Bonjour tout les monde,
Saturday's class shall be our only class for the next 3 weeks; 28th March and 4th April are free for Spring Break and Easter.
We covered two primary topics in class this period:
-The perfect (past tense, written)
-Tribal warfare
Two of my favorite topics!
We discussed how to form the past tense using haben or sein as a helping verb, followed by the past participle at the end of the sentence. Whether haben or sein is used depends primarily on whether the verb being put in the past is transitive (takes an object) or intransitive (takes no object). Verbs that use haben are typically transitive, and the intransitive verbs (being, location, movement) take sein.
Ich bin gerannt (I ran)
Ich habe Baseball gespielt (I played baseball)
Movement, location, or being doesn't typically take an object, so they are intransitive. Everything else is typically transitive as objects are taken, "stuff is done to things."
Our cultural unit was over tribal warfare in Iron Age Germania, namely how and why it was that there was no such unified "Germany" in those days and instead were just a gaggle of mostly hostile, insular tribes. We discussed such ideas as regional language shifts, and how geography affects lifestyle, habits, traditions, beliefs and technology. I was very impressed at how the kids were able to list reasons for tribes to grow apart or develop differently from one another without my needing to prompt them.
The day ended on a high note as we took out the garbage without any squirrel-related incidents.
Frohe Oster and schöne Frühlingspause!
Mit Vergnügen
Monday, March 23, 2015
Sunday, March 8, 2015
7.März '15 - die schönsten
Today's class period opened like any other day, with a choreographed dance routine involving 17 bengal tigers, a can of green beans, and a few hundred roman candles.
Actually no, just kidding. Frau Rill said our insurance covers neither pyrotechnics nor exotic animals, so that got vetoed outright.
Instead we did listening comprehension with "Am Besten Sein" by Juli and used this as a segue into our lesson over superlative adjectives. This was followed by an activity I'm very proud of having thought up, namely our having a school-wide election.
That's right! Those present divided into competing pairs, which coincidentally became the two boys against each other, and the two girls against each other, competing for the titles of "Die Schönste Haare" and "Der Klügste" (prettiest hair and the cleverest--they chose what to compete for themselves). They made posters, composed speeches, and then we all went from classroom to classroom to hold a debate campaign. Each class heard out the candidates and voted whom they found the most convincing.
In the end, the girls tied for prettiest hair, and a boy was declared the cleverest mostly because he had an awesome poster that was covered in feathers, and let's be honest, who doesn't like feathers?
Next week, the class will be taking a practice version of the AATG proficiency test as a sneak peak and benchmark for the test they will take for real in 8th grade, so please let me or Frau Lussem know if your child will not be present.
-Mit Vergnügen
Actually no, just kidding. Frau Rill said our insurance covers neither pyrotechnics nor exotic animals, so that got vetoed outright.
Instead we did listening comprehension with "Am Besten Sein" by Juli and used this as a segue into our lesson over superlative adjectives. This was followed by an activity I'm very proud of having thought up, namely our having a school-wide election.
That's right! Those present divided into competing pairs, which coincidentally became the two boys against each other, and the two girls against each other, competing for the titles of "Die Schönste Haare" and "Der Klügste" (prettiest hair and the cleverest--they chose what to compete for themselves). They made posters, composed speeches, and then we all went from classroom to classroom to hold a debate campaign. Each class heard out the candidates and voted whom they found the most convincing.
In the end, the girls tied for prettiest hair, and a boy was declared the cleverest mostly because he had an awesome poster that was covered in feathers, and let's be honest, who doesn't like feathers?
Next week, the class will be taking a practice version of the AATG proficiency test as a sneak peak and benchmark for the test they will take for real in 8th grade, so please let me or Frau Lussem know if your child will not be present.
-Mit Vergnügen
Saturday, February 28, 2015
28.Februar '15 - Prüfungszeit
The Day of Reckoning has come. The test has arrived!
Today we had a test: nothing fancy, just an end to our unit over comparatives and the simple past.
