Cool Links

This section gives you a number of very very useful links. If you have suggestion I will gladly have a look but I like my lists short and compact so I won’t feature too many links here…. oh, by the way… if there’s a broken link, please let me know. Danke :)

——- Watch ——-

 Easy German Videos – Youtube

This  is reallyAWESOME!!!!

They interview real people in the streets all over Germany, each time focusing on a certain subject like ‘How to greet’ or ‘What is typical German’. They talk at normal speed and with all the spoken features like mumbling, skipping letters and not finishing their sentences so it’s complete madness but the good news is….there are subtitles.
In German AND in English (in most of the videos).
The audio is a bit rough in the beginning but it gets better in the later videos. Really really great stuff… check it out!!!

 

Extr@ – German – learn German watching soap

As far as study material goes, this show is definitely one of the most entertaining things you can watch. On the surface it is a sort of comedy soap opera… the story is basic, the acting is totally over the top and even off camera laughs. They clearly don’t mean it seriously :)But they are serious about the learning aspect and they have done an amazing job. All the actors speak super clear and slow they keep repeating key phrases … and still it feels somewhat natural and not at all “schoolish”. And there are subtitles, too…. at least you can turn them on.
At the end of each episode there is a little recap of the important phrases, and last but not least… the episodes are long so none of these 5 minute things that are over before you know it.
Bottom line: this BBC made series is extra super.

 

Lach- und Sachgeschichten

Lach- und Sachgeschichten is a segment in the uber famous German kids show called “Die Sendung mit der Maus” (the show with the mouse). The idea behind Lach- and Sachgeschichten is to look at something from the real world and see how it’s made or how it works… in kids terms. But at least for me, when it comes to how a the technology behind a touch screen works or how tofu is made, then kids terms is just perfect.Seriously, the videos are absolutely lovely and many adults in Germany enjoy watching them, too.
The language is simply and the speaker speaks very clearly and if you don’t understand the words the video often helps out and allows you to guess.
Of course you need a decent amount of vocabulary to really enjoy it but for an intermediate learner it’s a great way to train listening while learning a lot of random interesting  things like “How is a toothpaste made”.

——- Listen ——-

Chaosradio Express

In my opinion, this is THE BEST PODCAST EVER!!! In each episode, Tim Pritlove talks with one or to experts about a certain topic. A lot of topics have to do with computers (IPv6, the DNS-scene, ARM architecture, various programming languages, app-design) but they also discuss the German tax system, Bitcoin, coffee, beer, board games, World of Warcraft, the solar system, the human ear, secret services, movie dubbing, feminism and  post-structuralism…. just to name a few :). I’m sure you’ll find something.
They really go into depth on a topic. No wonder that an episode is usually between 1 and 3 hours long. But it’s not a boring presentation but rather two guys just having a relaxed dialog along an outline. And Tim Pritlove is really pushing for layman’s terms and has a great talent to rephrase and summarize things. There are about 200 episodes and I think I’ve listened to almost all of them, even if I wasn’t too interested in the topic. It’s just kind of soothing. Like a slow evening where you sit with friends and you just listen to their nerd conversations.
The audio quality is amazing by the way, and it’s completely free and runs on donations which is amazing, too.
So… if you want to listen to some  a lot of authentic (and fairly slow) German, while learning a bit a whole lot of stuff then check this out!!

 

Grüße aus Deutschland – Goethe Institut Podcast

Description soon to follow… but it’s great for beginners :)

 

Der Vorleser

If you’re already advanced and you’d like to listen to some literature in German then this is the perfect site for you because there you can find… free audio books. And it’s legal. Isn’t that great? There are lots of classic stories of (mostly but not exclusively German) literature like Kafka’s “Die Verwandlung” or “Frankenstein”. Or how about one of the wild west novels of Karl May, one of the most famous popular writers in Germany, who has written about the wild west like no other and yet he’s never even been there.
The audio quality is great and the speakers are generally good at  what they’re doing. There’s also a large crime story section and you can find some drama and some non fiction there too. So if you are into audio books and serious literature and you want to improve your  German… check it out.

 

——- Test ——-

 

Zertifikat Deutsch – Sample Test  

 
On this page from the Goethe Institute you can find sample test for the Zertifikat Deutsch exam. The level of this is B1. Additionally you can get some general information about the exam and a description of what you should be able to do for the level – all in German. There is a decent amount of clicking to do so don’t expect all questions to pop up right away but it is manageable. So if you are planning to take the test… this is what’s coming.

 

 TestDaf – Sample Test

The TestDaf is one of the most widely accepted language certificates for the German language. On their webpage they offer a lot of information including lots of links where you can sign up for preparation courses or buy guide books but they also have 2 sets of  tests samples there. It contains all 4 types of task (reading, writing, listening and speaking) and you can listen to the listening comprehension audio on mp3 and read the transcript there.  It might look a little intimidating at first glance but don’t worry… you can do will get there eventually because you are awesome! Enough motivation?… by the way… there is not many of the usual fill in the blank grammar exercises there, so this is good I guess.

DSH – Sample Test

Description soon too follow

 

 

 

By the way… if you’re not sure which test is the one for you (since both are enough to enter university, as far as I know) here’s a (subjective) comparison:

TestDaf vs DSH – pros and cons

——- other stuff  ——-

German.stackexchange  – German question and answer site

This is a nice forum for all kinds of questions about the German language like nuances, differences or grammar. I am on there too but there are many other people who know more than me. A lot has been asked already so you can find a wealth of information there. There is also a rating system and one can collect reputation so our natural human desire for gathering things is definitely catered for ;).