Articles of clothing and the fat dormouse

After a little review with a fun little song about body parts, we dived right in to learning articles of clothing and described what we were wearing and identified articles of clothing on a worksheet. 

The first video this week is a traditional children's song we may learn in class. It is about a Hampelmann (Jumping Jack) getting dressed in the morning. Students should recognize most of the clothing words. 

Then we read our first story about Bobo Siebenschläfer, a sweet little dormouse who ends almost all of his little adventures fast asleep. Bobo is a popular German character for young children and the pictures and simple language make it especially easy for children to follow along. This is the same story we read and talked about in class.



 And since we don't have much experience with dormice here in the United States ("der Siebenschläfer" may be their first word they learned in German before learning in English!), a short video in English about this cute little rodent. 

Did you know the fat dormouse, or edible dormouse, got it's name because Roman soldiers caught them and ate them as snacks when marching? 

And finally, another episode of TroTro. In this episode, TroTro is getting dressed and students should recognize many of the words for the clothes he puts on since he puts on most of his wardrobe!

Have a great week!

German: The book about me and fun with animals

This week in German, the kids put together what we've learned so far to write a book about themselves. They did a great job, worked diligently and were eager to read their books to the class when we were done so we got to know each other a little better!

This video is just for fun. It is a clip from a longer German cartoon, but there is no language in the video. It's about children exploring who they are and playing with language. Even if it isn't the "sheep" their parents speak!

To review the words for body parts, we started class of with a game of "Wer bin ich?" ("Who am I?") I described different animals in German and the class guessed what it was. They were very enthusiastic! This educational show starts off with the same game. "Ich kenne ein Tier . . . " means "I know an animal. . . " The children describe an animal and the artist draws what they're describing, getting it wrong most of the time. The language is kind of fast, but they use a lot of the vocabulary we have gone over in class. My children love the series, but understanding what is going on doesn't seem to be that important to them. Every child is different! After the guessing game, children introduce us to a little calf with a tummy ache. Then there is a clip of a cow who lost her spots, but there is no language in it so it is easy to understand!

And since the main part of our lesson was witing, 'Das Buch über mich' (The book about me), here is 'Das Lied über mich.' (The song about me.) She sings, "There are songs about dogs wau wau wau. There are songs about cats, miau miau miau. There's just one song that isn't yet, and that is the song about me. I have hands -- even two -- and hair -- more than three -- I have a round belly and I also have a nose. I have left and right a leg and a heart that's not of stone and now I'll wave to you, hello you . . . If I can get my mp3 to cooperate, we'll play this song in class, too. 

Here are two quick online activities to practice describing hair and eyes. Remember to click "start" or you will just stare at a blank page!

In this one, you add hair styles to the picture and the program describes the hair to you: What does your hair look like
This one is a little more difficult. Read the decription and choose the correct person. Drag them over to the gray dot or it will count it as a wrong answer and the balloon pops. Concentrate on the hair color and eye color and you should be able to figure it out. Who is that?

And we're almost all the way through Silent Night! Did you know that it is considered an intangible cultural treasure by UNESCO in Austria? We have almost gone through the entire song and have only the last two lines (which are really the same line twice). The children are doing well tackling those hard words so I'm hoping they'll be ready by talent night!

And in this week' Tro Tro, he is looking for Teddy.

German conjugation and body parts

The semester is half way through and the children have learned a lot! They're working on counting to twenty, know basic introductions and can talk about their name and where they're from. They've learned their colors and were able to understand a simple story about what happened to a bear who wandered across the border from Austria. They understand simple commands and we are continuing to work on speaking more and building on their very basic vocabulary.

This week, we took a close look at the English verb 'to come' and the German verb 'kommen.' Students looked closely at the conjugation of the German and were able to see the pattern for conjugating regular verbs in German. We filled them out in their charts. Just as a reminder, the blank charts in their notebooks are NOT homework. We will fill them out together in class. I looked for some videos on verb conjugation for a little review, but all of them are geared toward much older students and a lot of them are rather dry at that. In this episode of German in Three Minutes, Laura shares and important phrase (how to ask if someone speaks English) and she talks about the conjugation of the verb sprechen in the three forms it is used in the video.



Then we practiced words for body parts with a litte Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (Foot, in German) and a game of Simon says. They colored their monsters according to the directions I gave them in German and did quite well! Here's Kermit der Frosch and Professor Hastig introducing the main body parts:


And Herr Antrim teaching body parts with his Mr. Potato Head doll. Listen carefully, he also introduces a few verbs associated with the parts (ears hear, eyes see, etc.)


And some activities to practice:

Body part tic tac toe.
Fire at the robot's body parts as they are called out.
This one is a little harder. It requires reading, which we have only practiced a little. If your child is ready for a challenge or you can read a litte German, have fun putting together different robots.

