Language Theme: Martinstag November 5, 2012

Martinstag  – St. Martin’s Day – is celebrated each year on November 11th. St. Martin of Tours lived in the 4th century. He was originally a Roman soldier, who later became a monk and then the Bishop of Tours. He died on November 8, 397 and was buried three days later. The 11th of November thus became the Feast Day of St. Martin.

He was said to be a pious and benevolent man. One legend tells of how he met a freezing beggar. But having given away all his possessions, he had nothing left to give. And so he cut his cloak in half to share with the man. That night, he dreamed of Christ, who had been the beggar and was wearing the half-cloak. The dream convinced Martin to become a Christian and be baptized.

To celebrate the day, children make paper lanterns and parade through the streets in the evening, singing songs of St. Martin.

Why do we eat goose cookies??? The legend goes that Martin did not want to become bishop, for he was so humble, he believed himself unworthy. He tried to run away and hid in a goose pen. But the geese honked so loudly, they gave him away!

**Alphabet Garten offers a free unit study on the topic of Martinstag that offers more ideas and information!

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BOOKS:

• Laterne, Laterne, da oben leuchten die Sterne  by Rosemarie Künzler-Behncke (Ravensburger, 2010)

• Eine Laterne für Sankt Martin  by Martina Baumbach (Gabriel Verlag, 2011)

• Die Sterntaler, ein Märchen nach den Brüdern Grimm (This is not about St. Martin, but it’s a good parallel story about helping others.)

• Papa, bitte hol für mich den Mond vom Himmel by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 1987) – (I know this isn’t a Martin-related book, but since sun, star, & moon are typical symbols, I thought I’d throw it in!)

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SONGS:

• “Laterne, Laterne“

Laterne, Laterne, Sonne, Mond und Sterne.
Brenne auf, mein Licht, brenne auf, mein Licht,
aber nur meine liebe Laterne nicht.

• “Ich geh’ mit meiner Laterne“

Ich geh’ mit meiner Laterne
und meine Laterne mit mir.
Dort oben leuchten die Sterne,
und unten, da leuchten wir.
Mein Licht ist aus,
ich geh’ nach Haus,
rabimmel, rabammel, rabum.

Mein Licht ist aus,
ich geh’ nach Haus,
rabimmel, rabammel, rabum.

• “Sankt Martin”

Sankt Martin, Sankt Martin, Sankt Martin
Ritt durch Schnee und Wind,
sein Ross das trug ihn fort geschwind.
Sankt Martin ritt mit leichtem Mut:
Sein Mantel deckt’ ihn warm und gut.

Im Schnee da sass ein armer Mann,
hatt‘ Kleider nicht, hatt‘ Lumpen an.
O helft mir doch in meiner Not,
sonst ist der bittre Frost mein Tod!

Sankt Martin zog die Zügel an,
sein Ross stand still beim armen Mann,
Sankt Martin mit dem Schwerte teilt‘
Den warmen Mantel unverweilt.

Sankt Martin gab den halben still,
der Bettler rasch ihm danken will.
Sankt Martin aber ritt in Eil‘
hinweg mit seinem Mantelteil.

Stephen Janetzko

• “Brenn, Laterne” – Hand in Hand
• “Kleines Laternenlied” – Herbst, Halloween & Laterne
• “La-La-Laterne” – Brenn, Laterne
• “Laterne, zeige mir den Weg” – Herbst, Halloween & Laterne

Other

• “Durch die Straßen” – Blankenlocher Pfinzspatzen, Lieder der Grundschule Vol. 1

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FINGER PLAYS:

• Gans basteln + Fingerspiel
• Fingerspiel zu den Liedern

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CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES:

• Laterne basteln

Here is a slightly simpler version of the same craft.  You need: paper, scissors, glue/tape/stapler

1. Have the child color on the paper to decorate the lantern.
2. Cut about an inch off of the top of the paper, set aside.
3. Then fold the paper lengthwise. Make cuts from the fold to about an inch from the edge, about an inch apart.
4. Open the paper back up. Make into a cylinder by joining the short edges of the paper and then secure with glue, tape, or stapler.
5. Use the strip of paper you set aside to create a handle for the lantern by fastening it to opposite sides at the top of the lantern.

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COLORING:

• Coloring pages for Martinstag

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FOOD:

• Brezeln (pretzels)
• Goose cookies
• bake Weckmänner – a yeast bread in the shape of a man

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DVDs, YouTube, AUDIO BOOKS:

• “Martinslied” by KuhKatze
• Lots of other videos are available on YouTube by searching the titles of the two main songs.

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FIELD TRIPS:

• Some communities with larger German populations have a lantern parade. Perhaps yours is one of them? Or organize your own parade!