This took a substantial amount of time, proctoring and then going over the test, which included an essay portion as well.
We did our usual listening comprehension to start the day off, and did part 1 of the test, which we then went over as a class up until lunch.
After lunch, we did the second part, which was the short story portion (a bit more creative than an essay).
The day ended with a comparing game wherein different toys were compared in a team vs. team race.
The homework is as follows:
With the help of the handout from last week, as well as independent research, compose a poem about an ancient Germanic/nordic hero or deity. It may be a fictional one (like Siegfried from Wagner's Ring Cycle) or an authentic one (from the actual myths).
Today we had a test: nothing fancy, just an end to our unit over comparatives and the simple past.
This took a substantial amount of time, proctoring and then going over the test, which included an essay portion as well.
We did our usual listening comprehension to start the day off, and did part 1 of the test, which we then went over as a class up until lunch.
After lunch, we did the second part, which was the short story portion (a bit more creative than an essay).
The day ended with a comparing game wherein different toys were compared in a team vs. team race.
The homework is as follows:
With the help of the handout from last week, as well as independent research, compose a poem about an ancient Germanic/nordic hero or deity. It may be a fictional one (like Siegfried from Wagner's Ring Cycle) or an authentic one (from the actual myths).
- 15 lines, rhyming in some form or other (pick a poetic form and stick with it)
- Describe the character you chose, including things they have done (simple past) and comparisons to other characters as to why they are better (e.g. "Thor ist stärker als Loki!" and so on)
Saturday, February 21, 2015
21.Februar '14 - der Ritus
Syncretism was the word of the day.
For our opening act, we listened to a reading of Rumpelstilzchen from online, but there were network issues so this didn't go as well as had been hoped, i.e. we had audio only but not the intended subtitles. But in any case, we listened to this and then answered questions about the plot for a listening comprehension exercise.
Our main topic of conversation for the day was comparative Iron Age religion. We discussed the Roman pantheon and everyday state-endorsed ritualism as well as the practice of polytheistic syncretism (altering or adopting indigenous beliefs for the sake of cultural assimilation); this was contrasted to the Germanic pantheon shared with the Nordic regions, and their customs in this religion.
After lunch, we reviewed comparative adjectives and the simple past, because next week there is a quiz over both before we move on to another unit.
Be sure to study the handouts and examples over both comparative adjective formation/phrases and the simple past to be prepared for next time.
Mit Vergnügen
For our opening act, we listened to a reading of Rumpelstilzchen from online, but there were network issues so this didn't go as well as had been hoped, i.e. we had audio only but not the intended subtitles. But in any case, we listened to this and then answered questions about the plot for a listening comprehension exercise.
Our main topic of conversation for the day was comparative Iron Age religion. We discussed the Roman pantheon and everyday state-endorsed ritualism as well as the practice of polytheistic syncretism (altering or adopting indigenous beliefs for the sake of cultural assimilation); this was contrasted to the Germanic pantheon shared with the Nordic regions, and their customs in this religion.
After lunch, we reviewed comparative adjectives and the simple past, because next week there is a quiz over both before we move on to another unit.
Be sure to study the handouts and examples over both comparative adjective formation/phrases and the simple past to be prepared for next time.
Mit Vergnügen
Saturday, February 14, 2015
14.Februar '15 - Eichhörnchenangriff
Today began like any other day, and by that I mean it was nothing like any other day because the heat was broken in the school's section of the building, so most classes relocated to the big hall, and our class relocated to the office and spent the duration of the day sitting around the conference table. It was an interesting change of pace, all told. Having everyone around one big table was actually very handy; I can see why King Arthur did it.
We did listening comprehension with "Nichts Bringt Mich Runter" by Ich & Ich, picked out the verbs in their various forms and set them all into the simple past.
Following this we added onto the simple past notesheet with some helpful hints and formulae for guessing what an unfamiliar verb's form in this tense might be.
Also, we had a tea break.
After lunch, we played a game involving spontaneous utterance of adjectives followed by the tossing of a projectile to which the catcher of which had to respond with the comparative adjective form, e.g. "Stark!" (TOSS!) (CATCH!) "Stärker!"
