24. Sep - Prokrastination

It's ironic that the title is procrastination and yet I'm doing this blog entry early.

We opened the class as usual with "Meine Woche." The highlight of the week was going to Brookfield Zoo and having pizza. Also there was giant, killer broccoli.

Volunteers presented their homework, and received points for doing so, and those who were absent but did the alternate assignment for the week likewise were given credit.

Our listening comprehension this week was the new song "Prokrastination" from Mirrellativegal.

We went over gern, lieber and am liebsten again for the final time, adding onto it not only how to express preference of things (using haben), but also of activities (using these words in conjunction with a verb). We touched on idiomatic use of lieben and hassen, how while these are commonly used in English, it is odd and improper to use them quite so casually in german, e.g. "ich liebe Käse" is going a little bit overboard.

We played kahoot, and it went smashingly.

Our main activity was a dialogue: in groups of 3, the students made roleplays of social interaction where they expressed their preferences and thoughts toward each other. There was much faux drama, and hilarity ensued.

Next week we wrap up "preferences" and will be heading into comparatives, followed by superlatives.

Homework ought to be reviewing of the notes from the past two classes to prepare for an itty bitty assessment next week.

For those absent, write out (and perform next week) a 3 person dialogue wherein 3 characters discuss their own preferences using gern, lieber and am liebsten, much as we did in class. This may be talking about things or (as we did) be made about characters so that it's nice and dramatic. Please make it no less than 15 complete sentences.

Mit Vergnügen

17.Sep - Erster Schultag des Jahres

Guten Tag!

Willkommen in diesem neuen Schuljahr! This class is my favorite class, as it is the only class I teach, and accordingly it is the best (and worst) class of my entire annual repertoire.
Welcome to the 7th grade of the Danube Swabians Weekend German School!

A few notes about how class is run:

1. This blog is updated (and linked via email) weekly on either Saturday or Sunday following, depending on circumstances. Herein shall be outlined all pertinent class activities, topics covered, and most importantly, the occasional homework assignment. 
2. Homework is an infrequent occurrence, hence any given assignment is that much more important to get done. I do not accept assignments later than the 2nd week after it is assigned (or after a student returns from an absence). 
3. In-class participation is graded as "Fleiss" each semester. Participation is tracked by each student individually via a Mitmachen Tabelle that I provided; each time they answer a question or contribute to a discussion, they may tally a point for themselves for that day, with the goal being to get at least 5 marks per day. 
4. The vast majority of our work is in-class research, group projects, and creative activities. Accordingly, while we cover a great deal of material, it is less academic and more kinesthetic. Posting assignments to be done at home is challenging in that so much of what we do requires the classroom setting, so please attend as often as possible. 
5. What I have done before to encourage absentee students to keep up with the content is to share the topics covered in class via this medium and then list recommended alternative activities or assignments to be completed at home. Should these not be done by absent students, then there is no direct penalty incurred, but they lose the opportunity for participation points, leave me with little to nothing to grade their performance on, and run the very real risk of lagging behind in content. So in the name of keeping pace with the class, and helping me list non-arbitrary or fabricated grades each semester, please do the alternative assignments in the event of absence.
6. We do a great deal that requires internet access, such as interactive games and research. When I advise that a wi-fi accessible device shall be needed, please endeavor to bring one. 

That being established, here is the run of our first day: 

It all began on a dark and stormy night, many years ago... skip forward, and this past school day was bright, sunny and cool. 

We started our time together with some brief introductory activities, such as playing a name memory game by tossing a ball around in a circle; repeat process with phrases "ich heiß..." and "du heißt..." both as a warm-up and for the sake of Herr Walker's sanity going forward. 

I then performed a "getting to know the teacher" presentation all about me, my time at the school, and my family. This segued into what shall be a weekly occurrence, a presentation of "Meine Woche." 

In essence, I present a slideshow about what I did that week auf Deutsch, the children take brief notes for themselves, and then either answer my questions afterward or posit questions of their own (for Mitmachen points and for listening comprehension and speaking practice). 

As is another weekly occurrence, we then had our Hörverständnis activity. These are normally either German podcasts, performing artists, songs, or TV/movie clips that are presented with accompanying question sheets to check comprehension. This week's was "Kochen mit Kimberly" from my favorite german podcaster, Mirellativegal. 

We next went into a lesson over this week's topic, Favorites. We covered proper usage of "gern," "lieber," and "am liebsten." 

As an example activity, each student made their own questionnaires and went around the room gathering answers. I provided a basic template, e.g. "Hast du _____ oder _____ lieber?" that they completed and then asked one another. The results were presented, and hilarity ensued, especially when they were asked to illustrate these results in poster form. 

The homework for the week was as follows:

über Snuggles!

Snuggles is the blue and pink pony mascot of our classroom. 

Use your own imagination (e.g. "make it up") to answer these questions in full sentences about Snuggles and her life. 

• Was hat Snuggles gern?
• Was isst Snuggles am liebsten?
• Was spielt Snuggles am liebsten?
• Wer ist Snuggles Lieblingsperson und warum? 

All answers to this and similar assignments should be rated G to PG. 

Recommended activities for absent students
Introduce yourself to Herr Walker. Write down answers to the following questions in full-sentences auf Deutsch. 

• Wie heißt du?
• Wie heißt deine Familie?
• Was machst du am liebsten in der Schule? Und in deiner Freizeit? 
• Hast du Ponys gern? Wenn nicht, warum nicht? 
• Was hast du lieber: essen oder schlafen? 
• Isst du lieber Spinner oder Sardinen? 
• Wie schmeckt eine Mischung von Sardinen, Nutella und Zimt? Gut oder nicht gut? 

Mit Vergnügen~