1. Dienstag
Fragen des Tages:
Wie heisst du? / Wo wohnst du? Wie heisst er/sie? / Wo wohnt er/sie?
Du heisst ______. Du bist _______.
Was hoerst du? Ich hoere _________
Was hast du gehoert? Ich hoerte __________. Ich habe _________ gehoert.
*Villagers taking part in the Radio program should have at least 1 summer of experience in Waldsee already. This is a necessity since villagers will be dealing with more complicated language patterns and be required to use the language creatively to create their own radio environment.
Projekt des Tages:
Today’s project is to explain to the villagers what they are about to take part in over the next two weeks. Your primary goals for the day are to introduce the villagers to speaking German again and help them become comfortable with one another. It’s important to create an environment from day one where all villagers feel comfortable speaking the language. The Waldsee Radio environment should be one that encourages constant use of the German language with the ability to make mistakes.
Der Plan fuer heute:
1. Familie (45 minuten):
5 minutes: Sit villagers in a circle and start by introducing yourself, “Ich heisse (name).” Use a counselor as your partner and ask them, “Wie heisst du?” Let them answer “Ich heisse (name).” That counselor can then ask the villager to their right in the circle for their name. Pass this pattern around the circle while letting the villagers all practice answering and asking the question. Now repeat the same process with the question, “Wo wohnst du?” Give all villagers a chance to answer and ask that question of one another. Instead of simply going around in a circle try having villagers throw beanbags to the person who they’re talking to.
“Wie heisst du?” and “Wo wohnst du?” are the most basic Waldsee patterns. Next, try to take that pattern a bit farther and introduce basic conjugation using those patterns. Point to a villager, and ask a your partner “Wie heisst er/sie?” Let him answer “Er/Sie heisst (name).” Have one boy and one girl stand up in front of the group. Point to the girl and ask the group, “Wie heisst sie?” If they don’t immediately respond, drop them little hints. Now point to the boy and ask the group, “Wie heisst er?” Wait for their answer. Don’t worry about teaching verb endings yet, this will come with later lessons.
5 minutes: Have everyone sit down again in the circle and play the bean bag – name
memorization game. The goal in this game is to teach basic conjugation of the verb
“heissen”. State your name to the villager next to you, and ask them their name. They need to say their name and then state your name using “du heisst…” This may seem unnatural at first, telling a person what their name is, but it’s intoned to introduce the villager to the verb ending for the “du” form and to generally introduce the villager to the word, “du.” They should then ask their neighbor for their name. Their neighbor states his/her name, states his/her neighbors name using “du heisst…,” and then states the counselors name using “er/sie heisst…” The next villager would then state his/her name, their neighbor’s name, and the other two people’s names. This game goes all around the circle until every villager has had the chance to say their name and everyone else’s name. With this game villagers will begin to distinguish between du, er, sie and ich.
These are language patterns the villagers probably already know, but the activities are more intended to ease the villagers into speaking the language. This may be the first time they are speaking German since the end of the school year, or potentially since the summer before. Try not to overwhelm them within the first five minutes.
15 minutes: For the next 15 minutes you can slip into English to explain to the villagers exactly what the program is going to be about. Bring two pieces of paper. On the top of the first sheet write “Regeln” and on the top of the other write “Ziele.” Ask the villagers what sort of rules and goals they want to have. Villagers will feel better about rules and goals if they feel they had some input in them. As the villagers give you a rule or a goal, write it on the piece of paper in German. The main goals and rules you are looking for are the following:
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Rules:
1. Always attempt to use German.
2. Ask questions when confused
3. Never speak English on the radio
4. Be respectful to the equipment.
5. Encourage one another and help one another
Goals:
1. Have Fun!
2. Learn and use German
3. Learn how to run a radio station
4. Always do your best
If villagers don’t come up with all these rules and goals, suggest ones that you feel are important to you. Make sure you emphasize the importance that the villagers speak German. Tell them that this will be the last time they will hear you speak this much English to them.
10 minutes: Switch back into German and introduce the next game. This game is called Wer bin ich, was bin ich, wo bin ich? Prepare index cards before hand with “wer” written on the front of them. On the back write the name of a famous person, counselor, etc. Draw one of the cards yourself, and give clues as to who you are to the rest of the group. You’re looking for them to answer with “Du heisst…,” or “Du bist…” When a villager gets the right answer let them draw a card and try to describe who they are. This will work only for villagers that are slightly more advanced. For villagers who don’t have the vocabulary to describe themselves, give them all a card and give them 5 minutes to prepare a few sentences about who they are. Have dictionaries available and let them ask you questions. Then let each villager present his/her person. During the two week session this activity can be repeated with “wo” and “was” cards.
