Fablingo / Fablingo Español / Level pre-A1
Episode 07 · Colours and Things
Duration: 9:30
Coming soon on YouTube
After this lesson you can:
Name everyday objects and their colours, and point at things to ask what they are.
In this episode
Mía, Rosa's brutally-honest 7-year-old granddaughter, decides the baffled grown-up needs teaching like he's her age and marches him around pointing — ¿qué es esto? es un libro… es rojo — his notebook filling with its first objects.
Last time, Sra. Ortega asked where you're from, and you found yourself saying the true thing: no soy de aquí. Today, someone much shorter decides you need a different kind of help — the kind with crayons, counting, and pointing at literally everything.
¡Buenos días! ¿Dormiste bien? Mía ya está aquí… y tiene energía, como siempre.
¡Hola! Soy Mía. Tú no sabes nada. Yo te enseño, ¿sí?
And just like that, you have a teacher. Mía is Rosa’s granddaughter — honest, fast, and very sure you can do this. She grabs your hand and a notebook and marches you to the nearest table.
¿Qué es esto?
¿qué es esto? — what is this?
She points and asks: ¿qué es esto? Hear that little kick on qué — it has the accent mark, so the stress is on QUEH. es — short, like S. es-to — esto, with a clear E at the start: EH-sto. Meaning: what is this? Super useful when you're pointing. Register: anyone can say it — kids, friends, formal — it’s neutral. Common mistake: don’t say 'qué es eso' if the thing is in your hand. esto is this, near you. Ready?
¿qué es esto? — what is this?
Say it with me: ¿qué es esto? … Again, a little slower: ¿qué… es… esto? … Now natural: ¿qué es esto?
¿qué es esto? — what is this?
¿Qué es esto?
Es un libro. Y esto... es una mesa.
es un libro / es una mesa — it's a book / it's a table
Perfect reply. es — 'it is'. un for many words that are 'masculine' in Spanish, like libro — book. una for many 'feminine' words, like mesa — table. You’ll feel it by hearing lots. Don’t worry, no charts — just copy what you hear. Common mistake: don’t say 'es una libro' — libro takes un. mesa takes una. Try both with me.
es un libro / es una mesa — it's a book / it's a table
Say it: es un libro. … Again: es un libro. … Now: es una mesa. … One more, natural: es una mesa.
es un libro / es una mesa — it's a book / it's a table
Es una puerta… es un vaso.
Mira. El libro es rojo.
el libro es rojo — the book is red
Now you’re describing. el libro — the book. es — is. rojo — red. Hear the R at the start of rojo — a little tap: RO-ho. Meaning: the book is red. Register: everyday. Common mistake: lots of English speakers want to say 'es rojo el libro' here — in Spanish it’s smooth to go the thing first: el libro es rojo. And 'rojo' can change to 'roja' for many words like la mesa — we’ll hear it from people around you.
el libro es rojo — the book is red
Say it: el libro es rojo. … Slower: el li-bro es ro-jo. … Now natural: el libro es rojo.
el libro es rojo — the book is red
La taza… es roja. Y la silla es azul. ¿Ves?
Tengo muchos colores. Mira… uno, dos, tres… rojo, verde, amarillo… cuatro, cinco, seis…
Siete, ocho, nueve… diez.
Gracias, Mía.
Quick check: you can ask ¿qué es esto?, say es un libro / es una mesa, and describe with el libro es rojo. You even counted with Mía. Breathe. You’re doing great. Let’s add pointing words.
Este lápiz… esta silla.
este lápiz, esta silla — this pencil, this chair (pointing)
Pointing words. este with many 'masculine' words like lápiz — la-peeS, final Z is like an S in most of Latin America. esta with many 'feminine' words like silla — SEE-ya. Meaning: this pencil, this chair — right here, near you. Common mistake: mixing 'esto' with these. esto is 'this thing' when you don’t name it. If you name it — like lápiz, silla — use este/esta.
este lápiz, esta silla — this pencil, this chair (pointing)
Say it: este lápiz. … Slower: es-te lá-piz. … Now: esta silla. … Again natural: esta silla.
este lápiz, esta silla — this pencil, this chair (pointing)
Este vaso… esta mesa.
Son los libros… y son las llaves.
son los libros / son las llaves — they're the books / they're the keys
For plurals, es becomes son — they are. los for many 'masculine' plurals like libros. las for many 'feminine' plurals like llaves — keys. Hear llave with a soft Y sound: YA-veh. Meaning: they’re the books, they’re the keys. Common mistake: saying 'son los libro' — don’t drop the S; libroS, llaveS.
son los libros / son las llaves — they're the books / they're the keys
Say it: son los libros. … Again: son los libros. … Now: son las llaves. … One more natural: son las llaves.
son los libros / son las llaves — they're the books / they're the keys
Son las tazas… y son los vasos.
Mía decides the café is too small for her lesson. She drags you outside. The plaza is a museum now: benches, bikes, a cat that absolutely does not care about Spanish.
¿Qué es esto? ¿Y esto? ¿Y… esto?
Es una planta… es un banco… es… eh… una… bicicleta.
¡Muy bien! Mira, el tomate es rojo… y los limones son amarillos.
Son los tomates… rojos.
Mira, tus llaves. Son las llaves… de tu cuarto.
Back in your little room above the café, the lesson becomes… stickers. Mía makes tiny drawings in your notebook: a chair, a cup, a door. She holds each up and waits.
Este cuaderno… esta cama…
Bien… y… es una cama. No un cama. ¿Sí?
La puerta es… blanca. Y la lámpara es verde.
Hoy aprendiste… uno, dos, tres, cuatro… muchas cosas.
¡Niños! Bueno… y no tan niño. La cena a las siete, ¿sí?
Mañana, más. Trae pegatinas. Hacemos… etiquetas. Para todo.
You’ve been adopted. Dinner downstairs tonight, and tomorrow Mía wants to label… the world. Will you show up with stickers and a new word? I’m betting yes.
Today you asked and answered: ¿qué es esto? — es un/una… You described color: el libro es rojo. You pointed near you: este lápiz, esta silla. And you handled plurals: son los… / son las… That’s a real toolkit. Rewatch, point at your own room, and say them out loud.
Two new lessons every week — Tuesday and Friday. I’m Lucía, and this is your barrio. Subscribe, bring stickers, and I’ll meet you at dinner. Hasta pronto.
Vocabulary
| Phrase | Meaning | Note |
|---|---|---|
| ¿qué es esto? | what is this? | |
| es un libro / es una mesa | it's a book / it's a table | |
| el libro es rojo | the book is red | |
| este lápiz, esta silla | this pencil, this chair (pointing) | |
| son los libros / son las llaves | they're the books / they're the keys |
Grammar in this lesson
Noun gender + definite articles el/la/los/las; indefinite un/una; demonstratives esto / este / esta for pointing; question word qué; ser for identity of things (es un…).