Els meus apunts són al quadern petit que sempre porto a la motxilla.

Apunts usually means notes, especially class notes or study notes.

A useful warning for English speakers: Catalan notes often means grades/marks, not notebook notes. So:

• apunts = notes you write down
• notes = grades

So els meus apunts is my notes in the sense of written notes.

Because Catalan normally uses the definite article with possessives:

• el meu llibre = my book
• la meva motxilla = my backpack
• els meus apunts = my notes

This is different from English, which normally says just my notes without the.

So els meus apunts is the normal Catalan pattern.

Because the subject is plural:

• els meus apunts = my notes

Since apunts is plural, the verb must also be plural:

• és = is
• són = are

So Els meus apunts són... means My notes are...

This is a very common question because English speakers often learn the ser / estar distinction early.

In Catalan, ser can be used to indicate location in a neutral, straightforward way, especially when you are simply identifying where something is. So Els meus apunts són al quadern petit... is fine.

You may also hear estar in many real-life contexts, especially in speech, when the speaker is thinking about the notes as being currently placed somewhere. But són is perfectly normal here.

So the short version is:

• són = a normal Catalan way to say where the notes are
• estan = also possible in many contexts, but with a slightly different feel

Al is a contraction of:

• a + el = al

So:

• al quadern = a el quadern = in/at the notebook

Catalan does this contraction automatically, just like:

• del = de + el

Because in Catalan, adjectives usually come after the noun:

• quadern petit = small notebook
• motxilla blava = blue backpack
• casa gran = big house

Putting the adjective before the noun is possible sometimes, but it is less neutral and can sound more literary, emphatic, or stylistically marked.

So quadern petit is the normal everyday order.

Here que means that or which in a relative clause.

The phrase:

• que sempre porto a la motxilla

describes el quadern petit.

So the structure is:

• al quadern petit = in the small notebook
• que sempre porto a la motxilla = that I always carry in the backpack

In other words, que refers to quadern, not to apunts.

Because Catalan often uses the definite article instead of a possessive when the owner is already obvious from context.

Here, since the speaker says porto = I carry, it is easy to understand that the backpack is theirs. So la motxilla is enough.

Catalan does this a lot with things closely connected to the speaker or subject:

• M’he rentat les mans = I washed my hands
• Porto el mòbil a la butxaca = I carry my phone in my pocket

You could say la meva motxilla, but that would sound more explicit and might add emphasis or contrast.

Because Catalan often uses a where English uses in.

So:

• porto el quadern a la motxilla

literally looks like I carry the notebook at/to the backpack, but idiomatically it means I carry the notebook in the backpack.

If you want to be extra explicit about inside, Catalan can also use expressions like:

• dins la motxilla
• dins de la motxilla

But a la motxilla is very natural.

Here sempre comes before the verb:

• que sempre porto...

This is a very common position for adverbs like sempre, mai, sovint, ja, etc.

So:

• sempre porto = I always carry

You may sometimes see adverbs moved for emphasis, but sempre porto is the most neutral and natural order here.

Porto comes from portar, which often means to carry, to take with you, or to wear/have on you, depending on context.

For example:

• Porto un llibre = I’m carrying a book
• Porto ulleres = I wear glasses
• Porto les claus a la bossa = I carry the keys in my bag

So in this sentence, porto a la motxilla means something like I carry in my backpack / I keep in my backpack.

The accent in són helps mark the stressed vowel and also distinguishes it from other forms such as son.

Most importantly for a learner:

• són = they are

So the accent is part of the correct spelling of the verb form.