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VOCABULARY: 

• Martinstag Wortschatz Wortschatz (opens as a Word document)

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Language Theme: At the Zoo November 4, 2012

I’m really trying to keep up with the language themes! Each one is lasting about two weeks. It’s taking me a little longer to get everything organized and posted here – I’m probably about a week behind. But I think Aleksander is enjoying the “new” toys, games, etc. I collect all the supplies in a basket. He mostly plays with them with his babysitter, Esther. The items listed here are in general age-appropriate for Aleksander at 2.5 – 3.

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BOOKS:

• The Mixed-up Chameleon [Chamäleon Kunterbunt] by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2007) – We only have this one in English, so it has to be translated into German.
• 1, 2, 3 to the Zoo by Eric Carle (Philomel, 1996) – This book doesn’t have any words, so you can read it in any language you like!
• Tier-ABC by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2009)
• Von Kopf bis Fuß by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2011)
• Hallo, lieber Eisbär by Sandra Grimm (Ravensburger, 2007)
• Spiel mit Charlie  by Marcus Pfister (Nord-Sued Verlag, 2008)
• Miffy im Zoo by Dick Bruna (Titania-Verlag, 2011) – Miffy is originally a Dutch character (aka Nijntje)
• Goodnight Gorilla by Peggy Rathmann (Putnam, 1996) – Another English book with few words that can easily be translated into German
• Zoo Wimmelbuch: Das große Wimmelbilderbuch mit vielen Tieren und Geschichten by Meike Teichmann (Wimmelbuchverlag, 2012)

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SONGS:

I’ve categorized the songs according to album. Some songs can be downloaded from iTunes; others were ordered by album through Amazon.de. Surprisingly, I had very few songs that fit this topic!

Die 30 besten Spiel- und Bewegungslieder, Vol. 1

• “Unserkleiner Bär im Zoo”
• “Was müssen das für Bäume sein?”

Die 30 besten Spiel- und Bewegungslieder, Vol. 2

• “Zwei lange Schlangen”
• “Das Krokodil vom Nil”

Eric Carle Hörspiele (audio books): David Carlisle, Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt

• “Die Affenmutter liebt ihr Kind”

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FINGER PLAYS:

• Da kommt der Bär

Da kommt der Bär,
der tappt so schwer.
Da kommt die Maus,
rennt schnell ins Haus -
da hinein, da hinein!

Mit allen Fingern langsam über den Bauch laufen und dabei “schwer” auftappen. Die flinke Maus kommt gleich hinterher. Fangen Sie unten am Bauch an und laufen Sie hinauf bis unters Kinn.

• Der Elefant

Ein Elefant
kommt über die Steppe gerannt,
zwickt dich ins Knie,
zwick, zwack!
So ein Schabernack!
Und zum Schluss
gibt er dir ‘nen dicken Kuss.

Mit allen Fingern am Bein hoch “rennen”, ins Knie zwicken und am Schluss einen Kuss geben.

• Vögel

Alle meine Fingerlein
wollen heute Vögel sein.
Sie fliegen hoch,
sie fliegen nieder,
sie fliegen fort,
sie kommen wieder.
Sie bauen sich im Wald ein Nest.
Dort schlafen sie dann tief und fest.

Halten Sie beide Hände in der Luft und wackeln Sie mit den Fingern. Bei “fliegen hoch” die Arme nach oben strecken, bei “fliegen nieder” nach unten, bei “fliegen fort” zur Seite. Bei “kommen wieder” ziehen Sie die Arme wieder zu sich. Schließlich landen Sie auf dem Kopf des Kindes und streicheln es.

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GAMES:

• As usual, I went around the house and collected all the toys I could find that were related to the zoo theme: Lego’s, Playmobil, a puzzle, and some magnets.

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CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES:

• I always try to find stickers to go with our theme. We keep a sticker book (just a small spiral notebook I got for $1), and Aleksander loves filling it up! I’ve found some great deals at ACMoore: they have themed packets of stickers, each containing several hundred for only $1!
• I found this link to safari crafts, but most of them fit the theme. I ended up choosing the one of the lion’s face. Aleksander helped glue on the spiral pasta and color the lion’s face.

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COLORING:

• Wieso? Weshalb? Warum? Malen, spielen und rätseln: Zoo (Ravensburger, 2010) – This book is a little advanced for Aleksander (meant for age 5+), but it has nice pictures to color.
• I also like the Crayola site for pictures to print.
• Another good site for simple images to color is this one of preschool coloring pages. The only thing is that the images also have the word written in English.

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FOOD:

• make cookies in animal shapes (I guess I need some more cookie cutters!)
• animal crackers

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DVDs & YouTube:

• Chamäleon Kunterbunt on DVD. (Part of Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt DVD)
• Kleiner Eisbär – This is a full-length animated film based on the books. You can also find excerpts on YouTube.

