In this post: Learn about Career Day in Spanish, including vocabulary on jobs and professions. Plus our favorite Spanish books and songs about careers. Post contains affiliate links.
If your kids are anything like mine, they might have several different careers in mind for the future. Maybe they want to be a construction worker by day, an artist by night, and a baker on the weekend. Or, perhaps their dream job changes from day to day.
Can you really blame them, though? There certainly are a lot of exciting possibilities!
Career Day is the perfect opportunity to learn about different careers and how to talk about them in Spanish.
Schools often invite parents and professionals in for a Career Day. National Career Development Month is also observed throughout the month of November. This is a great time for kids to learn about the professions that interest them.
At Llamitas Spanish, we love to support homeschool families by providing fun thematic ideas for learning Spanish. We also believe that living out those themes in real life is a great way for kids to apply their learning.
That’s why we’re sharing these Career Day Spanish resources with you! So get ready to learn all about careers in Spanish and keep looking forward to the future.
Table of Contents
How Do You Say “Career” in Spanish?
The most direct translation of “career” in Spanish is la carrera. But another common way to say this is la profesión.
Of course, there are many ways to talk about someone’s career or job in Spanish. Check out some of these career-related Spanish vocabulary words for example:
| Spanish | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| carrera | kah-rreh-rah | career |
| profesión | proh-feh-syohn | profession |
| empleo | ehm-pleh-oh | employment, job |
| trabajo | trah-bah-hoh | work, job |
| profesional | proh-feh-syoh-nahl | professional |
| ~de carrera | deh kah-rreh-rah | professional ____, career (adjective) |
Kids love to talk about what they want to be when they grow up. To ask and answer the question of “What do you want to be when you’re older?” you can use the following:
Question: ¿Qué quieres ser tú cuando seas mayor?
Answer: Quiero ser ________ cuando sea mayor.
Or
Question: ¿Qué quieres ser tú cuando seas grande?
Answer: Quiero ser _______ cuando sea grande.
Here are some other fun Spanish expressions related to careers:
| Spanish | Pronunciation | English Translation |
| mujer de carrera | moo-hehr deh kah-rreh-rah | career woman |
| hombre de carrera | ohm-breh deh kah-rreh-rah | career man |
| feria del empleo | feh-ryah dehl ehm-pleh-oh | career fair |
| cambio de profesión | kahm-byoh deh proh-feh-syohn | career switch |
| promoción | proh-moh-syohn | promotion |
Related post: Community Helpers Spanish Lessons
Jobs and Careers List in Spanish
You’ll likely notice when looking at various careers in Spanish that they can be either masculine or feminine. This depends on the gender of the person the word refers to. Generally, nouns will have an -o or -a ending, but there are exceptions you’ll want to pay close attention to.
We’ve got you covered with our complete list of careers in Spanish, in alphabetical order and with both the masculine and feminine forms:
| Masculine | Feminine | English Translation |
| el abogado | la abogada | lawyer |
| el actor | la actriz | actor / actress |
| el arqueólogo | la arqueóloga | archaeologist |
| el arquitecto | la arquitecta | architect |
| el artista | la artista | artist |
| el astronauta | la astronauta | astronaut |
| el atleta | la atleta | athlete |
| el bailarín | la bailarína | dancer |
| el bibliotecario | la bibliotecaria | librarian |
| el bombero | la bombera | firefighter |
| el camarero | la camarera | waiter / waitress |
| el cantante | la cantante | singer |
| el cartero | la cartera | mail carrier |
| el científico | la científica | scientist |
| el cocinero | la cocinera | cook |
| el constructor | la constructora | builder |
| el contador | la contadora | accountant |
| el dentista | la dentista | dentist |
| el doctor | la doctora | doctor |
| el enfermero | la enfermera | nurse |
| el entrenador | la entrenadora | coach |
| el escritor | la escritora | writer |
| el fontanero | la fontanera | plumber |
| el fotógrafo | la fotógrafa | photographer |
| el granjero | la granjera | farmer |
| el ingeniero | la ingeniera | engineer |
| el juez | la jueza | judge |
| el maestro | la maestra | teacher |
| el mecánico | la mecánica | mechanic |
| el modelo | la modelo | model |
| el músico | la músico | musician |
| el niñero | la niñera | nanny / babysitter |
| el panadero | la panadera | baker |
| el paramédico | la paramédica | paramedic |
| el pastor | la pastora | church pastor / minister |
| el peluquero | la peluquera | hairdresser |
| el periodista | la periodista | journalist / reporter |
| el piloto | la piloto | pilot |
| el policía | la policía | police officer |
| el programador | la programadora | computer programmer |
| el terapeuta | la terapeuta | therapist / counselor |
| el veterinario | la veterinaria | veterinarian |
Spanish Books about Careers
Reading books about careers together is an excellent way to enrich your thematic Spanish lesson! With engaging illustrations, your kids will be able to further explore careers that pique their interest and improve their Spanish!
