Willkommen!
Welcome to the wonderful world of German. The goal of this class is not only to help you learn the German language, but also to help you gain or further an appreciation for the German-speaking countries and cultures. This will also help you gain new perspectives about the world as a whole and about your place and responsibility in this global society. By the end of this year, you should be able to have simple conversations with a native speaker and to read and write simple texts. All of this, however, is dependent on your attitude and diligence in the classroom. German is not an easy language to learn, but it is very interesting and can be fun, if you make the effort to grasp the concepts presented in class. The following is a list of my expectations for the year.
Expectations
1. Respect: This is the most important aspect of this class. There needs to be mutual
respect between all participants of this class both in teacher-student and
student-student interactions. Do not be inconsiderate of other people. Listen when others
are speaking, treat others the way you want to be treated, and don’t make snide comments.
Please raise your hand if you have a comment or question. Remain in your seat unless
otherwise directed. Do not go through my cupboards and drawers, take things from my desk,
or sit at my desk.
2. Participate: This is probably the second most important aspect of this class. It is
close to impossible to learn a language as a passive bystander. It is important to ask
questions when you have them and I hope you will. This not only helps you, but it
helps those who have the same or similar questions. It also helps me to know how to
adjust my presentation of material to help with better comprehension. This does NOT
mean that you must always answer and ask questions. The greatest indicator of
participation for me is when a student is paying attention to the one speaking, whether
it be me as the teacher or one of the other students. Be engaged in the class and not in
your social life.
3. Be prepared for class each day: This includes being on time, completing
assignments BEFORE class, having your book, and having a pen or pencil and paper.
4. Take Risks: This doesn’t mean that you need to jump out of a plane, although it may
feel like that at sometimes and you may prefer that option. I understand that it is
difficult to speak in front of other people, especially your peers. However, it is crucial
to learning a language. You don’t remember when you first started speaking, but I can
guarantee that you didn’t speak in perfect complete sentences at first. You will
actually be able to speak German better than you spoke your first language in the
beginning if you are willing to get out of your comfort zone and make some mistakes.
The great thing about mistakes is our capacity to learn from them. The more mistakes
you are willing to make at the beginning will result in faster learning and
comprehension.
Classroom Policies
1. Homework is due the next class period after it is assignedunless otherwise specified.
I do not penalize for homework with wrong answers, however, I do mark off for work
that is not complete. I award full credit on homework if it is handed in when it is due.
Anytime up to the next class period, I will accept homework for 1/2 credit. Any
homework received after this time will not be accepted unless previous arrangements
have already been made. There is no excuse for not handing in homework because of
absence or sports. If you will miss class, either get the homework from me before you
leave school, the following day, or check my website for the homework assignment.
2. There will be a test or a quiz every Friday. This means every other week there will be
a test or quiz. There may also be small quizzes given at different times.
3. Students may make-up tests and quizzes for reasons of absence or illness. They may
also retake a test or quiz, if they desire, anytime before the end of the quarter, in
which the test or quiz was given. All retakes will occur after school and must be
prearranged. No retakes will be allowed on vocabulary quizzes or on vocabulary
sections of tests. You must meet with me once after school to discuss the material
on the test or quiz before a retake will be allowed.
4. There is no time limit on tests and quizzes. If students do not finish they are able to
finish them after school or during a free period. Students who would like to take
their tests or quizzes in their resource room are allowed to do so.
5. Cheating on tests and quizzes will not be tolerated and will result in a zero with no
option to retake the test or quiz. It will also result in a detention with me after school.
6. If students are going to miss a class(es) and know this ahead of time, they must make
arrangements with me to get the homework and to schedule any necessary make-ups.
7. Students should remain in their seats at all times unless in-class activities require them
to be out of their seats. If students need to get out of their seats for other reasons, they
need to ask me first.
8. Students will ONLY be able to go to the bathroom when they are doing individual or
group work. Only one person is allowed out of the classroom at one time. Students
should not ask to go to the bathroom during instruction.
9. No objectionable language will be tolerated in class. This includes major curse words
such as those beginning with F, and S as well as those expletives that are offensive to
a person’s religious beliefs (ie. JC, GD, etc.). You get one warning and then you get
a pink slip.
Grading
Final grades will be broken up into the following percentages:
Tests 35%
Quizzes 20%
Homework 20%
Projects 15%
Participation 10%
Students will be required to keep and maintain a binder that will include any handouts, homework, tests, and quizzes that have been given to them. There will also be a section for a journal. The binders will be collected the week before the end of each quarter and will receive a test grade.
Calendar
This year we are going to create a strong understanding of basic German language and of German culture. This will be accomplished by learning new concepts and putting them into action, as well as witnessing them in action through video, audio, and text. We will complete certain projects each quarter that will provide a means for implementing what is being learned and the opportunity to explore culture and one’s own personal identity.
Introduction: Beginnen wir!
