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.

All Spanish Teachers Community members (log in here) have access to these Spanish song activities and hundreds of ready-made lesson plans and resources for the full school year!

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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)

Check more Spanish class activities here.