Festivals & Traditions: Exam Skills (AQA GCSE German): Revision Note

Write down what you hear in German.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Answers:

1. Wir feiern Karneval im Februar.

2. Der Markt findet am dritten Dezember statt.

3. Ich tanze gern auf Festen.

4. Zu Silvester gibt es ein großes Feuerwerk*.

5. Die Hochzeit war am zwanzigsten Juni.

• *Feuerwerk = fireworks

• Remember that all nouns are capitalised in German: Karneval, Markt, Festen, Silvester, Feuerwerk, Hochzeit

• You will hear each sentence three times - first as a full sentence, then in short sections, then as a full sentence again

• Use the first listen to get the overall meaning, the second to fill in details, and the third to check your spelling carefully

Write down what you hear in German.

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

Answers:

1. Die Tradition des Landes ist sehr historisch.

2. Zu Karneval tanzen und singen die Menschen auf den Straßen.

3. Am ersten März beginnt die Veranstaltung in der Stadt.

4. Ich finde die Stimmung bei Festen immer unvergesslich.

5. Der Karnevalskönig trägt ein buntes Kostüm.

• Sentence 1 contains a genitive construction: des Landes - make sure you use the correct article

• Sentence 2 uses verb-subject inversion after Zu Karneval - notice that the verb tanzen comes before die Menschen

• Sentence 3 uses the date structure am ersten März - remember the ordinal ending -en after am

• unvergesslich and Kostüm are the two unknown words - use context to help you spell them as accurately as possible

• At Higher tier the dictation is a minimum of 30 words

• Use the second listen - when the sentence is broken into short sections - to focus on spelling difficult words like unvergesslich

• You are not expected to know the meaning of unknown words, but rather accurately transcribe them

Prepare the following role-play. Your teacher will play the part of your German friend and will speak first. You should address your friend as du.

Du sprichst mit deinem Freund / deiner Freundin über Feste und Traditionen.

1. Say which festival you want to celebrate. (Give one detail.)

2. Say when the festival takes place. (Give one detail.)

3. Say one thing you do at the festival. (Give one detail.)

4. Give your opinion of the festival. (Give one detail.)

5. ? Ask your friend a question about traditions or celebrations.

Answers - here are some example responses:

1. Ich möchte Karneval feiern.

2. Er findet im Februar statt.

3. Ich tanze und singe.

4. Ich finde es sehr kulturell und historisch.

5. Was machst du zu Silvester?

• Prompt 2 is a good opportunity to use dates - am dritten Februar would also be acceptable here

• Prompt 5 requires a verb - Was machst du...? or Wann feierst du...? are both safe options

• Each response only needs one verb - keep it simple and accurate

Prepare the following role-play. Your teacher will play the part of your German friend and will speak first. You should address your friend as du.

Du sprichst mit deinem Freund / deiner Freundin über Feste und Traditionen.

1. Say which festival you celebrated recently and when it took place. (Give two details.)

2. Describe two things that happened at the festival. (Give two details.)

3. Give your opinion of the festival and explain why. (Give two details.)

4. Say what traditions are important in your family.

5. ? Ask your friend a question about a festival or celebration they have attended.

Answers - here are some example responses:

1. Ich habe letzten Februar Karneval gefeiert. Er hat am dritten Februar stattgefunden.

2. Die Menschen haben bunte Kleidung getragen. Es gab auch ein tolles Feuerwerk.

3. Ich fand die Stimmung des Festes wunderbar, weil die Musik so laut war.

4. Die Tradition der Familie ist sehr wichtig und wir feiern immer alle zusammen.

5. Welches Fest hast du besucht?

• Response 1 uses the perfect tense - hat stattgefunden is a strong verb form to demonstrate at Higher

• Response 3 uses a genitive construction (des Festes) and a weil clause - both are excellent Higher tier structures

• Response 4 uses a second genitive (der Familie) - natural and impressive in context

• The ? prompt should be a genuine question with a verb - Welches...?, Wann...?, Wie findest du...? are all good options

• At Higher tier, try to use a variety of tenses across your responses - the perfect tense in response 1, the imperfect in response 3 (fand, war), and the present in response 4

• Examiners reward students who can move confidently between tenses

Read the article about Carnival and answer the questions in English.

Karneval ist ein sehr beliebtes Fest in Deutschland. Es findet jedes Jahr im Februar oder März statt. Die Menschen tragen bunte Kleidung und tanzen auf den Straßen. Es gibt auch viel Musik.

