On the following pages is a small selection of twenty different styles of exercises.

If an exercise has a yellow background, then I have adapted content from the Feuerwerk 1 Arbeitsbuch. Exercises with purple backgrounds are from other sources. These exercises have all been created using the Hot Potatoes software.

What content should computer-based exercises have? They should supplement, rather than supplant, a student workbook. Workbook exercises, for which there are limited correct answers, can easily be made into computer-corrected exercises. Exercises that encourage creative responses can make use of information technology if teachers are willing to receive work as email. Content that is not traditionally in student workbooks should also be considered for inclusion into computer-based exercises. Photostories/texts from the textbook and audio/video material are obvious suggestions. I would also like to suggest that grammatical explanations and learning strategies can also be presented interactively using IT.

I hope that reading through the commentary and experimenting with the exercises will give you insights into the creation of interactive exercises, along with ideas for further possibilities.

Katherine Munro
Website: http://www.germanteaching.com
4 August 2002
Revised October 2003

Click here to proceed to the exercises.