A la platja, la meva filla vol jugar a la sorra i nedar al mar.

A la platja sets the scene first: At the beach / On the beach. Catalan often puts a place expression at the beginning when it gives the context for the whole sentence.

The comma shows that this opening phrase is separate from the main statement. In English, this is similar to writing At the beach, my daughter wants....

It can match either one in English, depending on context. Catalan a is broader than English at or on.

So a la platja can be understood as:

• at the beach
• on the beach

English chooses the most natural option for the situation, but Catalan uses a here.

In Catalan, possessives like meu / meva are very often used with the definite article:

• la meva filla = my daughter
• el meu fill = my son

So the article is normal and expected here. Saying just meva filla is much less neutral and can sound literary, emphatic, or incomplete depending on context.

Vol is the third-person singular present of voler, which means to want.

So:

• jo vull = I want
• tu vols = you want
• ell/ella vol = he/she wants

Here, la meva filla vol means my daughter wants.

After voler, Catalan normally uses the infinitive directly:

• vol jugar = wants to play
• vol nedar = wants to swim

English uses to before the second verb, but Catalan does not need an extra word here. So vol jugar is the normal pattern, not vol a jugar.

Because one vol can govern both verbs:

la meva filla vol jugar a la sorra i nedar al mar

This means:

• she wants to play in the sand
• and to swim in the sea

Catalan, like English, does not need to repeat the verb if the same subject and same idea continue. You could repeat it for emphasis, but it is unnecessary:

• la meva filla vol jugar a la sorra i vol nedar al mar

There is a difference in nuance.

• jugar a la sorra usually means play on/in the sand
• jugar amb la sorra means play with the sand

So the sentence focuses more on the place or setting of the activity, not the sand as a material or toy.

Because a + el contracts to al in Catalan.

So:

• a + el mar → al mar

But a + la does not contract:

• a la platja
• a la sorra

This is why the sentence has a la platja, a la sorra, but al mar.

Yes, mar is usually masculine in standard everyday Catalan:

• el mar
• al mar

But feminine la mar also exists in some regional varieties and in poetic or literary style.

So in this sentence, al mar is the normal standard choice.

No. That is an important point.

In this sentence, a does not always translate as English to. Depending on the context, Catalan a can correspond to:

• at
• on
• in
• to

For example:

• a la platja = at/on the beach
• a la sorra = in/on the sand
• al mar = in the sea

So it is better not to think of a as only meaning to.

Yes, Catalan word order is flexible. The original sentence puts the place first for emphasis or scene-setting.

If you remove that opening phrase, the rest still works:

• La meva filla vol jugar a la sorra i nedar al mar.

Starting with A la platja makes the sentence feel more like: As for being at the beach...

A simple approximation is:

• filla ≈ FEE-ya or FEEL-ya, depending on accent
• platja ≈ PLAH-ja

A couple of useful pronunciation points:

• ll in filla is a palatal sound. In many accents it sounds close to y in yes, though not exactly the same everywhere.
• tj in platja sounds like the j sound in judge.

So la meva filla and platja may not sound exactly the way an English speaker first expects from the spelling.