As a reward to those in attendance for having soldiered through the derailment of the morning and the accordingly somewhat altered lesson, we ended the day with a game of cards (auf Deutsch) the prize for which was Valentine's Day chocolate and animal crackers.
And now, the homework: 1 page (typed, 12 pt font, single-spaced!) essay over the following
We did listening comprehension with "Nichts Bringt Mich Runter" by Ich & Ich, picked out the verbs in their various forms and set them all into the simple past.
Following this we added onto the simple past notesheet with some helpful hints and formulae for guessing what an unfamiliar verb's form in this tense might be.
Also, we had a tea break.
After lunch, we played a game involving spontaneous utterance of adjectives followed by the tossing of a projectile to which the catcher of which had to respond with the comparative adjective form, e.g. "Stark!" (TOSS!) (CATCH!) "Stärker!"
As a reward to those in attendance for having soldiered through the derailment of the morning and the accordingly somewhat altered lesson, we ended the day with a game of cards (auf Deutsch) the prize for which was Valentine's Day chocolate and animal crackers.
And now, the homework: 1 page (typed, 12 pt font, single-spaced!) essay over the following
- You are a stranger in a strange land! Either a Roman legionnaire who just visited a Germanic village, or a German tribesman who just visited Rome for the first time; either way, now you are home recounting to your friends your time spent there.
- Using your knowledge of the differences between the two Iron Age cultures, describe what you saw from the perspective of your character.
- Focus on the differences in the areas we have gone over (areas you have handouts on), such as: clothes, food, homes, technology, jobs, grooming, personal, and shopping habits.
- Since you're doing comparisons, there should be plenty of chances to use comparatives
Mit Vergnügen
Sunday, February 8, 2015
7.Februar '15 - Free Elephant with a Purchase of Equal Value
Guten Tag!
We had a rather small class, as many were out either performing in musical events or practicing for a play, but still we had a good time.
First we presented the homework, the for-sale ads from those who did the assignment, and then we went over a previous listening comprehension exercise, "Ein Elefant für dich" by Wir Sind Helden, this time with the aim of highlighting all the adjectives from the lyrics and then putting them into their comparative forms.
We then each took a Roman off the wall and individually came up with a list of adjectives describing them. The Romans were then placed on the board, their adjectives listed out, and then we had a class discussion comparing them, e.g. both "Julia" and "Aurelius" were listed as being "stark," so we discussed who was "stärker" and why. This lasted a while, and then after the break we went around comparing ourselves to one another as well.
Finally, we made back stories for our Romans using the simple past.
Those who were not present in class today, please make an ad (last week's homework) as well as a short back story, about 10 sentences long, about the Roman or German you made and placed on the wall earlier. These should be in the simple past, simple descriptions of how they were as a person, what they would do (job, hobbies, etc.) and how they met their end (we had a statistically anomalous number of bear attacks for ours).
Mit Vergnügen
We had a rather small class, as many were out either performing in musical events or practicing for a play, but still we had a good time.
First we presented the homework, the for-sale ads from those who did the assignment, and then we went over a previous listening comprehension exercise, "Ein Elefant für dich" by Wir Sind Helden, this time with the aim of highlighting all the adjectives from the lyrics and then putting them into their comparative forms.
We then each took a Roman off the wall and individually came up with a list of adjectives describing them. The Romans were then placed on the board, their adjectives listed out, and then we had a class discussion comparing them, e.g. both "Julia" and "Aurelius" were listed as being "stark," so we discussed who was "stärker" and why. This lasted a while, and then after the break we went around comparing ourselves to one another as well.
Finally, we made back stories for our Romans using the simple past.
Those who were not present in class today, please make an ad (last week's homework) as well as a short back story, about 10 sentences long, about the Roman or German you made and placed on the wall earlier. These should be in the simple past, simple descriptions of how they were as a person, what they would do (job, hobbies, etc.) and how they met their end (we had a statistically anomalous number of bear attacks for ours).
