Nicole M Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 and I'm not sure what to do. He will be a senior next year. We did Latin for two years, but switched in the Fall to German. My so is interested in choral music and conducting for college studies and as a possible career option, so German is a good fit. I'm not sure what our options are. Rosetta Stone? An online course? (Are there any?) What would you do in this situation? Thanks, Nicole Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sandra in va Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Potter's School has online German classes, I think through German IV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle in MO Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 The one I've read on these boards that's been recommended over and over again is German Online at Oklahoma State University. Over and over again I've heard good things about this class. I think that DB in NJ was considering this class, and possibly Colleen. You might send them a PM to ask if they've tried the class and to describe their experience. Also, consider e-mailing the instructor to find out what level this course moves through. Since I have not used it, I'm unsure as to whether it's strictly a high-school level course or introductory college level. Nevertheless, I've heard great things about it, so I think it would be worthwhile for further investigation. I perused Rosetta Stone briefly, so my opinion is probably sketchy here, but I thought it might make a good middle school course, but not high school or college level. There just isn't enough grammar in the course, IMO. FWIW, I majored in German in college, and I tend to be more of a traditionalist when it comes to studying second languages. Unless you are actually immersed in the culture and language, it's best to have a good study of grammar alongside learning vocabulary and phrases, otherwise you miss the structure that is the overall framework of the language, and you have to learn that structure inductively. We all learn our native language inductively, but we are immersed in the language/culture, etc. Then in school we study the grammar. I felt that Rosetta Stone is definitely an improvement on some programs, but still not quite strong enough in the grammar department. HTH! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 23, 2009 Author Share Posted February 23, 2009 Thanks so much. It's just hitting me now that this is an expensive loss! I didn't realize how good we had it, how economical the Running Start program is. I'm going to have to take a serious look at our finances to manage another option for German, since our largest expense this year has been his text book. Oy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carol in Cal. Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 They have a language immersion program, and I think that with some focus and extra writing they will give you high school credit for a year accomplished in a 4 week intensive course. I have a very protective friend who sent her two DD's there this last summer to study French, and she felt that the chaperonage was very good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Michelle in MO Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 They have a language immersion program, and I think that with some focus and extra writing they will give you high school credit for a year accomplished in a 4 week intensive course. I have a very protective friend who sent her two DD's there this last summer to study French, and she felt that the chaperonage was very good. Similar to what Carol in Cal. is recommending, you also could check out Middlebury College in Vermont. They also have a summer Language School which is highly renowned. But, this might be an expensive option for you, more expensive than replacing the textbook! (Nicole, were you the one who mentioned a couple of months ago that his textbook was completely soaked from all the rains in the Northwest, and that you'd somehow managed to dry it out? I may be confusing you with someone else.) For an online course, though, I'd still recommend the German Online course at Oklahoma State University. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
momee Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 Our experience with German Online has been excellent. It is fairly pricey, in our humble paygrade :). The input, directions, materials have all made the course a winner with ds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Liza Q Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 German Online has been marvelous for us. My daughter enjoys it and is really learning. I appreciate how they balance vocabulary, grammar, translation, and speaking - the phone calls are great! There is also a good balance between worksheets/video lessons/online tests. My daughter (10th grade, nearly 16) is motivated and a generally hard worker but I think this program would work well even with a child who needs some pushing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 23, 2009 Share Posted February 23, 2009 I'm another happy customer - German Online has been a great experience for dd. She's in chapter 9 right now and is still working hard, learning a TON, and interested in the daily lessons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 24, 2009 Author Share Posted February 24, 2009 Thanks, everyone. I'm glad to know you've had such positive experiences with German Online. I will definitely look into that. I also considered the possibility of asking my son's current teacher if ds could check in with her once a month or so, if we went the route of an online course. Since the Running Start program is free for HS students, this is a shock, having to shell out a lot of money for a new course. If I'd known