10 minutes: The next activity is called Riese, Hexe, Zwerge. This game is intended to be a fun game that teaches a few new vocabulary words. This game is based on the game “Paper, Rock, Scissors,” only here the villagers act in teams. Villagers line up in two lines facing each other. They secretly choose as a group what they will become at your signal. A “Riese” (arms up and standing on toes) can crush a “Zwerg” and therefore defeat him. A “Zwerg” (crunched down on knees) can trick the “Hexe” and therefore defeat it. A “Hexe” (hands out and knees bent) can make the “Riese” disappear and therefore defeat him. Each team decides what it will be, and on the count of three each team assumes the position of their character. The winning team immediately chases the losing team and tries to tag them. If the losing team is tagged they become a part of the winning team. Make sure to establish a safe line for the teams to run to where they can’t be caught anymore. If both teams are the same character, they shake hands and get ready to play again. Play until all the players are a part of one team (Waldsee Curriculum Handbook).
1. Veranstaltungstunde (45 minuten):
10 minutes: Start by establishing a meeting point with the group where everyone will meet for each meeting time. Always meet in this area unless you tell the villagers otherwise. Once you agree on the meeting place, ask them if they all understand, “Verstehst du?” This is the perfect time to teach them how to express comprehension or confusion. “Ja ich verstehe,” or “Nein ich verstehe nicht,” are basic ways to express comprehension or confusion.
One of the most important sentences the villagers will need to learn and use is “Wie sagt man _____ auf deutsch?” Teach them this sentence and then play a round of stump the counselor. Each villager gets thirty second to come up with a word or phrase that they think they will need to know sometime while they are in Waldsee. Pass out index cards with the words “Wie sagt man ______ auf deutsch,” already written on them. Have them fill in a word or phrase in that space. These can be funny things or serious things, but should be appropriate. Then go around and let each villager ask his or her question. See if other villagers can answer the question first, then give them the answer with the correct spelling. Make an effort during the rest of the day to ask the villagers the how to say the phrase they asked in German.
20 minutes: Prerecord sounds from around the camp. These can consist of many things: a bell, a door closing, a knock on a door, a trumpet, etc. Be creative. Use these sounds to introduce the verb “hoeren.” This is a very important verb to know how to use correctly when dealing with radio. Play the first sound and ask the villagers “Was hoerst du?” See if they can respond correctly. If not, play the sound and say “Ich hoere eine Glocke.” Ask them again what they hear. Once they can correctly use the “Ich” form of the verb, have villagers say what other villagers are hearing. Go through a few of the sounds. You could even make a game out of it with teams trying to guess first what the sound is. Remember, teams would only get a point for a correct complete sentence.
Prerecord a sampling of the programs at a German radio stations. Try to get a good mix of different audio aspects of a radio station. Song introductions, jingles, news, quizzes, songs, etc. should all be played to give villagers an idea of the schedule and programs run on a radio station. Play each demonstration in 15-20 second intervals. Ask the villagers what they hear. Each time they hear something new (news report, song, jingle, quizzes, reports, etc.) write the German word on a piece of paper and give it to the villager who came up with the idea. Give the piece of paper to him/her, and ask what they hear again. Continue this process until all different aspects are pointed out.
Be sure to point out other interesting aspects of the radio station. Make sure students notice that one particular jingle is played before and after the news. What is the motto or slogan for the station? Does each different time slot on the program have its own motto (ex. Morning show motto, afternoon show motto). Point out how often the time is repeated. Are only German songs played at this German radio station, or are there English songs as well? Do some German singers sing in English. Is just music and news running or are there any special reports? Are there commercials at this radio station?
Remember to use the verb “hoeren” as much as possible. For more advanced villagers you can introduce present perfect form, “Ich habe eine Glocke gehoert.” Talking about past events will be covered later in the curriculum, but this is a good introduction to the process.
7 minutes: After a draining last 30 minutes, break a bit of the tension with a fun and easy game. This game is called Tierenachaefferei. This game is a good game to introduce vocabulary and get the villagers moving around a bit. The names of one or two animals are introduced to begin with along with a three person representation of the animal. For example, an “Elefant” would be composed of one person who turns herself into a long trunk and two other players, one on each side, who form the large floppy ears with their arms. Be creative and think of other ways to make other animals. Before you begin play, all of the players should have had the chance to practice making the animal(s)/character(s) and become familiar with their names. Have the villagers make a circle around you. Spin around in a circle, come to a quick halt, point to a villager and call out the name of one of the animals/characters. The person pointed to must assume the middle of the animal (in the case of the “Elefant,” the trunk) while the other two villagers on either side must complete the animal (in the case of the “Elefant,” the floppy ears). If someone messes up, or hesitates too long, they then become the person in the middle. Speed up the game by pointing to villagers at a quick pace and by adding new animals/characters to the game (Waldsee Curriculum Handbook).
This game can be very effective in short bursts to get the energy level of a group up. Once they know how to play, they can slip into it real easily and can even come up with their own crazy three person animals or characters.
8 minutes: In order to become an official member of the Waldsee Radio program a villager must posses a “Presseausweis.” This pass will grant them special privileges, such as getting to go into the kitchen to find out what’s for dinner or being able to go special places for reporting. The “Presseausweis” can only be worn and should always be worn during times that they are working for the radio station. These last eight minutes should be used to show villagers what a “Presseausweis” looks like and to take their picture so that they can have their very own.
