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|  | An Engaging Mini-Unit
Because so few of the most popular German language textbooks cover the topic of animals (other than typical household pets) and because students (especially younger learners) have such an affinity for animals, this mini-unit on animals is generally very well received. In addition, this unit emphasizes all of the basic language skills: reading, writing, speaking, and listening.
First, students should organize categories for animals (Insekt, Vogel, Kriechtier, Lurch, Säugetier, Fisch = Insect, Bird, Reptile, Amphibian, Mammal, Fish) and then compile a list of animals that they want to learn about in German, sorted into the appropriate categories (see the sample list below). If an animal doesn't fit into any of the categories, the student should put an asterisk next to its name and include it in the closest category.
| das Insekt (en) |
der Vogel (··) |
das Kriechtier (e) |
der Lurch (e) |
das Säugetier (e) |
der Fisch (e) |
| die Biene (n) |
der Papagei (en/s) |
das Krokodil (e) |
der Frosch (··e) |
Der Löwe (n) |
Der Hai (e) |
| die Hummel (n) |
der Schwan (··e) |
der Alligator (en) |
die Kröte (n) |
Der Tiger (-) |
die Forelle (n) |
| der Käfer (-) |
der Strauß (e) |
der Gecko (s) |
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Der Luchs (e) |
der Karpfen (-) |
| die Ameise (n) |
der Pfau (en) |
die Eidechse (n) |
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Der Leopard (en) |
*der Hummer (-) |
| die Raupe (n) |
die Taube (n) |
die Schlange (n) |
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Der Panther (-) |
*die Garnele (n) |
| der Schmetterling (e) |
der Pelikan (e) |
die Giftschlange (n) |
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Die Hyäne (n) |
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| *die Zecke (n) |
der Pinguin (e) |
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Der Bär (en) |
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| *die Spinne (n) |
der Falke (n) |
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Der Eisbär (en) |
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| *der Skorpion (e) |
der Habicht (e) |
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Der Waschbär (en) |
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| *der Wurm (··er) |
der Adler (-) |
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Der Elefant (en) |
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Das Nilpferd (e) |
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Das Nashorn (··er) |
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Die Giraffe (n) |
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Der Affe (n) |
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Der Pavian (e) |
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Die Schimpanse (n) |
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Der Wal (e) ) |
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Der Delfin (e) |
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Die Robbe (n) |
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Das Känguru (s) |
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Der Wolf (··e) |
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Der Fuchs (··e) |
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Das Eichhörnchen (-) |
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Die Maus (··e) |
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Die Ratte (n) |
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Der Hamster (-) |
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Das Meerschweinchen (-) |
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Der Hund (e) |
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Die Katze (n) |
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Die Kuh (··e) |
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Das Kalb (··er) |
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Das Schwein (e) |
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Das Ferkel (-) |
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Das Schaf (e) |
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Das Lamm (··er) |
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Die Ziege (n) |
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Das Pferd (e) |
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die Fledermaus (··e) |
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Das Kamel (e) |
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Once this list is completed, students should brainstorm about animal body parts that are different from those of humans. The list they compile may look something like the one below.
| Der |
Die |
Das |
| Rüssel (-) |
Mähne (n) |
Fell (e) |
| Höcker (-) |
Kralle (n) |
Maul (··er) |
| Beutel (-) |
Schnauze (n) |
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| Schwanz (··e) |
Flosse (n) |
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| Stoßzahn (··e) |
Kieme (n) |
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| Reißzahn (··e) |
Schuppe (n) |
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| Fühler (-) |
Pfote (n) |
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| Flügel (-) |
Schwimmpfote (n) |
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Feder (n) |
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| Schnabel (··) |
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| Pelz (e) |
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Now that students have the vocabulary for naming animals and animal body parts, they can begin describing animals. In doing so, students will likely employ a complex grammatical feature, adjective endings. This activity requires students to quickly recognize and produce new vocabulary, and students enjoy describing animals and, in turn, guessing the animals from their descriptions. (For example: Welches Tier ist groß und grau und hat einen langen Rüssel und große Ohren? Der Elefant.)
Next, students should practice using common verbs associated with animals (fressen, saufen, laufen, schlafen, and so on). Because many of these verbs are irregular stem-vowel change verbs, they require students to practice and master unusual present-tense conjugations. (For example: Welches Wüstentier säuft selten? Das Kamel.)
At this point students are ready to move on to the culminating activity, a PowerPoint® project on a specific animal. The following Web sites are especially useful for researching animals:
 http://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiere
http://www.kinder-tierlexikon.de/#Tiere-suchen
www.tierenzyklopaedie.de/inhalt.html
Topics for slides may include the following: Klasse, Ordnung, Lebensraum, Maß, Gewicht, Aussehen, Fortpflanzung, Nahrung, und andere interessante Details (class, order, habitat, size, weight, appearance, propagation, food, and other interesting details). In preparing individual PowerPoint slides, students should be encouraged to write in sentences instead of words and phrases. In addition, when students present their animal to the class, they should make an effort to include more items than those listed in the PowerPoint presentation. For assessment as well as in preparing students for the final presentation, the following 50-point rubric may be useful.
Excellent (10 points)
Very Good (9 points) |
Good (8 points)
Adequate (7 points) |
Poor (6 points)
Very Poor (5 points) |
| PowerPoint slides are creative and attractive, and special effects enhance the display |
PowerPoint slides are visually appealing; however, slides have fewer pictures and/or employ few special effects |
PowerPoint slides lack visual appeal or slides have no pictures |
| Information presented is in-depth and correct |
Information presented may be limited or slightly incorrect |
Information presented is very limited or almost entirely incorrect |
| Grammar is complicated and correct |
Some/few grammatical errors and/or simplistic style |
Frequent grammatical errors and/or phrase/word-level entries |
| Oral presentation is original, spontaneous, and correct |
Reads from slides and adds some additional, correct information. |
Reads from slides |
| Pronunciation is correct and clear; intonation is interesting |
Pronunciation is somewhat American or somewhat monotone |
Pronunciation is very American and hard to comprehend |
At the teacher's discretion, PowerPoint projects may be followed by a written test. My exam includes a section where students must identify animals based on German descriptions, then write a 150-word essay about a particular animal. My students also enjoy showing that they recognize animal vocabulary by drawing pictures of animals.
Students were extremely interested in this unit and put a lot of hard work into their PowerPoint projects. In addition, they were highly attentive to presentations from classmates, often posing very good questions. Colleagues who passed by my classroom during presentations commented on how engaged students were. Consider doing such an activity near the end of the school year when other material has been covered and students need a boost to get them to the last day.
Peggy Grasso has taught German in Pennsylvania since 1990, and she is currently employed by Mt. Lebanon School District outside Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. She is an active member of the Western Pennsylvania Chapter of AATG and a Reader for the AP German Exam. In her free time Peggy enjoys traveling and playing tennis, volleyball, and golf.
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