Spanish.

Spanish was a lot. There are 4 skills that the IB tests you on: writing, speaking, reading and listening. I’d say the speaking (IO) and reading are the easiest. Writing is relatively easy as well, but the prompts that IB gives you in the final exam can be quite challenging if you don’t have an extensive vocabulary.

Writing

For class tests, you can get away with memorizing since you have a pretty good idea of the topics that might be asked (most probably the latest topic covered in class), however for the final exam it is tough. You need extensive vocabulary, complex and idiomatic expressions, you need to know text-types and formats and conventions, etc. In the final exam, there are 2 sections, and you pick one prompt from each (out of 3 options in each section (total 6)). The first section usually contains more informal and personal prompts and the second more formal and public (or the other way around, I forgot). Here are my top resources:

• Vocabulary - Arche-ele

• Complex phrases and idiomatic expressions - Chat GPT

• Grammar - Study Spanish

Reading and Listening

Reading and listening are similar. They both are a game of practice, and they both are long-term. They both require you to have an extensive vocabulary and receptive skills. If you simply commit to long-term immersion into the language, you should have no issues with either. If you are lucky and just beginning to learn the language, commit to watching movies, listening to songs, etc. and reading books and articles in Spanish. Change the language of your phone, laptop, and other devices to Spanish as well. Go back to how you learned to speak your mother tongue or your first language as a child. Sure, you learned a little in school, but most of it was from listening to parents and those around you. The same concept applies here. The longer you immerse yourself into the language, the more you’ll subconsciously pick up and the better you’ll be able to communicate in Spanish.

Speaking (the easiest)

The IO is the easiest aspect of Spanish, in my opinion. You give a 2-minute monologue on a picture that you choose (from 3 options, I believe) and then have a 7-8 minute conversation on two topics with your teacher, where you answer your supervisor’s questions. Since this is internally graded and only monitored by the IB, it’s really in your favour. If you have chill teachers, you’ll most likely know what pictures might come for you personally. They usually choose pictures that you have demonstrated confidence in in your mock IOs, etc. so don’t worry. Even if you get an unknown picture, as long as you follow this format (for which the vocabulary is pretty basic) you should be more than fine for the monologue and to answer the questions:

• Physical environment and climate

• Descriptions of the people (mood, clothing, activities)

• Create a story (what did the people do just before and what are they going to do in the near future)

• Relate it to Spanish culture (this is very, very important). For example, tapas in Spain for the topic of food, or public transport system in Spain for travel, or festivals such as Christmas in Spain for celebrations, or the importance of family for the Spanish for family topics, etc.). This is absolutely crucial.