GCSE Spanish Conversation Questions, by Theme

No one can tell you the exact questions in advance. AQA says pupils must not know beforehand which questions, theme or topic will come up. But the questions are predictable in kind. They're personal and concrete, they follow the specification's themes, and they ask about your life, your opinions, and what you did and will do. Practise answering questions like the ones below out loud, and the real ones will feel familiar.

The questions are grouped under AQA's three themes. Edexcel and Cambridge IGCSE organise the same ground into their own topic areas: see the Edexcel Spanish and Cambridge IGCSE Spanish guides. Taking French? Here are the same questions in French.

Is there still a "general conversation"?

Not as a separate part in the new GCSE. For AQA, the conversation comes straight after the photo card, on the same theme. For Edexcel, it follows the picture task, on the theme you chose two weeks before the exam. Cambridge IGCSE has two topic conversations of about four minutes each.

People and lifestyle

Identity and relationships with others

• Describe a tu familia. Describe your family.
• ¿Te llevas bien con tus padres? ¿Por qué (no)? Do you get on well with your parents? Why (not)?
• Para ti, ¿cómo es un buen amigo? What makes a good friend, for you?
• ¿Qué hiciste con tus amigos el fin de semana pasado? What did you do with your friends last weekend?

Healthy living and lifestyle

• ¿Qué haces para estar en forma? What do you do to keep fit?
• ¿Qué desayunaste esta mañana? What did you have for breakfast this morning?
• ¿Qué vas a cambiar para llevar una vida más sana? What are you going to change to live more healthily?

Education and work

• ¿Qué asignatura te gusta más y por qué? Which subject do you like best, and why?
• Describe un día típico en tu instituto. Describe a typical day at your school.
• ¿Qué te gustaría hacer después de los exámenes? What would you like to do after your exams?
• ¿Te gustaría trabajar en otro país? Would you like to work in another country?

Popular culture

Free-time activities

• ¿Cómo pasas los fines de semana? How do you spend your weekends?
• ¿Has visto una buena película recientemente? Have you seen a good film recently?

Customs, festivals and celebrations

• ¿Cómo celebras tu cumpleaños? How do you celebrate your birthday?
• Háblame de una fiesta que celebraste el año pasado. Tell me about a celebration you had last year.

Celebrity culture

• ¿Quién es tu famoso favorito y por qué? Who's your favourite celebrity, and why?
• ¿Crees que los famosos son un buen ejemplo para los jóvenes? Do you think celebrities are a good example for young people?

Communication and the world around us

Travel and tourism, including places of interest

• ¿Adónde fuiste de vacaciones el año pasado? Where did you go on holiday last year?
• ¿Prefieres ir de vacaciones al extranjero o quedarte en tu país? Do you prefer going abroad on holiday or staying in your own country?
• ¿Adónde te gustaría ir en el futuro? Where would you like to go in the future?

Media and technology

• ¿Para qué usas el móvil? What do you use your phone for?
• En tu opinión, ¿cuáles son los peligros de las redes sociales? In your opinion, what are the dangers of social media?
• ¿Podrías vivir sin tu móvil? Could you live without your phone?

The environment and where people live

• Describe tu ciudad o tu barrio. Describe your town or neighbourhood.
• ¿Qué haces para proteger el medio ambiente? What do you do to protect the environment?
• ¿Qué se podría hacer para mejorar tu ciudad? What could be done to improve your town?

How to turn any question into a top-band answer

Short, correct answers are safe, but they don't reach the top marks. Cambridge's examiners say so directly: "Accurate but brief answers do not give candidates the chance to access the higher marking bands." Use a three-step answer:

1. Answer and add a detail.
2. Give an opinion and a reason.
3. Move to another time frame: what you did, or what you're going to do.

¿Qué haces para estar en forma? "Juego al fútbol dos veces a la semana porque es bueno para la salud y me encanta estar con mis amigos. El fin de semana pasado di un paseo largo con mi perro, y el año que viene voy a probar la natación."

That one answer gives a present, a past and a future. Edexcel's top band for the Higher conversation asks for "Consistently successful use of three timeframes". AQA's Higher top band asks for "Consistent good development with regular extended responses".

Practise them out loud

Reading the list isn't practice. Answering it out loud is. Ask someone to read questions to you at random. A parent can do this with the English beside each one, even without speaking Spanish. Or record yourself answering five questions and play them back: did every answer have a reason and a second time frame? An AI examiner such as Tête-à-Tête asks conversation questions on your board's themes and follows up on what you say, as a real examiner does, so you practise answering the question you didn't expect.

Sources

Every board fact on this page was checked against these documents on 26 October 2026. The questions are our own.

• AQA GCSE Spanish (8692): specification (themes and topics, the photo card conversation, the mark scheme)
• Pearson Edexcel GCSE Spanish (1SP1): specification and sample assessment materials
• Cambridge IGCSE Spanish (0530): syllabus for 2025–2027, and the principal examiner's report on Cambridge IGCSE French, June 2024