Audio Books: Reading and Listening Stories for A Level

French, Spanish & German

Suitable for
all boards

A creative original story split into 15 mini chapters per pack!

Diverse characters and intriguing storylines tie in with topics of the new specification for fun and useful learning.

This resource ticks so many boxes... Students will find the story gripping and will read/listen for leisure at the same time as prepping for their exams a win-win situation in my opinion

I Rodriguez, Head of Languages & Peer Reviewer

Listening tracks

✮ Tailored support or challenge!

Two speeds provided per pack:

  • AS/A Level Y1 – regular and slow
  • A Level Y2 – regular and fast
  • A Level G+T – regular and challenging

Regular based on the examined speed.

Written and recorded by native speakers – students will learn new vocabulary, grammar and expressions while developing their reading and listening comprehension, translation and pronunciation skills.

Students’ pack

Per chapter:

  • A text of 250-350 words in the target language
  • A glossary of key difficult words to support reading and listening
  • A notes box to write additional vocab, queries and opinions, and to keep track of expressions to reuse
  • ‘Did you know?’ information in the target language to boost knowledge
Flexible format:
  • Individual chapters in A4
  • The entire story in an A5 booklet
  • Recordings for every chapter in two formats

Teacher’s pack

  • 4-6 comprehension questions and a translation task per chapter to consolidate learning
  • A versatile bank of ideas for additional differentiation, extension, debate and homework tasks
  • Answers to all set activities

Ideal for classwork, extensions, homework or independent study!

What do teachers say about this resource? (10272)

This is a first-class resource, that achieves its purpose, notably to provide an accessible, entertaining and informative short booklet for students of A Level Year 1 to read. I like the way that the author has covered all 6 of the A Level Year 1 topics in a very natural progression. I like the style and content of the resource, which provides students who have recently completed GCSE German, the opportunity to access the A Level syllabus in a cleverly-pitched short story about family lives. The educational value lies, linguistically, in providing a resource that simulates the curiosity of the reader to understand a level and quantity of German language that is considerably in advance of GCSE. At the same time, the reader is constantly informed about aspects of cultural and social life in the German Federal Republic, which includes, of course, the challenges of multi-kulti relationships.

J Turner, Languages Consultant & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (10449)

This resource ticks so many boxes. All topics from the specification covered, which is useful. I found myself intrigued and engrossed by the story, the story being of an illegal immigrant in Europe. I think the students will find the story gripping too and will read/listen for leisure at the same time as prepping for their exams – a win-win situation in my opinion. This resource will be fantastic for homework tasks/independent learning/extension tasks for higher ability students. It will make them think as well as work on their French (developing their cultural knowledge alongside their vocabulary) and on the course’s content.

I Rodriguez, Head of Languages & Peer Reviewer

Really good and original. I particularly liked the idea of telling a whole story around the different themes and subthemes.

M Prandini, Native French Tutor & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (9997)

This resource will be fantastic for homework tasks/independent learning/extension tasks for higher ability students. It will grip their imagination and make them work on their French as well as the course’s content. This resource ticks so many boxes. All topics from the specification covered, which is useful. I found myself intrigued and engrossed by the story and wanted to read more about the characters – will we know what happens next between Daniel and Mathieu? I think the students will find the story captivating too and will read/listen for leisure at the same time as prepping for their exams – a win-win situation in my opinion.

I Rodriguez, Head of Languages & Peer Reviewer

I found this an interesting and accessible resource and think the subject matter will be something which will appeal to the target age group, something which is not always the case with traditional text book material. As such I would expect it to be a popular support resource for teachers to employ with their classes.

I found the balance of topics covered within the story attractive. While pursuing the narrative thread of Kévin's story, many exam-appropriate themes are interwoven and some useful contemporary references made. The inclusion of information about political demonstrations in recent years becomes more appealing and interesting, as well as potentially more memorable when set in a context. I found the addition of more challenging vocabulary a positive aspect and the glossary a good idea to support learners. Students won't always take the time to check a word they don't know, but to have it provided on the page supports their understanding while not breaking the flow of concentration, and encourages them to broaden their active vocabulary.

I could see this resource serving a useful purpose either as an occasional tool for whole-class use or as self-access materials. It could also be the springboard to further research by learners - which is vital for the current specifications at this level. Students might for instance want to look into examples of UNESCO world heritage sites in northern France, based on some of the attractions described in the text.

There is theme-appropriate content here to support and encourage students who are working towards qualifications with either of these boards - for example, social change, artistic and musical culture, modern media, political issues, as well as useful key vocabulary for those studying a film.

A very promising resource, and useful that an answer key is provided for those using it for self-study. This is exactly what students could do with now during lockdown.

H Scott Murphy, Senior Examiner & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (10452)

Great resource with lots of challenging words and exercises. Great for revising the main A level topics and also for reading and listening practice.

I particularly like the use of challenging grammar structures (imperfect subjunctive), pluperferfet and advanced and colloquial language, such as idiomatic expressions, like “no dar un palo al agua” and also how the story relates so well and brings to life some of the main A level topics, such as racism, inmigration etc.

It offers students the opportunity to learn new vocabulary in context and it offers great opportunity to practice answering comprehension questions for the reading exam and also translating from Spanish to English.

It matches [the spec] perfectly well the A level topics, it will also suit the Gifted and talented of A level year 1.

J Ermina, MFL Teacher & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (10451)

A great resource for Y12s especially for the topic of Influence of idols. It helps with understanding of the topic, increasing vocabulary, reading and comprehensions skills. I think the layout is well organised with the notes section at the bottom and the vocabulary on each page. Very well as it incorporates the subject matter, it is more up to date than anything in the Kerboodle books and helps with comprehension and even summarising which can be done at the end.

O Casper de Ruiz, Spanish A Level Lecturer & Peer Reviewer

What do teachers say about this resource? (10453)

I think this format - presenting topic content via the vehicle of a story - is innovative and represents a fresh approach. There is a lot of interesting detail and the language used is varied and challenging, containing frequent examples of idiomatic language. I like the fact that the story manages to embrace a number of themes - not just the obvious one of immigration, but also related issues like integration, language learning, applying for nationality and furthermore some topics beyond that immediate scope [Wende, DDR, history of Berlin, German political parties]

H Scott Murphy, Senior Examiner & Peer Reviewer

It is a well-thought-out resource and you can clearly see that the author must have put a lot of effort and time into this. The story is split up into 15 chapters and cleverly addresses the issues of immigration, integration and racism, which are all subtopics for A Level on Edexcel and AQA....‘Did you know boxes’ with interesting facts will particularly help students to prepare and learn specific facts for their speaking exam. As part of their stimulus card discussion in the oral, students should be able to give some interesting facts and e.g. the fact on Chapter 1 can be used for the ‘immigration’ topic.

M Davies, German Teacher & Peer Reviewer

This resource constitutes a great deal of work that comes from the heart of one who has watched and experienced the refugee crisis, either first-hand or else from reports received from others. I was impressed by how the author has sought to inform on so many aspects of integration, from people trafficking, overwhelming numbers at the borders, Angela Merkel’s pledge in 2015, the camps, the application for citizenship and language tests, to the problems of right-wing extremism, the gentrification of traditional Turkish parts of Berlin such as Kreuzberg and Turkey’s ongoing problems with entering the EU.

J Turner, Languages Consultant & Peer Reviewer