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3.1 Eigenschaften

Hallo alle zusammen!

Zum Aufwärmen machen wir unseren Tagesminiplausch und eine Wiederholung.

Wiederholung

In the previous lessons, you learned how to describe your nuclear family and your family’s origins (deine Herkunft). Let’s review by reading about each famous person in the chart below. Then complete the questions about each person.

Shakira ¡Hola! Ich heiße Shakira. Ich komme aus Kolumbien und bin 47 Jahre alt. Ich bin Kolumbianerin. Ich singe auf Spanisch und Englisch und spreche auch Portugiesisch, Französisch, Italienisch und Arabisch. Connor McDavid Hi, ich heiße Connor McDavid. Ich komme aus Kanada; ich bin Kanadier. Ich bin 27 Jahre alt und ein sehr guter Hockeyspieler. Ich wohne in Edmonton. Ich spreche Englisch und ich spreche nur ein bisschen Französisch. Meine Lieblingsfarben sind orange und blau.
Roger Federer Grüezi! Ich heiße Roger Federer und ich bin 42 Jahre alt. Ich spiele Tennis. Ich komme aus der Schweiz, ich bin also Schweizer. Aber ich habe auch einen Pass aus Südafrika. Ich spreche Deutsch, Englisch und Französisch. Arnold Schwarzenegger Hallo, ich heiße Arnold Schwarzenegger. Ich bin 77 Jahre alt. Ich bin Schauspieler, Bodybuilder, und Politiker. Ich komme aus Österreich und wohne in den USA. Ich spreche Deutsch und Englisch.

 

Jetzt bist du dran!

Using the descriptions above as a general template, introduce yourself, say where you are from, how old you are, where you live, and what languages you speak. Like Connor McDavid, you can also share deine Lieblingsfarbe!

Lektionsüberblick

Being able to describe yourself means being able to name some of your characteristics (Eigenschaften), words that describe how a person is. In this lesson, you will be introduced to a longer list of characteristics with the expectation that you memorize some of the words that are most relevant to you in order to build your active vocabulary and that you review the remaining words as a group without necessarily memorizing them all in order to build your passive vocabulary.  In the end, you will be able to 1) identify characteristics that are cognates, 2) identify opposites formed with an “un-” prefix, and 3) name at least two characteristics that describe yourself.

1) Identify characteristics that are cognates

Many German adjectives that you might use to describe yourself are similar to English. When words between languages are similar, they are called cognates. The chart lists several of these that you should easily be able to recognize without a dictionary. Take a look. How many German words do you recognize? Listen to the audio for each column to hear the difference from the English pronunciation.

Eigenschaften (Characteristics)

athletisch flexibel kreativ objektiv sarkastisch
clever intelligent kritisch optimistisch sentimental
elegant interessant modern pessimistisch sportlich
exzentrisch kompetent naiv positiv sympathisch*
fantastisch konservativ nervös progressiv talentiert
fit

*sympatisch is a bit of a false friend. It means congenial, friendly, simpatico – not sympathetic. (Sympathetic = mitfühlend.)

Practice by answering the questions in the question sets below (be sure to click through to each question).

Jetzt bist du dran!

In your written journal, write down the adjectives above that you relate to.
Now record yourself saying these words in German in your audio journal. Even though these are cognates, the pronunciation is different. If you are feeling unsure, listen to the audio above each column again.

 

Österreich im Blickpunkt: alt ≠ neu

image Der Tiergarten Schönbrunn ist der älteste Zoo der Welt. Kaiser Franz I. Stephan von Lothringen (Maria Theresias Mann) hat den Zoo 1752 gegründet. Der Tiergarten Schönbrunn wurde sechs Mal seit 2008 als besten Zoo Europas ausgezeichnet.

The Tiergarten Schönbrunn is the oldest zoo in the world. Kaiser Franz I. Stephan von Lothringen (Maria Theresia’s husband) established the zoo in 1752. The Tiergarten Schönbrunn was distinguished as Europe’s Best Zoo six times since 2008.

 

2) Identify opposites formed with an “un-” prefix

A nice feature of many German adjectives is that you can add the prefix -un to make the adjective become the opposite attribute.

Jetzt bist du dran!

Are you freundlich or unfreundlich? Pünktlick or unpünktlich? Which of the adjectives that you just learned describe how you generally are? Write those adjectives in your written journal.
Then record yourself saying the adjectives you have chosen aloud! You might need to practice saying it a couple times before recording. Or rerecord, if you are not satisfied.

3) Name at least two characteristics that describe yourself

Bist du freundlich? Bist du intelligent? Let’s learn how to answer. Be sure to click through each question in the question set below.

 

 

If you would like to explore some additional adjectives, you can visit:

 

Jetzt bist du dran!

Focusing on the adjectives you learned during this lesson, which ones resonate with you the most? In a complete sentence, describe how you are. You can use Becca, Roland, and Raj’s answers in the comic above as a template.
Then record yourself saying the sentence. If you can do it immediately without reading, that’s great! Otherwise, practice saying it a couple times before recording. Or rerecord, if you are not satisfied.

 

Zum Schluß

In this lesson, you learned how to 1) identify characteristics that are cognates, 2) identify opposites formed with an “un-” prefix, and 3) name at least two characteristics that describe yourself.  If you are feeling unsure about any part of today’s lesson, go back to that section and review.
Without looking at this lesson or your notes, write down at least two adjectives that are cognates and at least two adjectives that use the prefix –un – bonus if they describe YOU! Now a sentence describing yourself in German (I am…).
Then record yourself in your audio journal. If you can do it immediately without reading, that’s great! Otherwise, practice saying what you’ve learned a couple times before recording. Or rerecord, if you are not satisfied.

*As you conclude this lesson, don’t forget to check Canvas!*

 

 

Media Attributions

Media Attributions

  • Private: 1010-at-banner-large
  • Connor_McDavid_2-FEB-2022-225×289
  • Roger_Federer_18566686046-225×189
  • Photo of Arnold Schwarzenegger by Gage Skidmore, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=80653226
  • 3.1 Eigenschaften _1 comic
  • 3.1 Eigenschaften _3 comic

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