Here are some of our favorite Spanish children’s books about careers:
- ¡Mi comunidad! / My Community! by 123 Andrés – This lovely bilingual book will teach your kids all about community helpers. Plus it will get them thinking about how they can help others too. It even includes two songs in Spanish and English to enjoy!
- 123 Andrés (Author)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
- 32 Pages – 09/15/2021 (Publication Date) – Scholastic Teaching Resources (Publisher)
- Habbi Habbi Book of Careers (Moms) – Kids can learn all about the different jobs working moms might have with this interactive bilingual book. From banking to running the home, each page includes loads of vocabulary words related to the pictured career, too.
- Habbi Habbi Book of Careers (Dads) – Just like the Book of Careers featuring moms, this interactive book shows men working in a variety of fields representative of real dads. Careers include working as a nurse, a mayor, an astronaut, or take care of their children full-time.
- ¿Qué quieres ser de mayor? by Catherine Barr – With charming illustrations and descriptions, this picture book introduces kids to a wide variety of careers, some familiar and some that may even be new to you!
- Hardcover Book
- Barr, Catherine (Author)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
- 32 Pages – 04/16/2024 (Publication Date) – NubeOcho (Publisher)
- Trabajadores de la comunidad series from PowerKids Press – This book series teaches kids about the importance of different careers around the community. Stories like Mi visita al dentista, Visita al veterinario, and El bibliotecario nos lee cuentos will have them look at familiar settings like the dentist’s office or library in a new way.
- McKinnon, Elaine (Author)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
- 24 Pages – 12/30/2016 (Publication Date) – Powerkids Pr (Publisher)
- Yasmin series by Saadia Faruqi – Fully translated into Spanish. This series follows a young girl on new adventures like cooking up her own recipe for a party and even caring for animals at the zoo. Books like Yasmin la chef, Yasmin la maestra, and Yasmin la guardiana del zoo are sure to be a hit with your kids!
- Faruqi, Saadia (Author)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
- 24 Pages – 01/01/2020 (Publication Date) – Picture Window Books (Publisher)
- Curious George and the Firefighters / Jorge el curioso y los bomberos by Margret and H.A. Rey – Kids will love reading along in Spanish and English. George gets a tour of a fire station, rides along to a fire, and of course makes a mess of things in between!
- Rey, H. A. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 24 Pages – 02/10/2015 (Publication Date) – Clarion Books (Publisher)
- Buenas noches, construcción. Buenas noches, diversión. by Sherri Duskey Rinker – The bestselling picture book Goodnight, Goodnight, Construction Site is also available in Spanish. It is perfect for any future construction workers who can’t get enough of bulldozers, excavators, and other hardworking machines.
- Hardcover Book
- Rinker, Sherri Duskey (Author)
- Spanish (Publication Language)
- 32 Pages – 03/05/2019 (Publication Date) – Chronicle Books (Publisher)
Spanish YouTube Songs about Careers
Music is an essential part of our curricula at Llamitas Spanish! We love to support parents with the best resources we can find. With music, you can have fun singing along or just listening for some additional Spanish input.
Check out some of these fun Spanish songs about careers on YouTube:
- ¿Qué quieres ser cuando seas grande? by Moonbug Kids
- Las profesiones by Doremi
- LOS OFICIOS by AglaE
- Las profesiones by Rockalingua
- Profesiones by BASHO & FRIENDS
Homeschool Spanish Curriculum Levels
Looking for an easy and fun way to teach your kids Spanish at home? Our academically robust, open & go curriculum series at Llamitas Spanish is perfect for families raising bilingual and biliterate children.
Our Level 1 Spanish Curriculum is where you’ll find our unit on community helpers. In addition there are 11 other topics geared toward young learners! From exploring the ocean to the farm, outer space, and more!
Related post: Preschool and Kindergarten Spanish Lessons
Lydia is a freelance parenting and education writer. She previously taught English as a second language and enjoys sharing her love of language learning with her children.