23 Songs in Spanish to Practice Preterite – Imperfect – Past Tenses

Here is a suggested list of contemporary songs in Spanish to try in class for your intermediate to advanced students to practice the preterite, the imperfect, and past tenses.

We have created a clozeline (fill-in-the-blanks) for each of them in 2 or 3 versions to choose from according to your students’ listening comprehension level. Each cloze is also digitally fillable!

Some of these songs come in a PACK with additional activities to go more in-depth. This will give you the versatility of using them all or picking only a couple of them depending on your students’ needs or your class schedule.

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Songs in Spanish with Fill-In-The-Blanks Practice the Preterite, the Imperfect, and Past Tenses

1. Zion y Lennox ft. J Balvin – Otra vez – Infinitive and Past Indefinite
2. Wisin y Yandel – Mi Tesoro – Present, Preterite and Present Perfect
3. Tulio y sus amigos – Yo nunca vi televisión – Preterite Imperfect and Past Simple, Regular Verbs
4. Rubén Blades – Como nosotros -Past Imperfect Indicative, Past Perfect Simple
5. Reyli – Amor del bueno – Past Perfect Simple and Past Imperfect
6. Los tigres del norte – Somos más americanos – Past Tense and Vocabulary: History of Mexico and the United States
7. Los Fabulosos Cadillacs – Desapariciones – Past Imperfect, Simple and Compound
8. Maná – Cuando los ángeles lloran – Past Imperfect, Vocabulary Related to Environmental Destruction
9. Proyecto Uno – El tiburón – Preterite and Subjunctive
10. Barry Manilow – Copacabana – Imperfect Indicative Past Tense, Simple Past Perfect
11. Gente de Zona – Si no vuelves – Past Tense and Gerund
12. Gipsy Kings – Hotel California – Present, Infinitive Verbs, and Past Imperfect
13. Justo Lamas – Magdalena – Past, Imperfect and Present
14. Las Mañanitas – Las mañanitas – Past Tense
15. Jorge Drexler – Al otro lado del río – Accentual Hiatus and Past Perfect Compound
16. Ha Ash – Lo aprendí de ti – Imperfect Past Tense and Imperfect Past Subjunctive
17. Miguel Bose – Estuve a punto de – Infinitive Verbs, Preterite Tense
18. El cuarteto de nos – No se que hacer conmigo – Preterite
19. Maná – Pobre Juan – Preterite and Immigration Vocabulary
20. Bahiano – A primera vista – Preterite Indefinite [PACK]
21. Sie7e – El billete – Gerunds and Preterite [PACK]
22. Juanes – La historia de Juan – Preterite [PACK]
23. Prince Royce – Soy el mismo – Imperfect (Imperfecto del Indicativo)

Imperfect

Check more Spanish class activities here.