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VOCABULARY: 

• Zoo Wortschatz (opens as a Word document)
• Chamäleon Kunterbunt Wortschatz (opens as a Word document): images of the animals from the story along with their names, attributes, and distinctive body parts. When I was teaching at the Saturday school, I used these as a kind of matching game in a classroom activity to go along with viewing the DVD.
• I also cut out a bunch of images and laminated them! (Yes, the teacher in me is still alive and well! ) On the back, I wrote the word with the article and plural – more for my own learning than Aleksander’s at this point!

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Language Theme: Happy Birthday! October 22, 2012

Aleksander will turn 3 on November 15th. However, I will also be 38 weeks pregnant at that time! So we decided to celebrate a month early, which also coincides with a visit from his Oma & Opa from the Netherlands. In preparation for the party, I thought our next theme would center on birthdays and parties. The party itself is going to have an Elmo / Sesame Street theme, so some of the ideas here are also centered on these beloved characters.

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BOOKS:

• Riesenparty für den Tiger: Die Geschichte, wie der kleine Tiger einmal Geburtstag hatte  by Janosch (Beltz & Gelberg, 2012) – This one might be a little advanced for Aleksander: the recommended age is 4-6 years old.
• We don’t have any other birthday or party books in German! So I’ll have to resort to translating the few we have in English.

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SONGS:

Stephen Janetzko (available on iTunes)

• “Geburtstag, Geburtstag”
• “Geburtstag ist heut’!”
• “Geburtstag im Mai”
• “Kürbis Bruno hat Geburtstag (Happy Birthday-Party)”

The Party Kids

• “Geburtstag, Geburtstag”
• “Die Maus die hat Geburtstag”
• “Weil du heut Geburtstag hast”

Other (*available on iTunes)

• “Backe, backe Kuchen” – The Right Side Singers, In der Weihnachtsbäckerei*
• “Du hast Geburtstag” – Das Spardosen-Terzett, Neues aus Vogelheim*
• “Das Geburtstagslied” – David Carlisle, Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt
• “Heute ha-ha-habe ich Geburtstag” – Die Prinzen, Alles mit’m Mund (this is not a children’s song! I just couldn’t resist )*
• “Wie schön, dass du geboren bist” – Rolf Zuckowski und seine Freund, Im Kindergarten (this version not available on iTunes, but other versions are)
• “Wir werden immer größer” – Die Strolche, Kindergarten Hits Folge 1- Große Lieder für kleine Rocker*
• “Zu deinem dritten Geburtstag” – Reinhard Mey, Mein Apfelbäumchen*

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GAMES:

• Birthday Bingo for toddlers – Because the game is made up of pictures, you could really adapt it to any language.
• I found a Sesame Street birthday puzzle at Target and collected all of our Sesame Street toys, books, and dolls for Aleksander & his party guests to play with.

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CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES:

• Handprint in clay: 1. Roll a ball of salt clay to one inch (2.5cm) thick. 2a. Press hand firmly into the clay. 2b. Use a pointed tool to write the name and date in the clay. 3. Allow to dry completely (2-3 days). 4. Paint handprint with poster paint.
• Make a picture collage.

• Aleksander has a great love of party hats these days (not to wear – just to see!), so we made an Elmo party hat for him. The template can be found on this website (you have to sign up, but it’s free).

• Use colorful strips of paper to make a garland decoration. Aleksander helped glue the pieces together, but he seemed more interested in just putting the glue stick on plain paper

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COLORING:

• There are lots of free coloring pages to be found through a quick google search! Here is a site with many for the topic “Geburtstag”.
• Here is a site to print Sesame Street coloring pages – there is one of Elmo holding a present.

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FOOD:

• Birthday cake or cupcakes. We also had Sesame Street inspired food, such as Monster Chip Cookies, pumpkin bread in shapes, goldfish, and Elmo crackers, along with Sesame Street drink boxes (from Apple & Eve, available at Target and Whole Foods).

 

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DVDs, YouTube, AUDIO BOOKS:

DVD

• Bob the Builder: “Wendy und die Party” (Folge 19)
• Kleiner roter Traktor: “Der kleine roter Traktor hat Geburtstag” (DVD 3, Folge 14-19)

YouTube

• Sesamstraße – “Außer Atem” – Grobi versucht, die Kerzen auf seinem Geburtstagskuchen auszublasen.
• Piggeldy und Frederick – “Der Geburtstag” – Piggeldy möchte wissen, was ein “Geburtstag” ist, weiß aber nicht, wann er eigentlich selbst Geburtstag hat. Da es bisher auch nie eine Geburtagsfeier gab, ist Piggeldy darüber ganz traurig. Aber Frederick hat eine tröstende Idee.

Audio Book

• Conni hat Geburtstag – audio CD (I thought I was buying the book, but the CD arrived instead! It is about 24 minutes long but is broken down into 6 segments of no more than 6.5 minutes each.)

