Day 182: Going Blank on the Practice Exam
In Mexico City, Román (A) and Valeria (B), classmates in their last year of prepa, the three years of school before college, have just taken a practice entrance exam for the Politécnico, the National Polytechnic Institute, known as the Poli.
How to study this lesson 3 steps
- Read the situation under the title. It says who is talking and how they know each other, which decides how politely they speak.
- Read the dialogue line by line with its translation, until every line makes sense. Point at (or tap) a Spanish word to see what it means.
- Spend at least 30 minutes listening to native Spanish, for example from the Resources page. It doesn't matter if you don't understand it yet.
Dialogue
Audio recordings are on the way. For now, each lesson is the dialogue with its English translation.
Keys: E hide English · ← → previous / next day · point at a word to see its meaning
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A
¿Cómo te fue en el simulacro del Poli? Saliste bien seria del salón.
How did the Poli practice exam go? You came out of the room looking really serious.
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B
Horrible. Me quedé en blanco y se me olvidaron fórmulas que me sé de memoria.
Awful. I went blank and forgot formulas I know by heart.
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A
En el primero me puse tan nervioso que se me olvidó hasta la tabla del siete.
In the first one I got so nervous that I even forgot my seven times table.
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B
¿Tú? Yo creÃa que a los que sacan puro diez no les pasaba eso.
You? I thought that didn't happen to people who get straight A's.
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A
Uy, seguido. Ahora, cuando me entra el pánico con un problema, respiro hondo y lo dejo para el final.
Oh, all the time. Now, when a problem makes me panic, I take a deep breath and save it for the end.
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B
¡Qué buen truco! Yo me quedé atorada media hora en la cinco y ya no me dio tiempo.
What a good trick! I got stuck on number five for half an hour and then ran out of time.
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A
Para eso son los simulacros. El sábado hacemos otro, y yo te tomo el tiempo.
That's what practice exams are for. On Saturday we'll do another one, and I'll time you.
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