that German would be cut, I might have encouraged him to take French -- which is staying. German is really being phased out across the board. Only one local high school offers it in this area, and rumor has it that when the teacher retires, the class will go, too. At breakfast this morning I was filling in my husband about all these developments, and thinking out loud, considering all our possibilities, including asking the German teacher at the college where we work weather our son could simply "sit in" on a course. (Occasionally this happens, as a sort of outreach to local kids.) My son, listening to the conversation, got a little stressed out about all the potential bus trips he'd have to take, schlepping between the CC and the college where I work. Poor guy. He's such an earnest fellow. Oh, and yes, Michelle, that was our story, about the soaked textbook. Again, thanks everyone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 I'd try the auditing at your college. Music students need good diction skills. What a pain for him (and you). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julie in MN Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 My dd came home to school for 2nd year French. I'm not sure how it would compare to German, but here's what we did: * Grammar using the inexpensive workbook, French The Easy Way * Speaking using the library's Pimsleur and other CD/DVDs * Evaluation using several sessions with a Christian school French teacher during her summer off -- this was the only major expense, and she charged according to a higher priced piano teacher fee in our area It went well for us. Julie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 What a shame, Nicole, that your son's program is being cut. German classes are becoming quite rare ~ and they weren't a dime a dozen when I was a student. To echo the other recommendations in this thread, my oldest has been using OSU's online German program since early October and thus far I'm pleased. My only complaint is that the first year of the course doesn't cover much ground; it's not been particularly challenging in that sense. On the other hand, since it's not a "real time" program, students can proceed at their own pace, which is nice. Re Rosetta Stone, my 11 and 9 year old boys use that primarily as a foundation in the language. I wouldn't use it, solely, with more advanced and/or older students. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 Colleen, It's interesting that you feel OSU's first course doesn't cover much ground. Our oldest 2 took German through local high schools we lived near and neither learned HALF as much in their first year as our dd who is using OSU. She's only in chapter 9 and can write whole conversations. This kid also went through BYU's Japanese courses and says she's already learned more German this year than she learned Japanese in 2 years. She did think the first two or three chapters were very light but it's since become more work. I wish they sold a printed workbook because I require her to do every worksheet and info sheet and there are TONS of them in the later chapters. My printer gets a workout! Do you have suggestions for beefing up the OSU German courses? Dd loves languages and I want to challenge her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 Since he did a year at the CC, would he be starting in German III? I'd be interested in any feedback for the higher classes (III, IV or AP). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 24, 2009 Author Share Posted February 24, 2009 Great news! I just found out that my son can take Intermediate German next year at the college where I work, free-fer-nuthin' (as my dad says), as a non-matriculating student. This way he can get credit for that class wherever he ends up in college. (Many colleges, including the one where I work, do not accept credits from the CC where my son is taking classes.) Now this is a happy ending! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 24, 2009 Author Share Posted February 24, 2009 Since he did a year at the CC, would he be starting in German III? I'd be interested in any feedback for the higher classes (III, IV or AP). I'm not sure how this works, which levels of HS foreign language correspond to college level work. So I'm curious, too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 Great news! I just found out that my son can take Intermediate German next year at the college where I work, free-fer-nuthin' (as my dad says), as a non-matriculating student. This way he can get credit for that class wherever he ends up in college. Ahh, the advantages of doing something outside of working at home or on a farm.;) I'm glad this is going to work out for him, though I'm sorry to know the program is being cut from the community college. Many colleges, including the one where I work, do not accept credits from the CC where my son is taking classes. What?! I didn't realize there were any colleges here in WA that wouldn't accept community college credits. That's very lame. