or the English version is on Genki English vol. 1
Lesson Plan for German Teachers...
This song is one of the most popular and the English version was used by "The Last Samurai" star Koyuki on her TV show in Japan. It will stick in your head all day, which makes it great for learning some German. The key is the gestures to accompany each phrase. It might seem like there is a lot here, but as the song is a basic "listen & repeat" the kids pick it up very quickly. Different kids learn in different ways, some visually ( so using picture cards is a good idea), some musically ( hence the song) and some physically ( hence the actions). Trying to combine as many of these different types of learning as you can really helps maximise the number of kids who will remember the lesson for next time. As with the other Genki German songs, the key is to teach the song a capella ( without the music ) first, then introduce the mp3 after a few tries through to get the kids all excited again. For the gestures, it's always best to ask the kids, but here are some examples: "Ich bin hungrig" (they pat their tummies) "Ich bin durstig" - they mime drinking something. "Ich bin müde", (they go to sleep!) "Ich bin traurig" (they pull a sad face) "Ich bin glücklich" + "Ich bin fröhlich" (a big and then a bigger smiley face!) "Ich bin klasse" (thumbs up!) & "Ich bin toll", (they throw their arms in the air!) Enjoy! Once the kids have done the song ( and hence got the German stuck in their heads!) have a try at this game:
This is a variation of the traditional "What time is it, Mr Wolf?" game. This time it's used for practising "Wie geht's?". It's also one of my favourite games at the moment! So have a run through the song, then once the kids have got a grasp of the words, let's try the game.... 1. The kids all line up at one end side of the gym. 2. Explain that this side of the gym is the "safe" side. But the kids really want to get across to the other side, where there is a sweet shop which today has a half price special offer ( this gets the kids very excited!). 3. But, in between the kids and the sweet shop is a monster! At first the teacher is the monster. Ask the kids to guess what your favourite food is. They'll shout out some foods ( in German of course, nice practice!), then you say that your favourite food is human! ( Even bigger reaction from the kids!) 4. Tell them that they can only cross to the sweet shop if the monster is in a good mood and isn't hungry. Ask them how they can check on the mood of the monster. After a moment a few kids will say "Ask him/her "Wie geht's?"" 5. All together the kids ask the monster "Wie geht's?" 6. Do a few "Ich kann sie nicht hören!"s to get the kids to shout in big loud voices ( so that all the kids join in, not just the super genki ones!) 7. The monster says an answer, e.g. "Ich bin klasse". 8. The kids repeat the answer ( important practice!) and move forward one step ( no jumping allowed!). 9. Repeat from 5. 10. But if the answer is "Ich bin hungrig!", the kids have to run back to their safe wall! Any kid who is tagged on the way back becomes a monster for the next round! 11. Play again! This game works a treat and is one of those magic games that the kids play long after the lesson has finished. In the second round there is more than one monster, so I usually get the kids to answer in turn ( just make sure they don't let anyone reach the sweet shop!). I've also tried this game with parents and they also love it, but this time instead of racing to get the half price sweet shop I tell them they are trying to get free beer!! If you like this song, be sure to tell your friends!
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If you like this idea, please tell your friends!
