English has one word for am and Spanish has two, so Spanish makes you choose where English never asks. Twenty-four cards, a quiz in three tiers and four workshop activities give you the choice as a question you can say out loud — who or what, against how or where — instead of a rule you would have to unlearn later.
Two English sentences. I am Ana. I am tired. The same little word — am — is doing both jobs, and English never asks you to notice.
The two verbs have names: ser, which gives you soy, eres and es, and estar, which gives you estoy, estás and está. Here is the whole choice in one line. SER answers who or what something is — your name, where you are from, what you are like. ESTAR answers how something is right now, or where it is. You do not have to guess: say the question out loud first, and the verb chooses itself.
Two things people get wrong
⚠️People often think…
Ser is for things that last forever and estar is for things that change.
That shortcut is taught a lot and it breaks almost at once. Soy estudiante — I am a student — uses ser, and nobody is a student forever. Estoy en casa uses estar, and your house is not going anywhere. Use the questions instead: ser answers WHO or WHAT, estar answers HOW or WHERE. Those two never let you down, and you will not have to unlearn them later.
Who or what → ser. How or where → estar.
⚠️People often think…
If the words after it are the same, it does not matter much which verb you pick.
It can change the whole meaning. Estoy aburrido means I am bored. Soy aburrido means I am boring. Same word after it — aburrido — and the verb in front decides whether you are describing your afternoon or describing yourself. Spanish speakers hear the difference instantly, and it is not a small one.
Estoy aburrido = bored. Soy aburrido = boring.
Ask the question, then pick the verb
1Watch one
I am from Illinois. Soy or estoy?
Say the question this sentence answers. It answers: where am I FROM?
Where you are from is part of WHO you are, not where you happen to be standing.
Who or what → ser. So the verb is soy.
Careful: Estoy en Illinois is also correct Spanish — but it means something else. It means I am in Illinois right now.
Soy de Illinois. ✓ And notice that both verbs were possible — the question you were answering is what decided it.
2Do one with me
Fill each blank with soy or estoy.
____ Luis. (my name — who I am)
____ cansado. (how I feel today)
____ en la escuela. (where I am)
💬One sentence, then you move on
Soy estudiante uses ser, but nobody is a student forever. Why does the permanent-and-temporary rule not work?
3Try one
You want to tell someone you are bored right now. Write the two words.
I want a hint first
Bored is a feeling, and it is about today. Feelings answer HOW, and how takes estar.
💬Last one — then you’re done here
English uses am for both jobs and nobody gets confused. So why does Spanish bother with two verbs?
Where this goes
Where this lives
Introducing yourself, saying how your day is going, saying where anything is. These two verbs turn up in more Spanish sentences than any others you will ever learn, which is why they are worth getting right early.
What this feeds
Next room: who, where, when and why. The question words themselves — and the verbs that end in -er and -ir, which work the same way the -ar ones already do.
Write two sentences about yourself: one with soy and one with estoy. Then say which question each one answers.
One card at a time — tap “Show me” to check yourself, then Next. Start at Foundation; when those feel easy, climb.
Helpful Hints
🧭 The unit in one line
English has one am; Spanish has ser and estar → ser answers WHO or WHAT (name, origin, role, what someone is like, color, the time) → estar answers HOW right now or WHERE (feelings, locations) → your age takes tener, neither of them → estoy aburrido is bored, soy aburrido is boring.
Who or what → ser. How or where → estar. Say the question first.
🔑 The one idea
English uses one word, am, for two different jobs, and never makes you notice which one you are doing. Spanish uses two verbs and makes you choose every time. The way to choose is not to guess how long something lasts — it is to say out loud what question the sentence answers. Who or what something IS takes ser. How something is right now, or where it is, takes estar. Spanish is not asking you to think anything new; it is asking you to say out loud a difference you already understood.
⚠️ Traps to avoid
Ser is NOT permanent and estar is NOT temporary. Soy estudiante and Son las tres both break that rule.
Estoy Ana is wrong. A name answers WHO, so it takes ser: Soy Ana.
Soy bien is not Spanish. How you are takes estar: Estoy bien.
Your age takes neither one — Tengo nueve años, never Soy nueve años.
Estoy aburrido means bored. Soy aburrido means boring. Choose carefully.
¿Cómo eres? and ¿Cómo estás? differ by one letter and ask two different things.
Soy de Illinois is where you are FROM. Estoy en Illinois is where you are NOW.
📐 Which verb, and why
What you are saying
Question it answers
Verb
Example
a name
who?
ser
Soy Ana
where you are from
who?
ser
Soy de Perú
a job or a role
what?
ser
Soy estudiante
what someone is like
what?
ser
Es alta
the time
what?
ser
Son las tres
a feeling
how now?
estar
Estoy cansado
where something is
where?
estar
Está en la mesa
your age
how many years?
tener
Tengo nueve años
🎯 How you will be asked
“Ser or estar?” — with the sentence given and the verb blank.
“Why is Estoy Ana wrong?”
“What is the difference between estoy aburrido and soy aburrido?”
“Answer ¿Cómo estás? and then ¿Cómo eres?” — two different answers.
“Say how old you are.” — and they are watching for tener.
✅ Before the test, can you…
Say the two questions that pick between ser and estar?
Give soy, eres, es and estoy, estás, está without looking?
Name two sentences where the permanent-and-temporary rule gives the wrong answer?
Introduce yourself with your name, where you are from and how you are today?
Say what estoy aburrido and soy aburrido each mean?
Give your age with the right verb?
📚 Go to the sources
These open another website and need the internet. Look up ser and then estar in the first two and compare the example sentences — you will see the two jobs straight away, without anybody explaining them.
Look back at anything you missed — the hint that appeared is exactly what to reread tonight.
How sure did you feel?
Workshop
Send fourteen sentences to ser or estar by the question they answer, put a first meeting back in order and watch both verbs at work, label the four questions each verb owns, then talk a friend out of the permanent-and-temporary rule.
Your practice never leaves this device. There is no account and no sign-in. Your work is saved in this browser only, and you can erase it whenever you want.
Your practice record — saved on this device
This is your record of the module on screen — it stays here and goes nowhere. Independent means you got it right on the first tap; supported means you got it after the explain-and-retry, or marked ‘I had it’ on a revealed answer. Both count, and neither is a grade. If your teacher asks, copy the row or show them this screen.
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Topic
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Level
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Independent
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Supported
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Hints used
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Cards studied
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Lab
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Traps met
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Explained in own words
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Confidence
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The answer key is for a teacher: it prints only from here, for the unit on screen. Print the study packet prints the study pages and a blank quiz — never the answers.