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Posted February 24, 2009 Share Posted February 24, 2009 It's interesting that you feel OSU's first course doesn't cover much ground. Our oldest 2 took German through local high schools we lived near and neither learned HALF as much in their first year as our dd who is using OSU. Ah, well, maybe my expectations are unreasonably high. I've been wondering if this course (German I) isn't more akin to one semester's work rather than a full year. Apparently, I'm wrong ~ and glad of it.:) She did think the first two or three chapters were very light but it's since become more work. Yes, it's getting more challenging, that's true. My son is only on Chapter 6, so I may simply be speaking too soon. He did say that around Chapter 5 he finally noticed it ramping up. I wish they sold a printed workbook because I require her to do every worksheet and info sheet and there are TONS of them in the later chapters. My printer gets a workout! Oh, my good gracious, no way would I print all that out myself! I'd spend a fortune in printer ink. I have it printed at Kinko's, which is very convenient. That costs, too, of course but I think it's less than I'd pay to print it out myself. Ultimately, it'd be easier if a workbook was offered alongside the course; I agree with you there. Do you have suggestions for beefing up the OSU German courses? Dd loves languages and I want to challenge her. I haven't been adding anything aside from Rosetta Stone (which is really just a bonus). Perhaps if my son was older I'd be compelled to add to the course, but since he's only in 8th I haven't pushed it. You could always include some German books so your daughter could practice her hand at translation. How old is she? I've purchased German books from Amazon.de before and had good service. One you might check out is called "See you ~ im nächsten Sommer: Eine deutsch-englische Geschichte" (See you next summer: A German-English Story). It's directed at German students learning English, but works just as well the other way, of course. A German exchange student (a girl) and the American student (a guy) whose house she stays at forge a friendship through their love of soccer. The story goes back and forth between the two languages (as you might surmise!). There are some other titles like this, and I think they're a lot of fun and good practice.:) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 What?! I didn't realize there were any colleges here in WA that wouldn't accept community college credits. That's very lame. Lame, no kidding. You have to be very careful about this. The school where I work is doing surprisingly well in our current economy because we are not so endowment-dependent as many. We rely more on tuition. I think (but don't know for sure) that this is part of the reason this school does not accept credits from TCC -- they need the cash. Also, thanks for the recommendation of that book from Amazon.de. Is the shipping outrageously expensive? I noticed that they have other books that are similar to the one you mentioned and wondered if they were good, too. We have acquaintances from Germany, and I was also wondering about borrowing some of their children's videos. But then I remembered that you had trouble playing European DVDs on your American player. I'm disappointed that Eli's incredibly expensive text does not have an audio component, since we're serious auditory learners here. There is a discussion section for Eli's class, but often he's the only one who shows up. (Stinker!) I'm just thinking out loud here about how to expose him to more of the language. So if you have any recommendations for movies or books on tape or anything like that, do let me know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 We have acquaintances from Germany, and I was also wondering about borrowing some of their children's videos. But then I remembered that you had trouble playing European DVDs on your American player. They are a different Region. To overcome this problem, we bought a multi-region DVD player/multisystem VHS player from http://www.220electronics.com . It was well worth it, even though the remote has now died (5 years old) and is apparently irreplaceable. I will be buying another system soon. They range from $70 for a plain DVD player to several hundred for DVD/VHS recorders. Shipping from amazon.de was pretty expensive but not as expensive as OSU's German online! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colleen Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 Also, thanks for the recommendation of that book from Amazon.de. Is the shipping outrageously expensive? I think it's suprisingly inexpensive, given the distance. My last order (granted, this was over a year ago) totaled 75 euro in merchandise and shipping was 14 euro. At today's exchange rate, that's roughly $17 on nearly $100 worth of books. Pretty reasonable, if you ask me. We have acquaintances from Germany, and I was also wondering about borrowing some of their children's videos. But then I remembered that you had trouble playing European DVDs on your American player. Yes, I ended up buying a multi-regional DVD player. It was cheap (needless to say, I had to turn a blind eye to the location of manufacture), but it's held up thus far. I bought some children's DVDs, again via Amazon.de, and my little guys watch those. For older kids, it's nice to have movies with which they're already familiar (e.g. we have "The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe"). Then they can watch in German (or English, if they want to cheat;)) but already be familiar with the plot. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 Thanks for the intel. I'll see about borrowing books first, then purchase if that doesn't pan out. (needless to say, I had to turn a blind eye to the location of manufacture) Story of my life, baby. As for the regions thing (whatever that means), do these DVDs work on a laptop, ya think? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 Shipping from amazon.de was pretty expensive but not as expensive as OSU's German online! This was darned funny. (How do you people do those multiple quotes?!) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 Thanks for the book idea! It's right up her alley. She's 16 and really has a knack for languages so the more I pile on, the better. She already has her Facebook switched to German so I know she's ready for some challenge. And those ideas will help me find things for her to do with German after she finishes this course and starts another...she'll be done with this course in a few weeks but of course our school year is nowhere near over. