Seite 10

Lesen und Schreiben

Skills in reading German can progress more quickly than listening, speaking, or writing. But reading in a second language requires strategies. When reading in their native language, people do not actually read many of the words. Rather, the brain automatically fills in and makes connections.

In a second language, people typically try to read every word. This leads to breakdown of comprehension, because the brain gets stuck on unknown words and resists moving past them. Do not look up the meaning of words and attempt to translate. It takes up a lot of time, is frustrating, and is not necessary.

  1. Pre-reading:
    1. Predict what the topic or theme will be in the reading. For example, for Kapitel 5 the reading will predictably deal with travel and transportation, among other things.
    2. Use previous knowledge about the topic. People do not learn German in a vacuum, so if the topic is about weather, readers will already have some idea of what a weather map looks like and what kinds of information it gives.
    3. Reflect briefly on vocabulary and structures presented in the chapter.
  2. Skim:
    1. Skim through the text without reading. Do not read from left to right, skim from top to bottom.
    2. Locate clear indicators of meaning such as numbers (money, addresses, quantities, distances, etc.), proper names (cities, peoples names, etc.), cognates, images, and illustrations.
    3. Identify words in German you have already learned.
    4. Think about what you understand up to this point.
  3. Scan:
    1. Read the content questions and make sure you understand them. Here you may consider looking up words.
    2. Identify key words in the content questions. For example, if the question would be "Wo wohnt Andrea in Deutschland?", then the subject "Andrea" and verb "wohnen" are key words.
    3. Use the key words to scan through and locate the information in the text.

In most cases, complete sentences (with subject and verb) will be required for the answers. For example, if the question is "Wann wurde Abraham Lincoln geboren", then do not answer with just the date, but rather: "Abraham Lincoln wurde 1809 geboren."

Übung 5-10a Information at a glance. Work with a partner. Follow the directions and fill in the information in the spaces below.
  1. Predict: The text will have something to do with a topic in this chapter. Think about the topic before beginning.
  2. Observe: What kind of text is this? Where would you expect to find this text? What kinds of images are shown?
  3. Predict: What kinds of information would you expect to find in this kind of text?
  4. Scan: What do the numbers mean? For example, at the top right: "nur buchbar vom 5.01 - 28.01.07". If you do not know, then just move on to the next numbers.
  5. Scan: Proper names, such as names of people, names of places, names of institutions, etc.
  6. Scan: What words are already known to you or are borrowed from English? Sometimes German will mix an English word with a German word, such as "Traumjob" (dream job).

1. Topic?
2. Text Type
3. Predict Info
 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 
4. Numbers
5. Proper Names
6. Known Words
 

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

Übung 5-10b. Inhaltsfragen. Complete the exercise in BOLT.
  1. Wann kann man eine Reise buchen?
    1. im Mai
    2. in einer Woche
    3. im Januar
    4. acht Tage lang
  2. Wo findet man mehr Informationen über die Reisen?
    1. bei Aldi
    2. in dem Reisemagazin
    3. im Reisebüo
    4. im Prospekt
  3. Wie lange dauert (dauern = "to last") die Reise nach Mallorca?
    1. eine Woche
    2. zwei Wochen
    3. fünf Tage
    4. acht Tage
  4. Was kostet die Schiffsreise, wenn man zum Schiff mit dem Bus fährt?
    1. € 698
    2. € 599
    3. € 99
    4. € 500
  5. Wie reist man nach Mallorca?
    1. mit dem Auto
    2. mit der Bahn
    3. mit dem Bus
    4. mit dem Flugzeug
  6. Was bedeutet (bedeuten = "to mean") "Qualität ganz oben -- Preis ganz unten"?
    1. Die Preisen in der Liste sind garantiert.
    2. Die Reisen sind erster Klasse und preiswert.
    3. Die Kosten sind nur für die Reisen und nicht für Hotel und Essen.
    4. Alle Reisen sind in Südeuropa.
  7. In welcher Region ist die Reise in den USA?
    1. im Westen
    2. im Norden
    3. im Osten
    4. im Süden

Übung 5-10c Die Deutschen machen gerne Urlaub: Watch the video in the following link and complete the exercises:

Die Deutschen machen gerne Urlaub
Quiz im BOLT.

part 1 Label the images with the correct German words: Flughafen, Gepäck, Postkarten, Skiurlaub, Sonnenbrille.

