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Exam skills: Paper 3 Reading and translation into English
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Paper 3 is worth 25% (50 marks): 45 minutes at Foundation, 60 minutes at Higher. No dictionaries are allowed.
Structure
Section A: reading comprehension. Questions in English, answers in English.
Section B: translation into English. Foundation translates sentences; Higher translates a short passage.
Section B: translation into English. Foundation translates sentences; Higher translates a short passage.
Working out new words
Cognates look like English: la música, importante.
Endings: -mente = -ly (rápidamente = quickly); -idad = -ity (la seguridad = security); -ito / -ita = small (una casita = a little house); -ísimo = very; -able = -able (reciclable = recyclable).
False friends: la librería = bookshop, embarazada = pregnant, la carpeta = folder, el éxito = success.
Endings: -mente = -ly (rápidamente = quickly); -idad = -ity (la seguridad = security); -ito / -ita = small (una casita = a little house); -ísimo = very; -able = -able (reciclable = recyclable).
False friends: la librería = bookshop, embarazada = pregnant, la carpeta = folder, el éxito = success.
Translating well
Translate every word, including small ones (muy, también, nunca, ya).
Keep the same tense and person.
Write natural English: un perro negro = a black dog, not a dog black. Tengo quince años = I am fifteen.
Keep the same tense and person.
Write natural English: un perro negro = a black dog, not a dog black. Tengo quince años = I am fifteen.
Translate: "Mi hermanito tiene seis años y es simpatiquísimo."
- hermanito: -ito = little, so little brother
- tiene seis años = is six (years old)
- simpatiquísimo: -ísimo = very, so very nice
Answer: My little brother is six and he is really nice.
Answer in English. Use cognates and endings (-mente, -idad, -ito, -ísimo) to infer meaning, but beware false friends. Translate every word into natural English in the right tense.
Check you have got it
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