Mit Vergnügen
Saturday, January 31, 2015
31.Jan'15 - 10 Denarii für den Esel aber keine einzige Münze mehr!
The alternate title for today was going to be "Wirtschaftwunder" but that wasn't near as funny.
Today we focused on economics! No, I didn't spend 3 hours playing Monopoly with them (no one could pay me enough to play Monopoly), I promise.
We began with the song "Millionär" by Die Prinzen, not only going through the lyrics for listening comprehension, but also dividing up in pairs and highlighting all the adjectives in the song, and then putting them into their comparitive forms as a class, e.g. "groß" to "größer" and "reich" to "reicher" etc.
As planned, we then did a comparison on the board between the Imperial Roman Empire and Iron Age Germania, with each student coming up, selecting an adjective from the board and putting it (in comparitive form) in the column they thought appropriate, for Rome or for Germany. We then put these all into sentences on a handout that was labelled, "Wir denken" and "Wir wissen." Their opinions expressed on the board were all recorded under "Wir denken."
We then discussed briefly how reality may differ or be similar to the opinions they wrote on the board, and these went under "Wir wissen" on the handout. Mostly, the kids were spot on! "Rome war größer/bevölkerter/reicher/stärker als alter Deutschland" is indeed right; there was some discussion on the points regarding "religiöser" and "erfolgreicher" (what does it mean to be successful? We managed to avoid getting into 'trans-national synchretism versus tribal polytheism' thankfully!)
After the break, we went through and filled out/discussed a handout over how economics worked in Imperial Rome and in Eisenzeit Deutschland/Magna Germania.
When the day was done, we cleaned up, and spent the final 10 minutes playing basketball, which is becoming a thing on days when the weather is nice.
And now the Hausaufgabe:
Create an advertisement!
Today we focused on economics! No, I didn't spend 3 hours playing Monopoly with them (no one could pay me enough to play Monopoly), I promise.
We began with the song "Millionär" by Die Prinzen, not only going through the lyrics for listening comprehension, but also dividing up in pairs and highlighting all the adjectives in the song, and then putting them into their comparitive forms as a class, e.g. "groß" to "größer" and "reich" to "reicher" etc.
As planned, we then did a comparison on the board between the Imperial Roman Empire and Iron Age Germania, with each student coming up, selecting an adjective from the board and putting it (in comparitive form) in the column they thought appropriate, for Rome or for Germany. We then put these all into sentences on a handout that was labelled, "Wir denken" and "Wir wissen." Their opinions expressed on the board were all recorded under "Wir denken."
We then discussed briefly how reality may differ or be similar to the opinions they wrote on the board, and these went under "Wir wissen" on the handout. Mostly, the kids were spot on! "Rome war größer/bevölkerter/reicher/stärker als alter Deutschland" is indeed right; there was some discussion on the points regarding "religiöser" and "erfolgreicher" (what does it mean to be successful? We managed to avoid getting into 'trans-national synchretism versus tribal polytheism' thankfully!)
After the break, we went through and filled out/discussed a handout over how economics worked in Imperial Rome and in Eisenzeit Deutschland/Magna Germania.
When the day was done, we cleaned up, and spent the final 10 minutes playing basketball, which is becoming a thing on days when the weather is nice.
And now the Hausaufgabe:
Create an advertisement!
- You are a Roman city-dwelling citizen back in the 1st century, looking to sell something of yours
- It must be something they would've actually had, e.g. clothes, jewelry, animals, weaponry/armor, carts, chariots, slaves, land, property, etc.
- In a half-page (at least) describe the item you wish to sell, why it is an appealing item (e.g. "Dieser Esel frisst nicht viel und arbeitet gut den ganzen Tag!")
- List acceptable forms of payment, which we went over in class (either a specific price in Roman coins, or what items you will accept in barter)
- Give contact info of some kind, e.g. your name and where you live (NO PHONE NUMBERS OR EMAIL ADDRESSES! This is 2000 years ago!)
- Make it pretty
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