Since I wrote about this in May, VideoDownloader and Youtube aren't talking, and VideoDownloader was limited in the number of video sites that it would work with anyway. Much improved solution: Still using Firefox, install the DownloadHelper extension.

When you are on a website with a video, the Downloadhelper icon lights up and spins. Click on the down-arrow beside the icon, and you can select the file and save it to disk. One nice thing about this extension is that the .flv filename extension is there automatically.

This extension won't convert flv videos to other formats, so you will still need a flv-player to play the files.

Labels: all languages, IT tips

This is the title of an excellent puppet show in German by Mana Puppets, who came and did a show for many of my students last Thursday. It is an up-beat and very interactive version of the classical story and the preparatory materials made it easy for the students to participate. Students also have the opportunity to try out using the puppets at the end of the show.

We followed this with Bratwurst from Schultes Meat Tavern at Plainland, west of Ipswich and Brezeln from K & K Austrian Bakery at Sinnamon Park. The students loved both of these, but very few tried the Sauerkraut that was also on offer!

Labels: german, promotion of languages, review

Some online dictionaries (like LEO) offer audio files of words and some phrases. Atip's Proser is the synthesiser that is used by LEO, and by going to their website, you can also create audio files of whole sentences or short paragraphs. The pitch and speed of the various voices (three German, two American, one Turkish, one French) can be customised.

Some Australian speakers have an ingrained habit of having a rising intonation at the end of sentences. If transferred to a language like German, this has the effect of making them sound unsure of what they have said, or constantly in need of affirmation by the listener, as a rising intonation is more generally a marker of questions. I think that listening to a synthesised sentence with different voices and pitches could help students to become more aware of the falling intonation that is preferable at the end of sentences in German.

While not yet a true substitute for a native speaker, the technology behind synthesised audio files is improving, and this makes them useful for checking the pronunciation of unfamiliar words.

A much more frivolous (but fun) use is to put in a long tongue-twister. Challenge yourself or your students to beat the synthesised voice on "extreme fast"!

Labels: English, german, IT tips, teaching ideas

When was the last time you used a joke in German in class? Check out the collection of over 250 jokes that I've put together. All are suitable for classroom use - unlike most of the collections that are online.

Labels: german, jokes, website

The school where I teach German (and other subjects), ran a "Celebration of Languages" incursion for grade 8 students today. These students learn German, Chinese or Japanese, or have English Support classes.

We had about 170 students participating in three 20 minute activities. Two of the activities were craft based - badge (button) making and paper fan decorating - and the students were encouraged to utilise their chosen language/culture in their designs. I ran a quiz competition as the third activity.

The number of students in each group meant that we ran the quiz in two rooms. This meant that while I was in one room, I had to have another teacher (who doesn't teach a language this year) running the quiz in the other room. The success of the quiz can be attributed to the organisation that was done in advance:

• Quiz questions from the three languages/cultures on small cards, with answers


• Instruction sheet for the other teacher to back up the 5 minute "This is what you have to do" run-down.


• Great quiz game controller (from Teacher's Discovery) set up with furniture arranged in groups for the team numbers that were anticipated.


• Prizes (also from Teacher's Discovery - we just don't have a company here with their range of products!) already packaged in labelled bags for the teams that came 1st, 2nd, 3rd etc.

Please let me know if you would like any of the files I created for the quiz.

It was a fun morning and the students were really competitive. We'll certainly be making this event part of our annual calendar. It is a pretty packed time of year for us (in Australia) though, so we would probably hold it in either term 1 or 2 next year instead.

Labels: chinese, german, japanese, promotion of languages