And finally, this week's Tro Tro. This week, Tro Tro washes up for breakfast. Listen as he mentions some of the body parts we learned in class!


Next week, we're going to take all we've learned so far this semester to write a small book about ourselves.

Bis dann!

Review, Counting to 100 and Silent Night

My students this year are doing an amazing job learning to count! Almost everyone has learned to count to ten so I briefly went over the numbers to twenty. We will keep praticing in class, but if your child is ready to move on, German in Three Minutes has a nice overview of counting to 100. It's a little tricky at first, but once you get used to the numbers being "turned around" and saying one-and-twenty instead of twenty-one, it is pretty easy.


And we won't get to this year, but once you get past the millions, I think German is much easier than English. At least I can count much higher (well, if it were actually possible to count that high!) Where English goes million, billion, trilion, German goes Million, Milliard, Billion, Billiard . . . So one trillion is also a much larger number in German!

In class, we mostly did a little review. We reviewed numbers, commands and the nouns we've learned. We practiced the next line of Silent Night which they are getting pretty well, though they're reluctant to sing. Next week's line is the most difficult in the song, so we may work on it for two weeks. This is the song all together just so they can listen and get used to the sounds and practice what we've learned so far.


We also made a Bingo board and reviewd vocabulary with a few rounds of vocabulary Bingo. Next week, we're going to start looking at German verbs a little more as well as starting to learn parts of the body. That's why we finished off with a little Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes (Foot, in German). Watch Herr Antrim play until he falls over!



And since we've talked quite a bit about animals, a nice song about how God created them all.



And because it seems like it just won't stop raining, this week's Tro Tro is about the little donkey splashing in puddles.



Auf Wiedersehen!

Counting to Ten in German

This week, we reviewed colors and introduced counting to ten. And what better way than by sorting and counting M&M's? We played a vocabulary game with the flyswatters and everyone got pretty excited about that. And we finished up with a short story about Bruno the Bear, a brown bear that wandered across the German border and was shot by hunters. The children did really well and were very quick answering questions about the story.

The only real homework is coloring their sorting sheet. I sent home a word search with the words from the story. I just want them to try to find the words. Next time, I may do fewer words so it isn't so overwhelming. Word searches in a foreign language are hard. I'm just trying to give them some different ways to practice the words they hear in class, but don't want them to get frustrated! I told them I will have some German stickers next week for homework, but they only need to bring it back. It is OK if it isn't completed! They also have the first line of silent night. And of course, there are these videos to watch!

First up: Counting to ten with German in Three Minutes.


This just sets the numbers to music to help with retention.


And a strange but catchy little song. They sing:

"How much? How much? How much does that cost?"
"It costs 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1."
"Great! I'll take it!"

And a link to some online counting activities. You can click on the numbers to hear them in German, listen to a counting song, and match numbers to the right number word. There are also printable activities if you prefer.

And finally, some more Tro Tro! In this episode, Tro Tro doesn't want to share his toys. Children should be able to understand the colors they are arguing over at the beginning and may be able to a few words as he keeps calling out the toys he wants back.


Happy viewing!

Learning colors with children's literature:Brown Bear, Brown Bear in German

Children's literature is an egaging way to learn a language, and Eric Carle's Brown Bear, Brown Bear is an obvious choice for learning colors and animals. We read it in class and by the time we had finished our exercises for the day, the children were able to call out the colors and animal words at the end.

Unfortunately, while it is readily available online in both English and Spanish, I couldn't find a German version. Last night, I finally had some time to go ahead and read it myself. I added in the animal sounds. Did you know that animals don't sound the same in every language? Most are similar, but I think the frog's German accent is the most fun!



Here is the link to the videos I posted yesterday on learning colors and saying thank you. And here is last week's link on learning the alphabet and introducing yourself. .

Have a great week!

Learning colors

The children seem to be getting used to listening to me speak predominantly in German. The first class period is always interesting with most of the class looking at me like they're not quite sure if they're in the right place . . . or if maybe I'm from another planet. But I saw a little more enthusiasm this week, the kids were able to follow simple instructions with little or no cues from me and are already answering my questions in a mix of English and the German words they have learned.

I sent home a sheet of flashcards. These are to hang in their roms if you like to help reinforce new words. If you would like more for different rooms and are the kind of family that would love to label every item in your home, I would love to send home a set each week for different rooms in the house. Just let me know!

Sentences/questions we have practiced so far in class:

Wie heißen Sie? Ich heiße ... (What is your name? My name is . . . )
Woher kommen Sie? Ich komme aus . . .  (Where are you from? I am from . . . )
Ich sehe . . . (I see . . .)

We have also been working on several commands such as 'Stand up', 'sit down,' 'turn around', 'come to the front', 'go to the (wall, corner, door, closet, etc).  

