The Weekend (Leaving Cert Spanish): Revision Notes
The weekend
This section focuses on discussing past weekend activities and special celebrations in Spanish. You'll learn how to describe what you did last weekend and talk about birthday celebrations using the preterite tense.
Last weekend activities
Learning to discuss weekend activities is essential for Spanish conversation practice. The examiner will often ask about your recent activities to assess your ability to use past tenses naturally.
Typical examiner questions
¿Qué hiciste el fin de semana pasado? - What did you do last weekend?
¿Cómo pasaste el sábado? - How did you spend Saturday?
¿Saliste con tus amigos el fin de semana? - Did you go out with your friends at the weekend?
These questions are commonly asked in Spanish speaking exams. Practice answering them with specific details about your activities to show your range of vocabulary and verb forms.
Model answers - staying in
Example Response: Quiet Weekend at Home
El viernes por la noche me quedé en casa y me relajé porque estaba muy cansada después de una larga semana en el cole. On Friday night I stayed at home and relaxed because I was very tired after a long week at school.
Vi una película en Netflix y escuché música en mi dormitorio. I watched a film on Netflix and listened to music in my bedroom.
Charlé con mis amigos por Snapchat y colgué unas fotos en Instagram. I chatted with my friends on Snapchat and posted some photos on Instagram.
Model answers - going out and socialising
Example Response: Active Social Weekend
El sábado pasado por la mañana jugué un partido de rugby con el equipo del instituto. Last Saturday morning I played a rugby match with the school team.
Fui de escaparates con mis amigas el sábado por la tarde. Me encanta ir al centro de la ciudad con mis amigas. Pasamos horas enteras en las tiendas y las boutiques. I went window shopping with my friends on Saturday afternoon. I love going to the city centre with my friends. We spend whole hours in the shops and boutiques.
El sábado por la noche quedé con mis amigos en una discoteca. Nos gusta mucho bailar. ¡Lo pasé bomba! On Saturday night I met up with my friends at a nightclub. We really like dancing. I had a great time!
Fui al cine con mi novio para ver la nueva película de Elle Fanning. I went to the cinema with my boyfriend to see the new Elle Fanning film.
Cené en un restaurante de comida rápida con mis amigos. I had dinner at a fast food restaurant with my friends.
Model answers - family time
Example Response: Relaxed Family Weekend
El domingo por la mañana me quedé en la cama hasta tarde. On Sunday morning I stayed in bed until late.
Visité a mis abuelos, que viven cerca de mi casa, el domingo por la tarde. I visited my grandparents, who live near my house, on Sunday afternoon.
Special celebrations
Birthday celebrations are another common conversation topic that allows you to demonstrate your use of past tenses and descriptive vocabulary.
Typical examiner questions
¿Cómo lo celebraste cuando cumpliste dieciocho años? - How did you celebrate when you turned eighteen?
¿Qué hiciste para tu último cumpleaños? - What did you do for your last birthday?
Model answers - birthday celebrations
Example Response: Birthday Party Celebration
Tuve una fiesta en casa con mis amigos. Escuchamos música y bailamos. I had a party at home with my friends. We listened to music and danced.
Cenamos pizza y patatas fritas y mi madre hizo una tarta de chocolate. We had pizza and chips for dinner and my mother made a chocolate cake.
Mis padres me regalaron dinero, mi hermano me regaló unas botas de fútbol y mis amigos me regalaron un videojuego. My parents gave me money, my brother gave me some football boots and my friends gave me a video game.
El fin de semana fui con mi familia a un restaurante de comida tailandesa y más tarde quedé con mis amigos en una discoteca. At the weekend I went with my family to a Thai restaurant and later I met up with my friends at a nightclub.
Model answers - quiet celebrations
Example Response: Low-key Birthday
No hice mucho porque este año tengo que estudiar así que no quise salir a celebrar mi cumple. I didn't do much because this year I have to study so I didn't want to go out to celebrate my birthday.
Key vocabulary
Understanding these time expressions and activity verbs will help you structure your weekend descriptions clearly and naturally.
Essential Weekend Vocabulary:
Weekend time expressions:
- el viernes por la noche - on Friday night
- el sábado por la mañana - on Saturday morning
- el sábado por la tarde - on Saturday afternoon
- el domingo - on Sunday
Activities:
- quedar con amigos - to meet up with friends
- ir de escaparates - to go window shopping
- lo pasé bomba - I had a great time (colloquial)
- charlar - to chat
- colgar fotos - to post photos
- relajarse - to relax
Grammar focus - preterite tense
The preterite tense is essential for describing completed past actions and specific events that happened at definite times in the past.
Critical Grammar Point: The preterite tense is used for completed actions in the past, not ongoing or habitual actions. Use it when describing specific weekend activities or birthday events that happened at particular times.
Regular -ar verbs (like charlar):
- charlé, charlaste, charló, charlamos, charlasteis, charlaron
Most Important Irregular Verbs for Weekend Topics:
- ir/ser: fui, fuiste, fue, fuimos, fuisteis, fueron
- tener: tuve, tuviste, tuvo, tuvimos, tuvisteis, tuvieron
- hacer: hice, hiciste, hizo, hicimos, hicisteis, hicieron
Remember that ir (to go) and ser (to be) have identical forms in the preterite - context determines meaning.
Pronunciation tips
Correct pronunciation of preterite forms is crucial for clear communication about past events.
Stress patterns in preterite:
- First and third person forms are stressed on the final syllable: charlé, charló
- Watch out for accent marks on irregular verbs: tuvó becomes tuvo (no accent needed)
Tricky sounds:
- jugué - the 'g' before 'u' is pronounced like English 'g' in 'go'
- relajé - the 'j' is pronounced like 'h' in 'hello'
Key Points to Remember:
- Use the preterite tense to describe completed past actions and specific events that happened last weekend
- Learn time expressions like "el sábado por la mañana" to structure your answers clearly
- The phrase "lo pasé bomba" is a great colloquial way to say you had an amazing time
- Practice both active weekends (going out, sports, socialising) and quiet weekends (staying in, family time) to show variety
- Remember that "fui" can mean both "I went" and "I was" depending on context