Learn German in your leisure time
If you want to improve your German or keep your current skills up to par, it is important to keep using the language. Perhaps you already speak a lot of German at work or in your social life, but if not, we have some tips for you to improve your German in your free time.
Tip 1: Use the Pomodoro technique
According to the Pomodoro technique, you should work in a highly focused manner for a block of time, followed by a mandatory break. Can you take ten uninterrupted minutes a day to work on your German with total focus?
We recommend doing the following:
- Check out the ‘Tagesschau in 100 Sekunden'. (https://www.tagesschau.de/100sekunden/)
- Learn 5 new words or phrases related to a particular theme. Write them down in a notebook, or use an app such as Quizlet. Read the words out loud.
- Repeat the words from the previous day.
- Call a customer, supplier or friend, and speak in German.
- Stop after ten minutes.
Tip 2: Find a tandem partner
Improve your German with the help of a native German speaker. Meet up in real life, or communicate using Skype or email. This will get you practising all the different aspects of the language at the same time and learning things like vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar in the most natural way possible. If you need a partner to do this with, take a look at these websites: www.conversationexchange.com and www.tandempartners.org
Tip 3: Listen to TED talks in German
The English language website www.ted.com has short presentations, or ‘talks’, of around 15 minutes. Many of them have been subtitled in German. Choose: Participate / Translate / Our languages / German to see the talks that are available with German subtitles, and then simply turn down the volume to block out the English being spoken. Another option is to search for TED talks in German on YouTube.
Tip 4: Switch to German
Make German the default language on all your devices so you see important words in German every time you use your phone, tablet or laptop.
Tip 5: Make use of social media
You can find some good content for learning German on social media.
Facebook:
- Deutschlernerblog
- News in Slow German
- Slow German Podcast
Twitter:
- @D_Wortschatz
- @GermanPod101
- @deutsch_blog
Instagram: Deutschtraining
And more...
And some great standard go-tos to round things off:
- Listen to German music (www.songtexte.com)
- Read German newspapers (https://www.deutschland.de/de/topic/wissen/ueberregionale-zeitungen#)
- Read a magazine dedicated to learning German (https://www.deutsch-perfekt.com)
- Read German books
- Practise grammar (www.nubeterduits.nl)
- Use apps for learning German
Need more help improving your German?
Do you need more personal assistance learning German? Please contact Language Institute Regina Coeli. Together with you, we determine your current level and goals. We will then look at what you still need to be able to communicate in German with confidence.
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