Andorra
Grades 5+
The Cabinet of the Seven Keys…
No, that isn’t a Harry Potter book or an Indiana Jones film, although the name may sound like one.
The Cabinet of the Seven Keys is a mysterious cabinet named for the seven keys required to open it. The keys represent the seven church parishes of Andorra, a small country of about 80,000 people. Andorra is nestled in the Pyrenees Mountains, which separate France and Spain.
In earlier times, the leader of each parish would have one key. All seven had to be inserted at once. That way, all of the parish leaders had to agree on what they were about to do, since the cabinet contained the papers needed to run the country. Today, the cabinet contains a collection of documents and archive items dating as far back as the 1300s. It is a treasure trove of history and insight into Andorra’s past.
The cabinet is well-guarded in a room within an old stone house called the Casa de la Vall, or House of the Valley. Built in 1580, it served as the seat of Andorra’s Parliament. Now, the Casa is a national museum.
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Step out of the museum, and you are in the Old Quarter, at the heart of Andorra la Vella, the country’s capital. It is a small, charming city with narrow streets and alleys and quaint shops. Like to ski or snowboard? Go a short way out of the capital, and you are surrounded by ski slopes. Grandvalira is one of Europe’s most famous ski resorts. It has over 200 kilometers of ski and snowboarding runs, with slopes for all level of skiers.
Andorra Activity 1
a) Are SAM the MAN pronouns singular, plural, or both?
b) How can you tell which they are?
c) Determine if the underlined words are determiners or pronouns.
d) Decide if the underlined words are singular or plural.
1. All seven keys had to be inserted at once.
2. That way, all of the parish leaders had to agree on what they were about to do.
3. No leader could run the country on their own.
4. Grandvalira is one of Europe’s most famous ski resorts.
5. It has slopes for all levels of skiers.