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In The Great White North Posted February 25, 2009 Share Posted February 25, 2009 As for the regions thing (whatever that means), do these DVDs work on a laptop, ya think? Yes, but Laptops will play all regions. However, you can't just switch back and forth. After the first two or thee switches, it locks on whichever region you're playing. So, if you play European DVDs on your laptop, you won't be able to play American DVDs on your laptop. You could dedicate a laptop to each region, but laptops are more expensive than multi-region DVD players Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted February 25, 2009 Author Share Posted February 25, 2009 Yes, but Laptops will play all regions. However, you can't just switch back and forth. After the first two or thee switches, it locks on whichever region you're playing. So, if you play European DVDs on your laptop, you won't be able to play American DVDs on your laptop. You could dedicate a laptop to each region, but laptops are more expensive than multi-region DVD players Ah, I see. Multi-region DVD players may be cheaper than a laptop, but the DVD player gets more expensive when you consider we'd also need to buy the boob tube to hook it up to! :D I wonder if it's possible to get a multi-region wee little DVD player? I'll check into that. ETA: I found one, quickety-snip! http://www.amazon.com/GPX-PDL804-Multizone-Regionfree-Multiregion/dp/B001LR12YY/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1235572165&sr=8-16 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rita Posted May 30, 2009 Share Posted May 30, 2009 Ah, I see. Multi-region DVD players may be cheaper than a laptop, but the DVD player gets more expensive when you consider we'd also need to buy the boob tube to hook it up to! :D I wonder if it's possible to get a multi-region wee little DVD player? I'll check into that. ETA: I found one, quickety-snip! http://www.amazon.com/GPX-PDL804-Multizone-Regionfree-Multiregion/dp/B001LR12YY/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=electronics&qid=1235572165&sr=8-16 I was looking for some German language recommendations here, and Kareni kindly linked me to this thread. My thought on the DVDs is that lots of our DVDs have other language options. To be honest, I haven't looked to see if German was an option yet.....but it's a thought :) Blessings, Rita Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pam Wilhelm Posted May 30, 2009 Share Posted May 30, 2009 How about the German Heritage Society site? They have a list of Organizations and Schools that they are associated with, you might find some ideas there........ http://germanheritagesociety.org/organizations.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joan in GE Posted May 30, 2009 Share Posted May 30, 2009 German on Keystone Highschool Online. Does anyone have any experience with it? I'm wondering about the test proctoring for Oklahoma....We're nowhere near a testing center so it could be quite expensive to try to use a private school....Does anyone have experience with that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicole M Posted August 8, 2009 Author Share Posted August 8, 2009 An update: The German course at the university where I work is over-filled, and there is a wait list. In the unlikely event that the professor will scare off enough students to make room for my son, we could register him for the class, but first, he has to submit an application to the University to be a Freshman. Now, in the "real" application process, we would have no problem applying. But since this is a late application, for a class that starts in three weeks, we are required to submit "the written approval of his parents, his high school principal, and his high school guidance counselor." Parents: check! Principal and counselor... not so much. The registrar guy I talked to was completely confused about how to deal with a homeschool family. I will talk to the Admissions folks on Monday, but good grief! I felt like I was getting the run-around. Thanks again for all those links. Another option I am considering in the BYU independent learning course. They have a second year German class that is much less expensive than the OSU course, and you pay by semester. So if we tanked, or if the German class here at the university opened up next semester, we could move on. Here is the BYU site: http://ce.byu.edu/is/site/courses/description.cfm?type=hs&subject=51&course=GERM51Second%2DYear%20German%201# I searched the boards here and it seems that some of you have used the BYU courses, and there was general consensus that they were fine. Anyone have experience specifically with their foreign language courses? Thanks all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Annie G Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 No experience with BYU's German but our kids have done their Japanese and Spanish. Japanese was ok, but not wonderful, mainly due to the instructor not being available...sometimes we waited weeks for her to answer questions and then they were snippy or not helpful. Spanish was a bust...it just wasn't a good fit. But German is different and with other instructors, you might have a totally wonderful experience. Dd is doing German through OSU and even though it's pricey, it's been a good choice for her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda1951 Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 http://www.learnplus.com/learn-german.html http://www.deutsch-lernen.com/ and http://www.learn-german.com/welcome/german_course_description.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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