JenC3 Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Can anyone recommend a good german curriculum for a 2nd and 5th grader to use? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NittanyJen Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I can't see the second grader doing anything more than listening along, but my fifth grader is currently taking a short break from Rosetta Stone to work through Usborne Easy German. The "Easy" part is a slight misnomer-- the grammar portions are kind of dense-- but they are explicitly explained, and then demonstrated in the comic-booky mystery story on every other page, written in all German (with a vocabulary list to go with each two-page spread). We are going slowly through the book-- we start with me reading it out loud, and translating as we go; then we read it (another day) and they have to translate it (looking at the word list on the right if they need to, though the pictures help a lot). Then they read it out loud while I translate it. Then they both read it out loud and translate it for me. Then I read it out loud, and ask them to silently translate it in their heads. Then I quiz them on the vocabulary-- nouns, verbs, phrases, and other parts of speech. Nouns are, as in any standard German text, presented in singular with plural markers and gender. Each comic spread is preceded by a grammar lesson, and the comic, while moving the compelling story forward, demonstrates that bit of grammar, such as use of the dativ case. The text is good about explaining things like what grammatical constructs are used more often in writing vs in speech (ie Monikas Katze vs das Zimmer von Monika) (forgive me if I goofed something there; I'm really tired . . .). The grammar may well go over your 5th grader's head in places, but the practice in speaking in dialogues will help get the rhythm of the language down, and the vocabulary and phrases are useful (introductions, food, colors, speaking on the telephone, rooms in the house, etc). It's one option. I will check back in here myself to see what else people suggest. We'll go back to Rosetta Stone after this, but in another year, we'll want something else just for variety. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shawthorne44 Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 You all could listen to the Michael Thomas CD's in the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AimeeM Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 There's a saturday German School in Spartanburg Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffnus Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 My dd9 is taking German online via Skype with a lady in Munich. I think she's the first (only?) child in the program but it's been going well. She's been at it for about 9 months. I could provide the info if you're interested. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarlaS Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 DuoLingo? It's challenging, but it's free and supposed to be pretty effective. My nine year old is doing the French. Slowly, but he's doing it and seems to like it okay. I would not recommend it for a kid who was not pretty strong with spelling and reading in English though. They expect you to get the foreign spellings down pretty quickly. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirstenhill Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I'm interested in this too, especially if anyone has any recommendations for the early elementary age group. We have German speaking friends, which is why my kids are interested. We can get some practice with them, but if my kids are really going to learn any of the language, we need to have something to work with at home. My DD is trying out DuoLingo and MindSnacks apps, but DS 6 and DS 4 are not anywhere near ready for those apps. I have a few books and videos on the way from the library to check out for the boys. But it would be nice if there were fun curriculum options that could lay it all out the way some programs do for Spanish or Latin. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Arcadia Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I'm interested in this too, especially if anyone has any recommendations for the early elementary age group. We have German speaking friends, which is why my kids are interested. I am lazy to repeat myself :) http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/475294-beginning-german-with-tutor/#entry5001300 http://forums.welltrainedmind.com/topic/471084-easy-readersearly-chapter-books-in-german/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nwmama Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 I think I'm going to get this for this year. All the others seem too hard for my kids and Muzzy is too young for my older two. http://www.amazon.com/German-Children-Audio-Third-Edition/dp/0071745033/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1370440074&sr=8-1&keywords=german+for+children Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JenC3 Posted June 5, 2013 Author Share Posted June 5, 2013 My dd9 is taking German online via Skype with a lady in Munich. I think she's the first (only?) child in the program but it's been going well. She's been at it for about 9 months. I could provide the info if you're interested. Yes! We are looking at a move to Munich in a few years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 My dd9 is taking German online via Skype with a lady in Munich. I think she's the first (only?) child in the program but it's been going well. She's been at it for about 9 months. I could provide the info if you're interested. May I ask how much is the fee per session? And does she provide PDFs or suggest books we need to buy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffnus Posted June 5, 2013 Share Posted June 5, 2013 Yes! We are looking at a move to Munich in a few years. May I ask how much is the fee per session? And does she provide PDFs or suggest books we need to buy? The school is German Online School. http://www.germanonlineschool.com We work with a lady named Claudia who is wonderful. They've agreed to give us 30 minute lessons. Their prices just went up and I just paid 85 Euros for ten 30- minute lessons. It came out to about $112 and it'll last us about 3 months. I'll email Cristoph to tell him he might have some emails coming in. BTW, I've had fun conversations with Claudia about homeschooling. She thinks it sounds wonderful! 😊 Not all Germans are anti-homeschooling. Oh, again, because they're not used to kids, Claudia creates her resources each week. She sends vocabulary and lessons and gives some writing assignments. I've been very happy with it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyforlatin Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 The school is German Online School. http://www.germanonlineschool.com We work with a lady named Claudia who is wonderful. They've agreed to give us 30 minute lessons. Their prices just went up and I just paid 85 Euros for ten 30- minute lessons. It came out to about $112 and it'll last us about 3 months. I'll email Cristoph to tell him he might have some emails coming in. BTW, I've had fun conversations with Claudia about homeschooling. She thinks it sounds wonderful! 😊 Not all Germans are anti-homeschooling. Oh, again, because they're not used to kids, Claudia creates her resources each week. She sends vocabulary and lessons and gives some writing assignments. I've been very happy with it. Thanks so much! The fee is still quite reasonable and I think DH can be supportive of this idea then. He hasn't been with my other ideas on German, given the cost. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
taffnus Posted June 6, 2013 Share Posted June 6, 2013 Thanks so much! The fee is still quite reasonable and I think DH can be supportive of this idea then. He hasn't been with my other ideas on German, given the cost. I had trouble finding a program and went out on a limb to ask if they'd give 30-minute classes, knowing she'd never make it 60 minutes. They've been very nice to work with and the price really isn't bad for 1-on-1 instruction. Hope it works out for you!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.