Figure 1.0 is an example of what a press card can look like. They are to be worn around the neck like a necklace so they are easily visible.
Figure 1
2. Familie (45 minuten):
45 minutes: When working for a radio station there is a lot of work done on computers using sound editing programs. Many of the reports broadcast over a radio station are pre-produced. This will also be the case for Waldsee Radio. This means that a certain understanding of how to edit sound is required. The program used for sound editing is called Cool Edit Pro 2.0. It’s a very simple program to use once you have a basic understanding of how it functions. Though the program is in English, villagers should be taught how to use the program in German.
Start the session by going over computer vocabulary with the villagers. Have a little sheet of paper next to each computer with this basic vocabulary so they can easily look up words they don’t understand while being taught how to use the software. Here is a list of basic computer vocabulary the villagers should have easy access to:
Open – oeffnen
Save – speichern
Edit sound/cut a clip – schneiden
Click on something – etwas anklicken
Double click – der Doppelklick
Application – Applikation
Document – das Dokument
MP3 player – MP3 Abspielprogramm
Delete – loeschen
Amplify – verstaerken
Original sound clip – Originalton/O-ton
To practice editing sound, each villager should work on editing a practice report. Before the session, put together a practice report that looks something like the one below.
Irgendjemand hat heute in…in der Frueh die gute Milch vom (6 second pause) Kuehlschrank gestohlen. Der….Die Polizei hat keine Ahnung, wer es war, oder wann wir unsere M..M…Milch zurueck bekommen (7 second pause) werden. Bis wir unsere Milch wieder haben, muessen wir Orangensaft trinken. Falls du die…der….die gute Milch gestohlen hast, bring it to, bring sie zur Kueche.
Let them listen to it once all the way through. After they have heard it once, play it again. Ask them if they heard things that should be corrected. You’re looking for answers such as, no long pauses, no repeating of words, no English, and no stuttering. Let them watch you edit the first sentence, then let each of them get the chance to edit the rest of the file by themselves. See if they come up with a nice, compact finished product. After they have finished editing their file, teach them how to amplify it and make it softer. If they finish all of this with the 45 minute period, teach them how to lay a music track underneath the speaking.
For villagers who are extremely fast learners, or have experience editing their own sound, let them read a correct version of the report and record it with their own voice. They can then edit it.
3. Familie (60 minuten):
7 minutes: Open with a review of the game Tierenachaefferei. Add a few new animals. A few ideas for animals that can be used are “Fish, Waschbaer, Giraffe,” or Charlie’s Angels. Be creative and think of ways that three people can create these animals or let villagers come up with their own ways.
15 minutes: Walk with the group over to the “Laden” or to Café Einbeck. If the villagers plan on buying anything in the store they will need to learn how to ask the prices of things or to say what they want. But before they ask those questions, they need to learn some appropriate “Gruesse” and “Abschiedsworte.” Have villagers walk around practicing saying hello and goodbye in different ways. Emphasize the importance of the Handshake when greeting someone. They’ll find it funny to walk around for a minute just saying hello and then goodbye right away.
Gruesse:
Guten Morgen/Tag/Abend!
Gute Nacht!
Gruetzi!
Gruess Gott!
Hallo!
Servus!
Gruess Dich!
Tag!
Beim Abschied:
Tschuess!
Ciao!
Bis spaeter!
Bis bald!
Aufwiedersehen!
Servus!
Aufwiederhoeren (Telefon)
[DAVID: THE QUESTION IS WHAT TO DO WITH HIGHER LEVEL VILLAGERS, FOR AUFBAU YOU COULD DISCUSS DISTINCTION DU/SIE; PERHAPS SOMEWHERE SOME CULTURAL BOX HERE ON RADIO IN GERMAN-SPEAKING EUROPE (AUF DEUTSCH); COULD ALSO FOCUS ON WOHNEN, WO LIEGT ....CITIES; GEOGRAPHIE..ETC.]
Have examples of some things that can be bought in the store, or see if you can get permission to actually be in the store during this time. Let one villager be the Verkaeufer/in and one villager be the Kunde/in. Have villagers ask oneanother “Was moechtest du?” Have villagers answer “Ich moechte…” This role playing game can be used to introduce “Wie viel kostet etwas?” as well. For the more advanced villagers have them try using “Was haettest du gern?” and “Ich haette gern.”
Rest of the time: Head back to the studio and do some brainstorming as to different projects they would like to do. Bring a giant piece of paper and write down all the ideas the villagers have. Ideas collected in the past from brainstorming are; Quizzes, music, movie reviews, bedtime stories at night, morning shows, sound effects quiz, “ask Edeltraut,” song requests, song quizzes, news, “what’s for lunch?,” what is happening in the activities, surveys, reports, weather, jingles, etc. Let the villagers be creative in their brainstorming. All ideas are good ideas. As with the rules and goals, they may present their ideas in English, but be sure to write them down in German. It would be even better to let each villager write down their own idea on the paper. Help with spelling of course.
Any extra time can be used to cover things that may have been missed earlier in the day or used as a review of everything taken in. You could also let the villagers work with the sound editing software to get used to the program.