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VOCABULARY: 

• Geburtstag Wortschatz (opens as a Word document)

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Language Theme: Insects October 6, 2012

Now that we have Esther babysitting and speaking German with Aleksander, I thought I would try to get back to the idea of language themes. It’s something they can do together to give their time a little more focus. Aleksander has been obsessed lately with the audio books and songs related to Eric Carle and die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt [The Very Hungry Caterpillar]. (You can see more about those in this post.) The items listed here are in general age-appropriate for Aleksander at 2.5 – 3.

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BOOKS:

• Das kleine Glühwürmchen by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2011)
• Die kleine Grille singt ihr Lied  by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2007)
• Die kleine Spinne spinnt und schweigt  by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2010)
• Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt  by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2007)

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SONGS:

I’ve categorized the songs according to album. Some songs can be downloaded from iTunes; others were ordered by album through Amazon.de. Where possible, I’ve given the lyrics.

Die 30 besten Spiel- und Bewegungslieder, Vol. 1

• “Das rote Pferd”

Die 30 besten Spiel- und Bewegungslieder, Vol. 2

• “Das Käferlied”
• “Ich bin ‘ne kleine Schnecke”

Ich bin ‘ne kleine Schnecke und keine Maus,
ich rühr mich nicht vom Flecke und kann nicht raus,
spazier hier niemals allein,
es muss schon einer bei mir sein.
Anna, Anna, Anna soll es sein,
komm zu mir in den Kreis hinein.

• “Schmetterling, Du kleines Ding”

Schmetterling, du kleines Ding,
such dir eine Tänzerin!
Juchheirassa, juchheirassa,
oh, wie lustig tanzt man da.
Lustig, lustig wie der Wind,
wie ein kleines Blumenkind,
lustig, lustig wie der Wind,
wie ein Blumenkind.

• “Erst kommt der Sonnenkäferpapa”

Erst kommt der Sonnenkäferpapa,
dann kommt die Sonnenkäfermama.
Und hinterdrein, ganz klitzeklein
die Sonnenkäferkinderlein.
Sie haben rote Röckchen an
mit kleinen schwarzen Pünktchen dran.
So machen sie den Sonntagsgang
auf unsrer Gartenbank entlang.
Sie schauen noch dem Wetter aus,
da wird gewiss ein Gewitter draus.
Erst schaut Papa, dann schaut Mama
und dann die Käferkinderschar.
Jetzt wolln sie auf die Wiese gehen
und all die schönen Blumen sehen.
Sie tanzen lustig Ringelreihn,
zuerst allein und dann zu zweien.
Nun muss das Spiel zu Ende sein,
denn müde sind die Käferlein.
Sie breiten ihre Flügel aus und
fliegen alle schnell nach Haus.

• “Kleine Schnecke”

Kleine Schnecke, kleine Schnecke,
krabbelt rauf, krabbelt rauf,
krabbelt wieder runter, krabbelt wieder runter,
kitzelt dich am Bauch, kitzelt dich am Bauch.
… kitzelt dich am Bauch, an der Nase auch.
… kitzelt dich am Bauch, an den Ohren auch.
… kitzelt dich am Bauch, an den Füßen auch.

Nena

• “Ameisen” – Himmel, Sond, Wind und Regen
• “Libellen” – Himmel, Sond, Wind und Regen
• “Die Wanze” – Komm, lieber Mai

Auf der Mauer, auf der Lauer liegt ‘ne kleine Wanze.
Seht euch mal die Wanze an, wie die Wanze tanzen kann!
Auf der Mauer, auf der Lauer liegt ‘ne kleine Wanze.

Eric Carle

• “Das Lied von der Raupe Nimmersatt” – Stephen Janetzko, Krabbel-Hits für Krabbel-Kids
• “Nimmersatt Singspiel” – Viktor Christen, Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt Singspiel
• “Der Schmetterling erinnert sich” – Viktor Christen, Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt Singspiel

Eric Carle Hörspiele (audio books): David Carlisle, Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt

• “Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt”
• “Die kleine Grille singt ihr Lied”
• “Das kleine Glühwürmchen”
• “Die kleine Spinne spinnt und schweigt”

Other

• “Summ, summ, summ” – Knabenchor Hanover, Sing mit!
• “Eine kleine Spinne” – Die Kindergarten-Kids, Willkommen im Kindergarten
• “Pfui Spinne” – Michi Vogt, Hallo Halloween
• “Die winzig kleine Spinne”

Die winzig kleine Spinne kroch auf den Wasserhahn,
dann kam der Regen und warf sie aus der Bahn,
dann kam die Sonne und trocknet’s wieder auf,
und die winzig kleine Spinne kroch wiederum hinauf.

Variationen:

-  “Die riesen-große Spinne” (mit ganzen Händen)
-  “Die kitz’lige-witz’lige Spinne” (das Kind von unten nach oben kitzeln!)

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FINGER PLAYS:

• Kleine Schnecke

Kleine Schnecke, kleine Schnecke
krabbelt rauf, krabbelt rauf
krabbelt wieder runter, krabbelt wieder runter,
kitzelt auf dem Bauch, kitzelt auf dem Bauch.

