¿Cómo se dice 'global warming' en español?

Se dice 'el calentamiento global'. Es un término clave para hablar del aumento de la temperatura media de la Tierra debido a los gases de efecto invernadero. También puedes usar 'el cambio climático' para referirte a los cambios en el clima en general.

¿Qué verbos necesito para hablar de acciones ecológicas?

Verbos útiles incluyen: reciclar (to recycle), reducir (to reduce), reutilizar (to reuse), ahorrar (to save, e.g., ahorrar agua/energía), proteger (to protect), conservar (to conserve), y contaminar (to pollute). Practica conjugarlos en presente, pretérito y futuro.

¿Cómo puedo dar una opinión sobre el medio ambiente en el examen?

Usa frases como 'En mi opinión, es fundamental que...' + subjuntivo, o 'Creo que deberíamos...' + infinitivo. Por ejemplo: 'Creo que deberíamos usar más transporte público para reducir la contaminación.' Añade una razón para justificar tu opinión.

¿Qué diferencia hay entre 'el medio ambiente' y 'el entorno'?

'El medio ambiente' se refiere específicamente al entorno natural (aire, agua, tierra, ecosistemas). 'El entorno' es más amplio e incluye también el entorno social o construido. En el tema de sostenibilidad, usa 'medio ambiente'.

¿Necesito saber datos específicos sobre países hispanohablantes?

Sí, es muy recomendable. Por ejemplo, menciona que España es líder en energía eólica, o que la Amazonía (en Perú, Colombia, etc.) sufre deforestación. Esto demuestra conocimiento cultural y puede darte puntos extra en la sección de cultura.

¿Cómo se dice 'carbon footprint' en español?

Se dice 'la huella de carbono'. Es un concepto importante: 'Tenemos que reducir nuestra huella de carbono usando menos plástico y viajando en transporte público.'

Global Sustainability – Environment

WJEC

GCSE

This topic covers Global Sustainability, specifically focusing on the Environment and Social issues. It involves understanding and discussing environmental concerns, climate, pollution, recycling, and broader social issues such as poverty, homelessness, and humanitarian aid.

Objectives

Exam Tips

Pitfalls

Key Terms

Mark Points

Topic Overview

Global Sustainability – Environment in the WJEC GCSE Spanish context explores how environmental issues are discussed in the Spanish-speaking world. You will learn vocabulary and structures to talk about climate change, pollution, renewable energy, and conservation, as well as how these topics affect Spanish-speaking countries. This topic is part of the 'Global Sustainability' theme, which also includes social and economic aspects, but here the focus is on environmental challenges and solutions.

Understanding this topic is crucial because it connects language learning with real-world issues, helping you to express opinions, describe problems, and propose solutions in Spanish. You will encounter authentic texts, listen to interviews, and write essays on topics like '¿Cómo podemos proteger el medio ambiente?' (How can we protect the environment?). This knowledge is not only exam-relevant but also empowers you to engage in global conversations about sustainability.

In the WJEC GCSE exam, this topic appears in all four skills: listening, reading, speaking, and writing. You might be asked to understand a news report about deforestation in the Amazon, read an article about recycling in Spain, or write a blog post about reducing plastic use. Mastering this topic will boost your confidence in handling complex issues and improve your ability to use a range of tenses and opinions.

Key Concepts

Core ideas you must understand for this topic

→Vocabulary for environmental issues: el cambio climático (climate change), la contaminación (pollution), los residuos (waste), la energía renovable (renewable energy), la deforestación (deforestation).
→Using 'se debe' and 'hay que' to express obligation: 'Se debe reciclar' (One must recycle), 'Hay que proteger los bosques' (We must protect forests).
→The subjunctive to express opinions and recommendations: 'Es importante que reduzcamos el consumo de plástico' (It's important that we reduce plastic consumption).
→Comparative and superlative structures: 'La energía solar es más limpia que el carbón' (Solar energy is cleaner than coal), 'Es el problema más grave' (It's the most serious problem).
→Conditional sentences to discuss consequences: 'Si no actuamos ahora, el planeta sufrirá' (If we don't act now, the planet will suffer).

