Introductions and the alphabet

The first day of class went well, except for me totally forgetting to teach the students the first line of Silent Night, which we will sing for the end of the semester Taent Show. Fortunately, it is a very simple line and probably easier to learn than the two questions we practiced ("What is your name?" and "Where are you from?") We will catch that up next week!

I like to assign videos for homework because it gives students the opportunity to hear German spoken by native speakers and to practice a little each day even if no one else in their family speaks German. The only other homework they had was to color their Schultuete paper and bring it back so we can add it to their notebooks.

After warming up by following simpe instructions, we learned how to ask someone what their name is. This is a nice three minute lesson on introductions.



We also worked on the alphabet a little. They should have a sheet in their binder that has the alphabet and an approximate pronunciation guide. This is my favorite alphabet song on YouTube because it goes through the alphabet at a nice pace and the letters actually fit in the tune.

"Wunderbar" means "wonderful."
"Das ist nett." means "That is nice."




This video goes through each letter at a speaking pace after singing the alphabet. It also has a German word to go with each so your children can learn some vocabulary as well as hear the pronunciation of each letter more clearly.




I try to share a little culture with the children at least once a month. On the first day of school (especially on the first day of kindergarten), German families give their children a "Schultuete" or "school cone." The first video is just to give an idea of the size and how they are presented to the children. The second video shows the kinds of things typically found in a Schultuete.






And for a little fun, Tro Tro! He was very popular with my class last year. This one is probably the easiest to follow without knowing any German, but I'll start off with a short video I made last year that goes over some of the vocabulary used and gives your children some phrases to listen for.




And the cartoon! Enjoy!



As always, if you have any questions, let me know!