Finger krabbeln von den Füßen bis zum Kopf des Kindes und kitzeln dann seinen Bauch.
Volksweise aus Frankreich, Melodie: “Bruder Jakob”

• Die Fliege

Sehet, Kinder, seht mal an,
wie die Fliege fliegen kann: (Zeigefinger einer Hand schwirrt herum)
Rundherum und in die Höh.
Doch da kommt der Frosch, o weh (andere Hand kommt angehüpft)
— quack, quack, quack —
und eins, zwei, drei,
mit der Fliege ist‘s vorbei. (der Finger wird geschnappt)

• Der Sonnenkäferpappa

Erst kommt der Sonnenkäferpapa;
dann kommt die Sonnenkäfermama!
Und hinterdrein, ganz kitzeklein, die Sonnenkäferkinderlein.
Und hinterdrein, ganz kitzeklein, die Sonnenkäferkinderlein.

Sie haben rote Röckchen an,
mit kleinen schwarzen Pünktchen dran.
Sie machen ihren Sonntagsgang
auf unsrer Fensterbank entlang.

Zuerst mit einzelnen, dann mit allen Fingern über das Kind krabbeln.

• Kleiner Käfer

Kleiner Käfer, kleiner Käfer
flieg herbei, flieg herbei,
zeig mir deine Punkte, zeig mir deine Punkte,
eins, zwei, drei, eins, zwei, drei.

Zuerst die Hand in der Luft kreisen, dann mit den Fingern wackeln. Bei “eins, zwei, drei” den Kind leicht auf die Stirn tippen.

• Das Käferkind

Das Käferkindlein ist geschmückt
mit sieben kleinen Pünktchen:
am Füßchen eins, am Beinchen eins,
am Händchen eins, am Ärmchen eins,
am Bäckchen eins, am Öhrchen eins.
Und eines, ein Kitzekleines,
ist mitten auf der Nase.

Nacheinander werden der Fuß, das Bein, die Hand, der Arm, der Bauch, die Wange, das Ohr und schließlich die Nasenspitze angetippt.

• Die Fliege summ-summ-summ

Schau, die Fliege summ-summ-summ
fliegt um deinen Kopf herum,
fühlt sich so bei dir zu Haus’,
ruht sich auf [der Nase] aus.

Nehmen Sie eine imaginäre Fliege zwischen Daumen und Zeigefinger und fliegen damit dem Kind um den Kopf herum. Schließlich landet die irgendwo (z.B. auf der Nase, dem Bauch, den Armen usw.).

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GAMES:

• Puzzle piece hide-and-seek: Esther came up with this fun game for Aleksander. She took the pieces from his insect puzzle and hid them around the room. Aleksander would then look for the pieces, and when he found one, he would put it in the puzzle and say the word in German. They had so much fun with it, they played it over and over!
• I collected all the puzzles  and other toys, such as Lego’s and little lady bug & caterpillar toys, I could find around the house that had to do with the insect theme.

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CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES:

• Butterfly mobile
• I also try to find stickers to go with our theme. We keep a sticker book (just a small spiral notebook I got for $1), and Aleksander loves filling it up!
• Marienkäfer & Spinne [lady bug & spider] paper plate craft

• Rock art: Esther & Aleksander colored images on some flat rocks they found in the yard

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COLORING:

• There are lots of free coloring pages to be found through a quick google search! Here is one for a bug party.
• I also found a coloring/activity book of “Elmo’s World: Bugs!” at our local pharmacy. I of course made copies of the pictures for Aleksander to color, so I could keep the originals for future use!
• Here is a site to print Sesame Street coloring pages – there is one of Elmo catching butterflies.
• Another site with coloring pages and other activities.

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FOOD:

• make cookies in insect shapes (we have a caterpillar cookie cutter from Aleksander’s birthday party last year)
• ants on a log (celery with peanut butter and raisins) – this isn’t something Aleksander eats at age 2, but maybe one day….

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DVDs & YouTube:

• Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt on DVD. It also has die kleine Grille singt ihr Lied. (Sometimes you can find these on YouTube as well.)

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VOCABULARY: 

•   Insekten Wortschatz (opens as a Word document)

I’ve written a book! September 25, 2012

I recently got a great deal on a photo book through Shutterfly. But I couldn’t quite decide what to put in it. So I got the idea to try to use it to write a picture book in German for Aleksander (and me, too!). I figured I should choose a topic for which I could take the pictures. So I decided on one that gives me an awful lot of trouble: cooking! I have a lot of vocabulary for food in German. But I don’t know many of the utensils or the verbs and phrases I need. Aleksander and I have been making pancakes somewhat regularly lately, and the lack of words I needed was really starting to annoy me. So that’s what I wrote about!