Karneval ist besonders bekannt in Köln, wo jedes Jahr viele Touristen kommen. Für viele Familien ist Karneval eine wichtige Tradition. Die Menschen sind ausgelassen und feiern die ganze Nacht.

1. When does Carnival take place?

2. Name two things people do at Carnival.

3. Where is Karneval especially well known?

4. What does Karneval represent for many families?

5. Read the last sentence again. What is ausgelassen? Write the correct letter.

   A. tired   
   B. lively   
   C. worried

Answers:

1. Every year in February or March

2. They wear colourful clothing / they dance in the streets (any two)

3. In Cologne

4. An important tradition

5. B - lively

• Use context clues to work out the meaning of unknown words

• The sentence tells us that people are ausgelassen and celebrate all night - the context of a festival celebration points us towards something positive and energetic

• This rules out 'tired' and 'worried', leaving 'lively' as the correct answer

Read the article about Silvester in Germany and answer the questions in English.

Silvester ist eines der beliebtesten Feste des Jahres in Deutschland. Am einunddreißigsten Dezember versammeln* sich Millionen von Menschen in den Städten, um das neue Jahr zu feiern.

Die Stimmung ist immer froh und laut: Man tanzt, singt und genießt die Gesellschaft der Familie und Freunde. Besonders in großen Städten wie Berlin und Köln gibt es einen großen Umzug durch die Stadtmitte, bei dem viele Menschen mitmachen.

Viele Menschen haben jedoch Angst vor dem Lärm und finden die Feier zu gefährlich für Kinder.

*versammeln - to gather, to come together

1. When exactly does Silvester take place?

2. Name three things people do at Silvester.

3. Where is the festival particularly impressive?

4. What are people concerned about? Give two details.

5. Read the last sentence again. What is Umzug? Write the correct letter.
   A. a firework display
   B. a parade through the streets
   C. a concert in the city centre

Answers:

1. On the 31st of December

2. They dance, sing and enjoy the company of family and friends ( any three)

3. In large cities / Berlin and Cologne

4. The noise / the celebration is too dangerous for children (either)

5. B - a parade through the streets

• For unknown words like Feuerwerkskörper, try breaking the compound down - Feuerwerk (fireworks) + Körper (body/object) points clearly to the answer

Translate these sentences into German.

1. An Silvester feiern wir die ganze Nacht.

2. Es gibt immer viel Musik und bunte Kleidung.

3. Meine Familie tanzt und singt zusammen.

4. Der Markt findet jeden Dezember in der Stadt statt.

5. Letztes Jahr habe ich ein tolles Geschenk bekommen.

Answers:

1. On New Year's Eve we celebrate all night.

2. There is always a lot of music and colourful clothing.

3. My family dances and sings together.

4. The market takes place every December in the city.

5. Last year I received a great present.

• Translate meaning accurately - don't translate word for word

• Focus on conveying the meaning clearly and check tenses carefully

Translate these sentences into German.

1. My favourite festival is Carnival because the atmosphere is wonderful.

2. We celebrated New Year's Eve with our friends in the city.

3. In my opinion, traditions are important for families.

4. The market takes place every year on the first of December.

5. Although it is noisy, I find the fireworks at New Year's Eve beautiful.

Answers:

1. Mein Lieblingsfest ist Karneval, weil die Stimmung wunderbar ist.

2. Wir haben Silvester mit unseren Freunden in der Stadt gefeiert.

3. Meiner Meinung nach sind Traditionen wichtig für Familien.

4. Der Markt findet jedes Jahr am ersten Dezember statt.

5. Obwohl es laut ist, finde ich das Feuerwerk zu Silvester schön.

• Sentence 1: Lieblings- is a prefix meaning 'favourite' - attach it directly to the noun: Lieblingsfest

• Sentence 2: the perfect tense requires haben + past participle at the end - wir haben ... gefeiert

• Sentence 3: Meiner Meinung nach sends the verb to position 2 - sind comes immediately after

• Sentence 4: am ersten Dezember - remember the ordinal takes the dative ending -en after am

• Sentence 5: obwohl is a subordinating conjunction - the verb goes to the end of the clause: obwohl es laut ist

• Translation is marked for both accuracy of meaning and quality of language

• Focus on word order - especially after subordinating conjunctions like weil and obwohl, and after adverbial phrases like Meiner Meinung nach

• Getting the verb in the right position will make a significant difference to your mark