Spanish: 7–10 Sequence / Levels 7 and 8 / Understanding / Language variation and change
Content description
Recognise that Spanish is a global language that is spoken in a variety of forms in different communities around the world, including Australia
Elaborations
recognising that Spanish is an important world language spoken in a range of varieties dialects, and variable accents across the Spanish-speaking world, for example, by identifying Spanish-speaking countries or regions on a map of the world
understanding the nature of the distribution of Spanish speakers across the world, not only in countries where Spanish is an official language but also in other countries such as the United States or the Philippines where the Spanish language and cultures have an important presence
recognising language variation across the Spanish-speaking world in terms of pronunciation, for example, the different pronunciation of the syllables ce and ci (gracias Cecilia)
exploring language variation in relation to vocabulary, for example, ‘a computer’ is un ordenador in Spain and una computadora in Latin America; ‘strawberries’ are fresas in Spain and frutillas in Argentina; ‘bus’ is colectivo in Venezuela, omnibus in Peru, camión in Mexico and guagua in Cuba
recognising that there is also variation in some grammatical forms, for example, the use of the pronoun vos in several countries in Latin America compared to tú in Spain; the masculine direct object pronoun le/lo in Spain and lo in Latin America
recognising differences between standard varieties of Spanish and varying degrees of language blending and influence, for example, Spanglish
recognising that many Spanish speakers also speak one or more regional and/or local languages, for example, Catalan or Basque
