Calendar dates and holidays
Fechas del calendario y festivos
- The basic dates and holidays
- How are dates formed?
This lesson helps beginners learn how to express dates and holidays in Spanish. Students will discover how to state days, months, and years accurately, understand key holiday names like "el Año Nuevo" (New Year's Day) and "la Navidad" (Christmas), and practice planning events with proper date expressions. The content includes vocabulary related to units of time such as "el año" (year) and "la semana" (week). Essential verbs like "planear" (to plan) and "empezar" (to start) are highlighted with their present tense forms to help students describe events and schedules naturally. Dialogues simulate real-life scenarios such as arranging medical appointments, planning vacations, and confirming social gatherings. Useful phrases include "¿Cuándo es tu cita médica?" (When is your medical appointment?) and "Entonces nos vemos el 3 de mayo." (So we’ll see each other on May 3rd). This lesson offers a practical foundation for discussing dates and holidays in everyday conversations, supporting learner confidence and engagement.
Listening & reading materials
Practice vocabulary in context with real materials.
Vocabulary (13) Share Copied!
Exercises Share Copied!
These exercises can be done together during conversation lessons or as homework.
Exercise 1: Reorder sentences
Instruction: Make correct sentences and translate.
Exercise 2: Match a word
Instruction: Match the translations
Exercise 3: Cluster the words
Instruction: Classify the following words into two categories according to whether they refer to units of time or holidays.
Unidades de tiempo
Días festivos
Exercise 4: Translate and use in a sentence
Instruction: Pick a word, translated and use the word in a sentence or dialogue.
1
El mes
The month
2
La Semana Santa
Holy Week
3
Planear
To plan
4
La semana
The week
5
La Navidad
Christmas
Ejercicio 5: Conversation exercise
Instrucción:
- Say the name of the holiday and it's date. (Say the name of the holiday and it's date.)
- What are your plans for the holidays? With whom are you going to spend it? (What are your plans for the holidays? With whom are you going to spend it?)
- What day is today? (What day is today?)
Teaching guidelines +/- 10 minutes
Example phrases:
|
Navidad es el veinticinco de diciembre. Christmas is the twenty-fifth of December. |
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Las vacaciones de verano son en julio y agosto. Summer holiday is in July and august. |
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La Pascua siempre cae en otra fecha. Easter is always on another date. |
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Planeo celebrar la Navidad con mi familia. I plan to celebrate christmas with my family. |
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Voy a celebrar el Año Nuevo con mis amigos. I am going to celebrate new year's with my friends. |
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Hoy es catorce de febrero de 2025. Today is the forteenth of february of 2025. |
| ... |
Exercise 6: Dialogue Cards
Instruction: Select a situation and practice the conversation with your teacher or fellow students.
Exercise 7: Multiple Choice
Instruction: Choose the correct solution
1. Cada año ______ mis vacaciones es importante para disfrutar bien del tiempo libre.
(Every year ______ my vacations is important to enjoy free time well.)2. La Navidad ______ el 24 de diciembre por la tarde.
(Christmas ______ on December 24 in the evening.)3. Para planear bien, siempre ______ por las fechas de los días festivos.
(To plan well, I always ______ with the dates of the holidays.)4. Mis amigos y yo ______ juntos el fin de semana para visitar a la familia.
(My friends and I ______ together the weekend to visit family.)Exercise 8: Planning family celebrations on the calendar
Instruction:
Verb Tables
Planear - Planear
Presente
- yo planeo
- tú planeas
- él/ella/usted planea
- nosotros/nosotras planeamos
- vosotros/vosotras planeáis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes planean
Empezar - Empezar
Presente
- yo empiezo
- tú empiezas
- él/ella/usted empieza
- nosotros/nosotras empezamos
- vosotros/vosotras empezáis
- ellos/ellas/ustedes empiezan
Exercise 9: ¿Cómo se forman las fechas?
Instruction: Fill in the correct word.
Grammar: How are dates formed?
Show translation Show answers3 de abril, el 25 de diciembre, el 31 de diciembre, el 12 de octubre, El 10 de mayo, el primero de julio, el 15 de septiembre, 5 de junio
Grammar Share Copied!
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Verb conjugation tables for this lesson Share Copied!
Planear to plan Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) planeo | I plan |
| (tú) planeas | You plan |
| (él/ella) planea | he/ she plans |
| (nosotros/nosotras) planeamos | we plan |
| (vosotros/vosotras) planeáis | You plan |
| (ellos/ellas) planean | they plan |
Empezar to start Share Copied!
Presente
| Spanish | English |
|---|---|
| (yo) empiezo | I start |
| (tú) empiezas | you start |
| (él/ella) empieza | he/she starts |
| (nosotros/nosotras) empezamos | we start |
| (vosotros/vosotras) empezáis | You start |
| (ellos/ellas) empiezan | they start |
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Understanding Calendar Dates and Holidays in Spanish
This lesson introduces how to express dates and talk about holidays in Spanish, tailored for beginners (A1 level). You will learn to describe specific dates, understand important holidays, and plan events or vacations using common phrases.
Key Content Covered
- Basic Date Expressions: Learn to say the day, month, and year, e.g. Es el 3 de abril (It is the 3rd of April).
- Common Holidays: Familiarize with major Spanish holiday names such as El Año Nuevo (New Year's Day), La Navidad (Christmas), and understand when they occur.
- Time Units Vocabulary: Understand words like el año (year), el mes (month), la semana (week), and el fin de semana (the weekend).
- Planning and Confirming Dates: Practice dialogues for scheduling appointments, holidays, and social events using correct date and day expressions.
- Verb Conjugations: Focus on present tense conjugations of verbs such as planear (to plan) and empezar (to start), which are key for talking about time and events.
Examples to Note
Las vacaciones empiezan el 15 de junio. (The vacation starts on June 15th.)
El Año Nuevo siempre empieza el 1º de enero. (New Year's Day always starts on January 1st.)
¿Cómo se dice la fecha de hoy? – Es el 3 de abril. (How do you say today's date? – It's April 3rd.)
Spanish vs. English Date Expressions
One important difference is the use of the preposition "de" in Spanish dates (e.g., "el 3 de abril"), which English does not use (
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