ser' is being used to refer to a specific moment in time.

Detailed Summary

Key Points

• Importance of Vocabulary: Learning the vocabulary related to days of the week, dates, and hours is crucial for effective communication in Spanish and understanding texts in Spanish.

• Weekly Structure: The Spanish system of days of the week follows the same order as Portuguese, which facilitates learning. It starts with 'lunes' (Monday) and ends with 'domingo' (Sunday).

• Spanish Calendar: In the Spanish system, dates are expressed with the day first, followed by the month and, if necessary, the year. It is vital to note the change in structure when dealing with ordinal numbers.

• Time in Spanish: To express the time in Spanish, the structure is similar to Portuguese. The hour comes first, followed by the minutes, and for exact hours, 'son las' or 'es la' can be used.

Conclusions

• Practical Mastery: Upon completing this unit, students are expected to be able to practically use the learned vocabulary to describe days, dates, and times in Spanish.

• Immediate Applicability: The skills acquired in this lesson have a direct application in students' daily lives, becoming a solid foundation for future language learning.

• Culture and Customs: Besides the language, learning these concepts provides a deeper understanding of Spanish-speaking culture and customs.

Exercises

1. Days of the Week: Write the days of the week in Spanish, translating them from Portuguese.

2. Dates: Convert the following dates to Spanish: January 10th, December 25th, September 7th.

3. Time: Write the time that corresponds to each example: 'son las nueve y cuarto de la mañana' and 'es la medianoche'. Then, translate to Portuguese.