Yesterday we made pancakes together, and I took lots and lots of pictures. I even made him a chef’s hat! (He wanted absolutely nothing to do with it, but luckily PER coaxed him in to putting it on tonight!) I tried to make the book so that it not only told a story but also helped teach vocabulary. I included a list of words in the back. And also put in the recipe, of course! (Although that was tricky, since measurements are done differently here and in Germany. So it turned into a combo of English measurements with German words.)

I just ordered the book and can’t wait to see in person how it turned out! If you’d like to head over to Shutterfly to take a look, click here.

Finding Inspiration July 9, 2012

Yesterday I was finally getting back into a German groove with Aleksander. As I searched my brain for a song to sing to him as I put him down for his nap, I was horrified to find I could hardly think of a single German song! What?! What happened to all the fabulous songs I’d added to my repertoire??? They seemed to have vanished. Uh oh. I’ve really done it now. I knew it had been too long since I’d spoken German regularly with Aleksander, but this was a big wake-up call.

I’ve also had something of a revelation about myself recently. I get so excited about new ideas and throw myself completely into them. After the initial excitement begins to fade, so does my commitment to following through with them. Examples you may have read about? How about the Multilingual Living Language Challenge … themed language learning … even running the German story hour at our local library. And these are just the few that are related to language. [sigh] In an attempt to reduce self-judgment (thanks in large part to my meditation class – to which I have similar commitment issues), I’m trying not to feel guilty about my lack of dedication but rather accept where I am and even have some compassion for myself. [ahhhh] So what I realize is that this pattern does not have to be a bad thing. I love the enthusiasm I feel when a new idea strikes. And even if the intensity of it doesn’t stick, it doesn’t mean I have to give up on the idea completely (which I am liable to do if I let the guilt take over). As Aleksander says throughout the day when he doesn’t get something right: “TRY AGAIN!” I love that Not only is it amazing that he knows that (at least most of the time), but he reminds me of it, too! I can pick up right where I am and start again from there.

Besides, you never know where one idea is going to lead. Although I am taking a long hiatus from running the German story hour at our library, something very exciting has happened because of the work I began. Several parents showed up looking for the story hour a few weeks ago, and when they discovered there was no story hour to attend, the librarian offered to let them stay and use the reading room for the kids to play. As a result, the library is offering a weekly time for a German playdate!!! I’m so thrilled to hear of this wonderful development! Although I haven’t been able to attend it yet (I plan to this Friday), I am still keeping a small hand in it by managing an email list and sending out reminders each week.

So, back to my wake-up call. At first Aleksander was rejecting my occasional attempts to speak German with him, but as I persisted he came around. And I’m pleased to say my idea of German-only DVDs is working out pretty well. His current favorites are Bob der Baumeister (Bob the Builder) and Kleiner roter Traktor (Little Red Tractor) – both British shows that we watch in German.

And otherwise, all I can do is continue to try – and try again!

Language Theme: On the Farm June 11, 2012

A little over a month ago, I wrote a post about themed language learning at home. I also added a page with lots of ideas. Now I’m ready to publish my first collection of ideas for a specific theme: Auf dem Bauernhof [On the Farm]. It’s by no means a comprehensive list. It’s based primarily on the items we have already in our home.

I’m still slowly getting into the process of actually working with this theme with Aleksander. Primarily because we’re only just home a week from the Netherlands. Between jet-lag and a bad cold with fever, I have been pretty inconsistent with speaking German. This morning when I went in to Aleksander’s room and started to speak German, he started bawling! Yikes! I think he was just tired and cranky from his cold. Later when we got in the car he (thankfully!) requested German songs.

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BOOKS:

I’ve listed the books we have in alphabetical order. My favorites for Aleksander at around age 2 are Schweinchen auf dem Bauernhof (simple story, great pictures, includes pictures with vocabulary on the right page) and Die kleine Spinne spinnt und schweigt (not only does it have all the farm animals, it also has the sounds they make – I never knew even animals talk differently in German!)

• Auf dem Bauernhof – Mini Lesemaus Bd. 9 – by Anne Ebert (Carlsen, 2004)

• Bauernhof-Geschichten: 3-Minuten-Geschichten zum Vorlesen by Julia Hofmann (Carlsen, 2009)

• Bobo auf dem Bauernhof by Markus Osterwalder (Rowohlt, 2010)

• Connie auf dem Bauernhof – Pixi – by Liane Schneider (Carlsen, 20120)

• Entdecke den Bauernhof – Pixi-Serie 180 Nr. 1615 – by Sabine von der Decken (Carlsen, 2008)

[no image yet]

• Die kleine Spinne spinnt und schweigt  by Eric Carle (Gerstenberg, 2010)

• Kleine Tiere (Bilder sehen und Wörter lernen) by Sandra Ladwig (Carlsen, 2010)

• Klingelingeling  by Nicola Smee (Bloomsbury Kinderbücher & Jugendbücher, 2010)