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part 2 Inhaltsfragen.

  1. Wie heißen die Moderatoren?
  2. Was wollen die Moderatoren wissen?
  3. Wie viele Wochen Urlaub haben die Arbeiter in Deutschland?
  4. Was wollen die Leute im Urlaub entdecken?
  5. Wo machen die Deutschen am liebsten Urlaub?
  6. Welchen Urlaubsort in Deutschland besuchen Nina und David?
  7. Was machen die Leute gern in den Bergen?
  8. Welchen Wintersport probieren Nina und David?
  9. Wohin will David in Urlaub reisen?

How to Write a Composition in German

If you follow the rules, it is not very difficult.
  • Rule #1: Do NOT write what you want to write. Write only what you CAN write. Start by doing a brief review of the handouts and textbook material. Remind yourself of what words and sentences you have worked on in class. Do not start by focusing primarily on the topic. You can bend the topic so that it fits with known structures.

  • Rule #2: Do NOT translate from English to German. Even when using a good online translator or dictionary, translating almost always produces gobbledy gook. If you have a native German or someone with more advanced German write for you, that will be obvious, constitutes cheating, and no credit will be given. However, you may have someone at a higher level check your work.

  • Rule #3: Composition is a construction of known elements into a whole. Go through materials that are known to be correct German, such as handouts, the textbook, or other materials. Lift entire sentences from the material and arrange them so that there is connected meaning. Some minor adjustments, such as using a different object or verb, may be necessary to create connections, but it is remarkable how easy it can be to build a composition just by copying sentences in German.

Important: The goal of composition assignments is to bring as many of the topics of a chapter as possible together in one context. Therefore, compositions contribute significantly to the course grade.

All essay assignments must be submitted in an MS-Word document. No other format is acceptable.
Essays will be submitted to the designated folders on BOLT under "assignments".

5-10d. Composition Assignment

  1. Topics for compositions deal with the overarching theme of the relevant chapter.
  2. Review topics and structures in the chapter and make a checklist items that may be useful in constructing your composition, such as the one below:

    • invitations
    • negotiate duties
    • where someone comes from, is going, and works
    • using various means of transportation to go from one place to another
    • "giving" in the broadest sense of the word
    • using conjunctions to relate ideas or concepts in various ways
    • vacation and travel
    • expressing likes, dislikes, and indifference in various forms
    • expressing belonging or ownership
    • plans and planning

  3. Collect sentences that could be integrated in a cohesive composition. See Rule #3 above.
  4. Grading:
    • 300 words with minimal errors and thorough integration of chapter topics: A / A-
    • 275-300 words with minimal errors and good integration of chapter topics: B+ / B / B-
    • 250-275 words with minimal errors and adequate integration of chapter topics: C+ / C / C-
    • fewer than 250 words: 0

Composition Topics

These are suggestions (choose only one). You may create your own topic. It is required only to apply topics and structures presented in the chapter. At this point, you also need to keep everything in the present or future tenses.
  1. Construct a dialogue: You and your friends are planning a trip to Europe. There are a number of disagreements, but in the end you agree on where to go, what means of transportation to use, what activities to pursue, what sites to visit, reasons for going to certain places and doing certain things, people like or do not like, etc.

  2. You are taking time off for a couple of days to visit the cities of Berlin and Hamburg. Christmas is approaching, so you are going to make this a shopping trip. Describe what you want / should / would like to buy for whom, how you plan to get around from city to city, and in the cities how to get around from store to store. What are the reasons for your purchases? What likes and dislikes guide your gift buying? What else will you do besides shop? Make up things you do whenever you visit Hamburg and Berlin. (You may wish to do some internet research on the cities.)

  3. Write a long email to a friend, inviting her or him to go on a trip with you. Why should your friend go with you and what do you do whenever you go on such a trip? Begin the email with the standard German saluation Liebe Maria or Lieber Robert and close with the salutation Mit freundlichen Grüßen and your name.