In this introductory chapter, we will cover necessary material that will allow each student to begin conversing in German. Greetings, telling time, talking about the weather, and asking and answering simple questions will be covered. Letters, numbers, colors, clothing, school supplies, days and months, and simple adjectives will be the focus of vocabulary. In this section as well as all of the following chapters, there will be a short video to watch and listening exercises that will reinforce the material that is covered and allow each student to develop auditory skills. Students will also be asked to accomplish certain speaking, reading and writing tasks, which will help develop understanding of the language in all four areas of language production. The 1st quarter project will require students to work in
pairs or a threesome (if there is an odd number of students) in order to create a mock extended weather forecast. This project will be due and presented to the class the week of November 5.
1st Quarter
Week 1: Sept. 6 & 7* Start Begginen wir!
Week 2: Sept. 10-14 Part 1
Week 3: Sept. 17-21 Part 2
Week 4: Sept. 24-28
Week 5: Oct. 1-5 Part 3
Week 6: Oct. 9-12
Week 7: Oct. 15-19 Part 4
Week 8: Oct. 22-26 Part 5
Week 9: Oct. 29-Nov. 2 Finish Begginen wir!
Week 10: Nov. 5-9 Project & Presentations due
Kapitel 1: Familie, Länder, Sprachen
In this chapter, we will learn about the members of a family, countries and their people. This will be the focus of the vocabulary for this chapter. We will also learn how to conjugate verbs (conjugate verbs) in the present tense and how to use the different gender articles. We will also learn about the German case system and focus on the Nominative Case.This chapter will bring us to the end of the 2nd quarter and will culminate in a power point genealogical project. This project will be due the week of January 7
and all projects will be presented to the class.
2nd Quarter begins
Week 11: Nov. 13-16 Start Kapitel 1
Week 12: Nov. 19 & 20
Week 13: Nov. 26-30
Week 14: Dec. 3-7
Week 15: Dec. 10-14
Week 16: Dec. 17-21
December Recess Dec. 24-Jan. 1
Week 17: Jan. 2-4 Finish Kapitel 1
Week 18: Jan. 7-11 Project & Presentations due
Midterm Review and Midterms
The Midterm will cover all of the material that we have learned from the beginning of the year – Beginnen wir! and Kapitel 1.
Week 19: Jan. 15-17 Review
Week 20: Jan. 22-25 Midterms
Kapitel 2: Lebensmittel und Geschäfte
In this chapter, we will learn about food and shopping. The vocabulary will be related to this theme. We will focus in on the use of the two most common verbs haben (haben) and (sein) and we will learn about the Accusative Case and the changes that accompany it. We will begin learning about the accusative prepositions and how to use them. Finally we will
learn how to form negative sentences. This chapter will bring us to the end of the 3rd quarter. The project for this quarter will be a skit created and performed in groups of three and is due the week of March 24. The skit will be focused around a day at the grocery store (Supermarkt).
3rd Quarter begins
Week 21: Jan. 28-Feb. 1 Start Kapitel 2
Week 22: Feb. 4-8
Week 23: Feb. 11-15
Week 24: Feb. 19-22
Winter Recess Feb. 25-29
Week 25: Mar. 3-7
Week 26: Mar. 10-14
Week 27: Mar. 17-21 Finish Kapitel 2
Week 28: Mar. 24-28 Project & Presentations due
Kapitel 3: Im Restaurant
In this chapter, we will learn about dining in German-speaking countries. Vocabulary will focus on words necessary to understand a menu and to order food in a restaurant. We will learn about irregular verbs/verbs with stem-vowel changes and the Dative Case (Dative Case). We will learn about dative prepositions and how they are used. The dative case can be problematic, so we will cover this topic in depth and spend a good portion of our time using it in writing and speaking along with reading and listening activities to reinforce comprehension. The 4th quarter project will require each student to choose a different German recipe and teach the class (in German) how to make the dish. A written recipe card (again in German) and a sample of the food will also be required.
4th Quarter begins
Week 29: Mar. 31-Apr. 4 Start Kapitel 3
Week 30: Apr. 7-11
Week 31: Apr. 14-18
April Break Apr. 21-25
Week 32: Apr. 28-May 2
Week 33: May 5-9
Week 34: May 12-16
Week 35: May 19-23
Week 36: May 27-30 Finish Kapitel 3
Week 37: Jun. 2-6 Project & Presentations due
Final Review and Finals
The final will cover all of the material that was covered over the course of the year, but will be weighted 30/70 with 30% of the material coming from the first 2 quarters and 70% from the last 2 quarters.
Week 38: Jun. 9-13 Review
Week 39: Jun. 16-19† Review
Week 40: Jun. 20-26 Finals
* Dates include the use of all five snow days
† June 19 is the last day of exams without snow days.
This Syllabus is not 100% final. There is room for adjustment of topics and timelines dependent on how the course progresses throughout the year.