A 30-day Spanish reading plan

How does the 30-day Spanish reading plan work?

The plan is built on real series from the Contos Spanish library, named by their English titles. Each day you read one chapter using the 15-minute routine: review, read twice, save the words that stopped you, sum up. Three rules hold it together:

1. One chapter a day, no more required. A1 chapters here run from 146 to 221 words.
2. Every seventh day is a reread. Going back over earlier chapters brings recent words round again before they fade, which is the repetition Paul Nation says incidental learning depends on.
3. Move up on day 22, not before. By then you will have read 18 A1 chapters and met the core vocabulary many times.

The route below is entirely free, because it uses chapters 1 and 2 of each series. Every chapter ends on a cliffhanger, so if one story grabs you, the Premium route at the end of this page lets you follow it instead.

Days 1–14: which A1 Spanish stories do you start with?

The first fortnight samples six A1 series across mystery, crime, romance, comedy and family stories. Sampling widely early on lets you find the genres you will actually want to keep reading.

Days 1 and 2 begin with the flagship mystery: Alba moves into a small flat in Madrid and hears noises from the empty flat below. The Monday Mystery follows a widow investigating small thefts in her building; Engaged by Mistake starts with a joke marriage proposal sent to the wrong Marco.

Days 15–30: how do you step up to A2?

Week 3 adds three more A1 series, including sci-fi with a household robot in Robot in the House. Then on day 21 you reread the first two chapters of The Building on Calle Sol, because on day 22 you meet the same story again, written at A2.

Retelling a story you know is the gentlest way to step up a level. Compare the start of chapter 2 at each level:

The A2 chapter 1 runs to 303 words against 175 at A1, but you already know Alba, Carmen and the noises in the night. That leaves your attention free for the new language.

What if you want to finish a whole series?

Chapters 3 onwards of every series need Contos Premium. With it, swap any two days in the plan for the rest of the story you liked most. A Premium version of the month might look like this:

• Days 1–8: all 8 A1 chapters of The Building on Calle Sol.
• Days 9–14: one complete six-chapter A1 series of your choice.
• Days 15–21: a second complete A1 series, rereading on day 21.
• Days 22–30: the A2 Building on Calle Sol, 8 chapters, with a review on day 30.

Free or Premium, check your known words at the end. Contos moves you to A2 at 500 known words; if you are not there yet, another A1 series is better practice than forcing the step. For what comes after, see how to learn Spanish by reading and what each CEFR level means.