Lesson 1 Activities - Introduction to German
Begin speaking German today! As we begin our journey through the German language, it is important to begin with some basics. Below are four activities reviewing what we have learned in class. This lesson follows along with the progression of information in class. You may feel free to work ahead. Make sure to ask any questions as you move through this lesson. You can send me a message through the contact form on the Instructor page. The quiz at the end of each individual activity will help you prepare for your final unit test in class. Your information will be graded and the answers sent to your e-mail address, so you know what areas you need to work on and which areas you will be successful at. The activities cover the following topics: Grüße (Greetings), die Zahlen (numbers), du, ihr, and Sie (the forms of you), and lastly Persönliche Fragen (personal questions).
Objectives:
1. Students will identify basic German greetings and distinguish them based on regional usage.
2. Students will count from zero to twenty in numerical order using correct German pronunciation.
3. Students will differentiate when to address a speaker as du and ihr (familiar you) versus Sie (unfamiliar you) in a contextual situation provided.
4. Students will formulate complete answers to personal questions while engaged in a conversation using correct pronunciation.
Objectives:
1. Students will identify basic German greetings and distinguish them based on regional usage.
2. Students will count from zero to twenty in numerical order using correct German pronunciation.
3. Students will differentiate when to address a speaker as du and ihr (familiar you) versus Sie (unfamiliar you) in a contextual situation provided.
4. Students will formulate complete answers to personal questions while engaged in a conversation using correct pronunciation.
Resources
Activity 1 - Grüße
You can say hello and goodbye to any German today! The most basic way we interact with others is through greetings. It is part of our everyday conversation and is the foundation of learning a language. Below is a listing of ways to say hello and ways to say goodbye. The video below will help you practice pronunciation. Please view the video at least twice and practice saying the words and phrases with Katja. Some phrases she uses, we do not cover in class. Many of these are more slang. We also cover some colloquial greetings that are regional. All the information you need is here on this page (as well as what we have covered in class). It is important to remember that Germans capitalize all nouns, which means you must capitalize the words for day, morning, night, etc.
How to say "hello"
Guten Morgen - good morning Guten Tag - good day Guten Abend - good evening Hallo - hello Servus - Austrian way of saying hello Grüß Gott - used in Southern Germany (greetings to God) Grüß Gott - used in Southern Germany, informal (greetings to you) Moin Moin - used in Northwestern Germany, version of good morning There are also abbreviated ways of saying the first three greetings: Guten Morgen - Morgen Guten Tag - Tag Guten Abend - n`Abend |
How to say "goodbye"
Auf Wiedersehen - until I see you again - most formal Gute Nacht - good night Tschüss - bye Tschau - ciao (Italian way to say goodbye) Bis dann - until then Bis bald - see you soon You can abbreviate Auf Wiedersehen to simply Wiedersehen |
Games for Greetings |
Before taking your quiz, try the games below. Each button will take you to a different game that practices greetings.
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Activity 1 Quiz
Click on the link below and fill in the Google Quiz. Please then submit your answers. Your quiz will automatically be graded and your results will be sent to your e-mail. There are 14 questions worth 1 point each. Greetings Quiz |
Activity 2 - Die Zahlen
In the beginning it is very important to start with a foundation in a new language. A good place to start are the numbers, mainly from 0 - 20. Later in the next chapter we will learn our other numbers. Below is a video explaining the numbers, including the very important pronunciation. The speaker repeats the words twice, so listen the first time and the second time through say it with him. Watch the video a few times. Practice saying the numbers aloud, so you get use to forming the words. With videos, you can always pause and repeat, especially if there is a particular point you are struggling with. Once you feel secure with the numbers, complete the numbers test below.
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Activity 2 Quiz
Click on the link below and fill in the Google Quiz. Please then submit your answers. Your quiz will automatically be graded and your results will be sent to your e-mail. There are a total of 21 questions worth 1 point each. die Zahlen Quiz |
Games for Numbers |
The buttons below will take you to various games to help you practice your numbers.
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Activity 3 - du, ihr, and Sie
There are three forms of you in German. Du and ihr are both considered "informal", while Sie is the "formal". The difference between du and ihr is that du is used in the singular, while ihr is used with more than one person. I like to think of du as - you, while ihr as - y'all (or rather all y'all). It is often difficult for English speakers to understand the differences between du and ihr, because we often do not specify if you is talking to one or more than one person. However, it is imperative that you understand that there is a difference for when you address one person, versus more than one person. Du (along with ihr) and Sie are both used in very specific situations. Below is a list of when you use du or Sie. Remember that Sie will always be capitalized, regardless of where it is in a sentence or question.
Situations when you use du:
Freund (friend) family blue collar worker pet prayer military member of equal rank child |
Situations when you use ihr:
You use ihr in the exact same situations as du, however ihr is the plural form Freunde (friends) family blue collar workers pets prayers military members of equal rank children |
Situations when you use Sie
adults office workers military members of unequal rank Bekannte (acquaintances) doctors, dentists, teachers and other professionals |
Situations using du and Sie |
Click on the buttons below. Each is a conversation using du and Sie, helping to further illustrate when you use du and when you use Sie.
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Activity 3 Quiz
Click on the link below and fill in the answer on the Google Quiz. Please submit your answers when finished. Your quiz will automatically be graded and your results will be sent to your e-mail. There are 15 total questions worth 1 point each. du, ihr, Sie Quiz |
Activity 4 - Persönliche Fragen
Once we have started with a basic foundation in German, it is time to start your first conversations! We are going to begin with some very basic questions and answers that provide us some information about who you are. There are other possible answers to these questions, which we have covered in class. Here is a simple list of the questions with responses. Practice pronunciation by clicking on the buttons below and watching the video provided. In class we will be writing introductory letters and working on conversations. Your end of unit test will also include a conversation with me, where I pose several questions and expect full answer responses.
Fragen (Questions).
1. Wie heißt du? What is your name? 2. Wie alt bist du? How old are you? 3. Woher kommst du? Where do you come from? 4. Wo wohnst du? Where do you live? 5. Wie geht´s? How are you? |
Antworte (Responses)
1. Ich heiße (name). My name is .... 2. Ich bin (age) Jahre alt. I am (age) years old. 3. Ich komme aus (Holt, Kearney, Missouri). I come from .... 4. Ich wohne in (Holt, Kearney). I live in ... 5. gut (good), schlecht (bad), wunderbar (wonderful), so lala (so so) |
Activity 4 Quiz
Click on the link below and fill in the answer on the Google Quiz. Please submit your answers when finished. Your quiz will be graded and your results will be sent to your e-mail. Personal Questions |
Lesson 1 - Summary
Through this lesson we were introduced to the basic foundation of German. We can say hello and goodbye to different people throughout different German speaking countries using region specific greetings. We can count from 0 to 20 using great pronunciation. Now we can identify the different ways to address someone with the correct form of you. Finally, we can hold our first real conversation in German! It is amazing to think that in this very short time, you went from knowing virtually nothing about the language to being able to write a paragraph and hold a conversation! Das ist echt FANTASTISCH! In the next lesson, I will be introducing the topic of: Die Familie!
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