• Schweinchen auf dem Bauernhof  by Charlotte Stowell (Parragon, 2008)

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SONGS:

• Alle meine Entchen
• Blinde Kuh suche du
• Die Frösche sind ein lustig Chor
• Fuchs du hast die Gans gestohlen
• Hejo, spann den Wagen an
• Heut’ ist ein Fest bei den Fröschen
• Hopp, hopp, hopp
• Hoppe, Hoppe Reiter
• Im Märzen der Bauer
• Kirschen
• Die kleinen Weidenkätzchen
• Spannenlanger Hansel
• Die Wanze
• Wide Wide Wene heisst meine Puthenne
• Zogen einst fünf wilde Schwäne

* Most lyrics can be found on sites like Labbe (with musical notes) and Mama Lisa’s World (including English translation).
* Many songs can be downloaded from iTunes.

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FINGER PLAYS:

• Alle Meine Fingerlein

Alle meine Fingerlein
sollen heut mal Tierlein sein.

Dieser Daumen ist das Schwein,
dick und fett und ganz allein.
Zeigefinger ist das stolze Pferd
von dem Reiter hochverehrt.
Mittelfinger ist die bunte Kuh,
die im Stalle schreit muh, muh.
Ringfinger ist der Ziegenbock,
mit dem langen Zottelrock
Und das kleine Fingerlein,
soll mein liebes Schäflein sein.

Tierlein, Tierlein, hopp, hopp, hopp,
laufen immer im Galopp,
laufen in den Stall hinein,
denn es wird bald Abend sein.

Another version:

Alle meine Fingerlein
sollen jetzt mal Tiere sein!
Dieser Daumen dick und run
ist der schwarze Schäferhund.
Zeigefinger ist ein Pferd,
das die Kinder reiten lehrt.
Der Mittelfinger ist die Kuh,
die gibt Milch ohne Rast und Ruh.
Ringfinder ist das Schwein
mit vielen Ferkeln klitzeklein.
Kleiner Finger ritz-ratz
ist die weiße Miezekatz.
Nacht sind alle fünf im Stall,
hör nur, wie sie schnarchen all.

• Die Fliege

Sehet, Kinder, seht mal an,
wie die Fliege fliegen kann: (Zeigefinger einer Hand schwirrt herum)
Rundherum und in die Höh.
Doch da kommt der Frosch, o weh (andere Hand kommt angehüpft)
— quack, quack, quack —
und eins, zwei, drei,
mit der Fliege ist‘s vorbei. (der Finger wird geschnappt)

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KNEE BOUNCERS:

• Hoppe, hoppe Reiter

Hoppe, hoppe Reiter,
wenn er fällt dann schreit er.
Fällt er in den Graben,
fressen ihn die Raben.
Fällt er in die Hecken,
fressen ihn die Schnecken.
Finden ihn die Müllermücken,
die ihn vorn und hinten zwicken.
Fällt er in den Sumpf,
macht der Reiter plumps.

(Bounce child on your lap. Child falls off with the word “plumps”!)

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RHYMES:

• Muh, muh, muh!

Muh, muh, muh! So ruft im Stall die Kuh.
Die gibt uns Milch und Butter,
wir geben ihr das Futter.
Muh, muh, muh! So ruft im Stall die Kuh.

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GAMES:

• Magnetic Farm

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CRAFTS & ACTIVITIES:

I’m still working on this….

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COLORING:

There are lots of free coloring pages to be found through a quick google search! Here is one for farm animals.

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FOOD:

• animal crackers
• make cookies in animal shapes

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DVDs, YouTube, AUDIO BOOKS:

• Kleiner roter Traktor in YouTube – each episode is about 10 minutes long or less (We also have one DVD from the series.)

 

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FIELD TRIPS:

• Petting Zoo – I thought we’d try Elmwood Park Zoo, which is supposed to be a nice size for a toddler and does also include a petting zoo.

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PICTURES & IMAGES:

• Flashcards

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VOCABULARY: 

•   Bauernhof Wortschatz (opens as a Word document)

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OTHER MATERIALS FOR PARENTS & OLDER CHILDREN:

• Bauernhoftiere – Pixi Wissen Bd 43 (Carlsen, 2010)

Small Steps Forward May 11, 2012

How many times have I written about my frustrations with my inability to continue speaking German with Aleksander when others are around? Well, I think I may have had a breakthrough! In large part, I have Aleksander to thank for it. Since he’s become more aware of these two languages and the schedule of speaking German before his nap and English afterward, he lets me know immediately when I slip and speak the wrong language. So my little language policeman keeps me line and makes sure I am speaking German when I’m supposed to!