What You Need to Demonstrate

Key skills and knowledge for this topic

Ability to identify and describe environmental problems
Ability to express opinions on environmental and social issues
Ability to suggest solutions to environmental and social problems
Use of appropriate vocabulary related to climate, pollution, and recycling
Use of accurate grammar to describe past, present, and future environmental events

Marking Points

Key points examiners look for in your answers

Ability to identify and describe environmental problems
Ability to express opinions on environmental and social issues
Ability to suggest solutions to environmental and social problems
Use of appropriate vocabulary related to climate, pollution, and recycling
Use of accurate grammar to describe past, present, and future environmental events

Examiner Tips

Expert advice for maximising your marks

💡Familiarise yourself with the specific vocabulary lists for Environment and Social issues
💡Practice using complex structures to justify your opinions on global sustainability
💡Ensure you can use different tenses to discuss how the environment has changed and how it might change in the future
💡Be prepared to understand and respond to authentic-style texts about environmental campaigns
💡Use a range of tenses: present, preterite, imperfect, future, and conditional. For example, 'Antes, la gente no reciclaba (imperfect), pero ahora muchos reciclan (present). En el futuro, todos reciclaremos (future).'
💡Include opinions with justifications: 'Creo que la energía eólica es buena porque no produce CO2' (I think wind energy is good because it doesn't produce CO2). Avoid simple 'me gusta' without explanation.
💡Learn specific facts about Spanish-speaking countries: e.g., 'Costa Rica genera casi el 100% de su electricidad con energías renovables' (Costa Rica generates almost 100% of its electricity from renewables). This shows cultural knowledge.

Common Mistakes

Pitfalls to avoid in your exam answers

Confusing vocabulary related to different environmental issues (e.g., pollution vs. climate)
Incorrect use of prepositions when discussing environmental causes
Failure to justify opinions on social issues
Inaccurate conjugation of verbs when discussing future environmental plans
Confusing 'contaminación' (pollution) with 'contaminante' (pollutant). Remember: 'contaminación' is the process/state, while 'contaminante' is the substance that causes it.
Thinking 'reciclar' only means to recycle paper/plastic. In Spanish, it can also refer to reusing items creatively (e.g., 'reciclar ropa' – upcycling clothes).
Using 'el medioambiente' as masculine only. It is actually masculine: 'el medioambiente' (the environment), but some learners mistakenly use 'la' because of 'la naturaleza'.

Frequently Asked Questions

Common questions students ask about this topic

Before You Start

Prior knowledge that will help with this topic

•Basic vocabulary for weather and natural features (e.g., el sol, la lluvia, el bosque, el río).
•Present tense conjugation of regular and common irregular verbs (e.g., ser, estar, tener, hacer).
•Forming simple opinions with 'creo que', 'pienso que', 'en mi opinión'.

Likely Command Words

How questions on this topic are typically asked

Describe

Explica

Justifica

Menciona

Elige

Ready to test yourself?

Practice questions tailored to this topic

Global Sustainability – Environment

Topic Overview

Key Concepts

What You Need to Demonstrate

Marking Points

Examiner Tips

Common Mistakes

Frequently Asked Questions

Before You Start

Likely Command Words

Ready to test yourself?

Related Topics in WJEC GCSE Spanish

Appendix A: Prescribed Vocabulary List (organised by theme/sub-theme)

Appendix B: Grammar Requirements – Foundation Tier

Current and Future Study and Employment

Current Study – School/College Life

How to Revise Global Sustainability – Environment — WJEC GCSE Spanish

Examiner Tips for Global Sustainability – Environment

Common Mistakes in Global Sustainability – Environment

Key Marking Points

Global Sustainability – Environment

Topic Overview

Key Concepts

What You Need to Demonstrate

Marking Points

Examiner Tips

Common Mistakes

Frequently Asked Questions

¿Cómo se dice 'global warming' en español?

¿Qué verbos necesito para hablar de acciones ecológicas?

¿Cómo puedo dar una opinión sobre el medio ambiente en el examen?

¿Qué diferencia hay entre 'el medio ambiente' y 'el entorno'?

¿Necesito saber datos específicos sobre países hispanohablantes?

¿Cómo se dice 'carbon footprint' en español?

Before You Start

Likely Command Words

Ready to test yourself?

Related Topics in WJEC GCSE Spanish

Appendix A: Prescribed Vocabulary List (organised by theme/sub-theme)

Appendix B: Grammar Requirements – Foundation Tier

Current and Future Study and Employment

Current Study – School/College Life