And we practice saying "Thank you!" and "Your'e welcome!" as I pass out candy at the end of class. Here is a quick lesson on please and thank you and goes more in depth with different ways to use these very important manners.

 

And for class yesterday, we read Brauner Bär, Was siehst denn du? (Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What do you see?). We also practiced colors and filled out a sheet for their binders. They will need this for later homework as we learn body parts, clothing, etc. At the end of class, they were able to call out the colors and animals, so are learning very quickly!

This video goes over the main colors in German. This was the only one I found that actually said the names of the objects it showed so your children can practice learning by listening and watching. 


This is actually an advertisement for Cobra paints. I'm sharing it for the nice German accent and because it is pretty easy to follow.  I like sharing snippets of German as it is actually spoken so students can get used to the sounds and listening at a normal speaking pace. It is a quick tutorial on mixing paints and your children should recognize the color words. If they already know the color wheel, they might hear him mention primary, secondary and tertiary colors (the words are very similar to English). And you watch the artist mix the colors while he says them. One word he says over and over is "rein" (sounds like the river Rhein). That just means "pure." A "reines rot" is therefore a "pure red."


 I have another video I want to share, but I need some quiet in this crazy house of mine to make it so hopefully you will get a note tomorrow that it is ready!

For some fun, here is Tro Tro. If your children found my English introduction last week helpful, let me know and I will make one for this one and future ones. Happy viewing!

Next week, we're going to start going over numbers, so for the young man in class who asked last week and this week if we were going to learn to count, yes! We're finally getting to that, too!

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!

Celebrating Karneval

Last week was Karneval! We celebrated by singing a little song with a dance, learning a little about what Karneval and Lent is about and closed by making masks.

Students had a short homework assignment to color masks according to the directions.

Hei wir feiern Fasching is a fairly repetitive song and uses some of the verbs we learned the first day of class (hop and turn around). The songs I found on YouTube cut off the end, but the main part of the song the students will remember is there.

In the song we sung, it ended by mentioning the Polonaisen Schritt. This is a Polonaise ballet dance. If students watch closely, they should recognize the main elements of the dance we did, though it was a far cry from anything related to ballet! (hop on one leg, turn to your partner and dance in a circle).

And for some additonal cultural education, this is a clip from the actual Polonaise in native costume. It is a traditional Polish dance. It is danced for Karneval and also for the Polish equivalent of the prom 100 days before exams.

And, to close, another TroTro because everyone seems to love him. This episode has nothing to do with Karneval, but he does put on a mask. And he wants to be a Tiger, one of the things we imagined ourselves to be in the song we learned.

~Frau Hanley

Learning superlatives

Today in class, we introduced a new morning song. I want to open our classes with a song from now one. We will practice the same one several times to help learn them before moving on to a new one. Our first one was a very simple good morning song with four verbs to practice (nod, wave, smile and clap). I was not able to find it on YouTube, however, it is available on amazon for 99 cents.


Actually, most of the songs we sing in class are available through amazon so if you are interested in making your children an album of the songs we've sung, let me know and I will send you the links. Or stay tuned. I will compile them eventually.

To practice superlatives, we played hot and cold. One student left the room while another hid a little binder ring somewhere in plain view. The class then directed the other student toward the ring by saying "hotter," "hottest," "colder" and "coldest" (in German, of course).

And the video I sent out was of Daniel Tiger celebrating his own birthday party. This one is a little longer and may be a little more difficult for students to understand. There are a lot of words in it we've gone over in class, but I think it is good for students to hear the language spoken by native speakers as often as possible. It help build listening skills, will help with pronunciation later and helps them learn to look for context clues. This only helps if they're enjoying, it however! If they're frustrated with it, just turn it off. These videos are supposed to be a fun way to hear the language!

Happy viewing!

Welcome to the new semester!

As most of you know, I had a baby over the winter break. Well, actually, during the last class period of last semester! I delivered a happy, healthy, 7 pound 14 ounce baby boy. And wow does he keep me occupied (or sleeping!) during the evening hours when I'm used to getting things done!

Anyway, that's why I'm a little behind. Fortunately, Asa loves his new swing so I am going to try to get caught back up and keep up with this blog through the rest of the semester.

The first day back to class happened to fall on my birthday, so we celebrated my birthday in class with all the typical birthday vocabulary. Students tried their best to say Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag (how Germans say Happy Birthday). It is a mouthful for anyone, but they did well. They had a much easier time with the Happy Birthday song. Except for the "dear," Germans sing it in English.

This week actually includes two episodes of TroTro because I couldn't find the one I wanted as a single episode. In the first one, TroTro tries to get Nana's attention and his father says that dancing is the way to go. 

In the second episode, TroTro gets invited to Nana's birthday party. Students should hear a lot of the vocabulary we went over in class.

Happy viewing!


~Frau Hanley