My parents recently came to visit for a whole week. And I managed to speak an awful lot of German to Aleksander! As if that wasn’t great enough, because of all the repetition of words (both from me and from Aleksander), my mom was able to pick up some basic vocabulary. She’s understanding more and more and starting to say a few words, too. I’m not sure how much she’ll be able to speak though. Not for her own lack of interest, but rather Aleksander was NOT happy with his Dearie speaking German! No, no. Mama speaks German – not Daddy (despite the fact that he can), and certainly not Dearie. This simply is not right! He reacts the same way when I try to speak Dutch (not that I really can, but I do know my numbers up to 10!). No, Mama is not allowed to speak Dutch – just Daddy. I find it fascinating that he is so aware of the differences between the languages and who speaks which one.

It seems to me that Aleksander is also speaking more German. He speaks more when it’s just the two of us. It seems that when there are other English-speakers around, it interferes with his German. But when we’re alone, he’s more consistent. He does still mix English and German sometimes. So far, I still just repeat what he’s saying in German. And he’s starting to then repeat the German.

One of his favorite things these days is the stop sign. When we’re in the car, he points out every single stop sign we pass: “Noch ein Stopschild!” he calls out [another stop sign!]. I have to admit it gets a little tedious (who knew there were soooooo many stop signs around?!), but he is so excited that his enthusiasm is contagious, and I find myself echoing him

Things have not been going too well at our German story time lately. Aleksander simply does not like it when Mama reads aloud to the group. He is so disruptive. He keeps repeating, “nein, nein, nein” [no, no, no] and tries to close the book. I thought that maybe if someone came with us it might help. So last time my mom came along, but nothing changed. So if he won’t sit with his Dearie, I can’t imagine he’d sit with a babysitter. My mom ended up taking him out of the room for the whole session. I just haven’t been able to figure out how to be both teacher and mother at the same time. So I think our next session will be our last. I’m disappointed, of course. But if Aleksander isn’t getting any benefit from it, then it doesn’t make a lot of sense. Perhaps we’ll try again when he’s a little bit older….

In the meantime, Anika and I have finally found the time to start our German playdates!! After we get back from our trip to the Netherlands, we’re going to start getting the boys together weekly. I’m working on a plan to have about 20-30 minutes of structure at the beginning – a song or two, a book, an activity. It’s actually a lot like what I was preparing for the story time. And it has a lot in common with the idea of creating targeted language themes. I’m really excited about these playdates. I think it’s going to be hugely beneficial to Aleksander. And I plan to bring a notebook to write down things I learn from Anika!

Focused Language Learning at Home April 25, 2012

Bonne Mama just posted a fantastic idea on her blog (Our Non-Native Bilingual Adventure) about creating themes for focusing on language learning with her toddler and baby. I’m so excited about it, I can’t stop thinking about it! It has a lot in common with what I’m already doing with my German story time, but at home with Aleksander I could expand upon it even more. The idea is to pick a topic such as farm animals, weather, holidays, etc. and look for resources and materials to use with our children to enhance their language learning. It doesn’t have to be terribly complicated (although knowing myself, I probably will spend way too much time researching and looking for materials!) – you can just use things you already have such as books, songs, food, etc.

I have to admit I have completely let go of my ambitions to follow Multilingual Livings Language Challenge. I still check out some of the posts occasionally, but I just couldn’t commit to it. (I think I have a pretty good reason, but that will have to wait for another post….) But this idea from Bonne Mama has me so excited, I want to start working on it right away! It’s just the kind of thing I love to do, so I figure this can be my new focus for the language challenge.

I thought I’d begin here by sharing the basic ideas of themes and categories I might want to focus on. Most of the themes come from books and songs we already have at home. I’ve already been collecting them in a spreadsheet for my story time, so it’s easy enough just to expand it. I have to thank Bonne Mama for some of these ideas, too! Some of the themes easily overlap, but I think that can be a good thing for reinforcement. Also note, my spreadsheet is in German, and in that list the themes are alphabetized – doesn’t quite translate here!

THEMES:

• alphabet
• outings / travel
• bathtime
• on the farm
• by day and night (I really wanted to focus on lullabies here, so I did books/songs about waking up & going to sleep)
• jungle
• Eric Carle
• food
• vehicles
• colors
• airplane
• shapes
• friends
• at home
• helping hands (this comes from books where the themes is helping each other)
• insects
• body parts
• nature
• playground
• in town / in the city
• days of the week
• animals
• birds
• water
• Winnie the Pooh
• at the zoo
• trains
• Valentines’ Day
• Easter
• Mother’s & Father’s Day
• Halloween
• Martinstag (St Martin’s Day)
• Nikolaus
• Weihnacht
• seasons
• winter / snow
• spring
• weather

MATERIALS:

• books
• songs
• fingerplays & knee bouncers
• games, puzzles, toys
• crafts
• coloring pages
• nursery rhymes
• food, recipes
• YouTube, DVDs, audio books
• pictures & photos
• field trips

I don’t exactly when I’ll get this going. I’m still collecting ideas and materials. As soon as I’m ready to go, I’ll post the first theme here, so you can follow along. If you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them!!