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9. Wie ist das Wetter?What’s the weather like?

DVD / VIDEO: film 98 phrases to describe weather are introduced:Good weather - The Lorelei enjoys nice weather:Lorelei: “Es ist schön.”Bad weather -The Lorelei sits on her rock inhorrible weather:Lorelei: “Es ist schlecht.”Wet weather:Animation: Es regnet.Child saying that it is raining: “Es regnet.”Cold weather:Animation: Es ist kalt.Child saying that it is cold: “Es ist kalt.”Warm weather:Animation: Es ist warm.Child saying that it is warm: “Es ist warm.”Sunny weather:Animation: Es ist sonnig.Child saying it is sunny: “Es ist sonnig.”Windy weather:Animation: Es ist windig.Child saying that it is windy: “Es ist windig.”

In this section pupils learn to talk aboutthe weather. As part of your class routine,children can do their daily local weatherreport in German.Using the internet, they can also observethe changing weather in Germany from dayto day - perhaps comparing with the climatepatterns in your own country.Children can build on their knowledge aboutdifferent places and regions in Germanyfrom chapter1.7. This links with images ofchristmas in chapter 1.15.

Snowy weather:Animation: Es schneit.Child saying that it is snowing: “Es schneit”.Question & answer: We hear the question“Wie ist das Wetter?” and the replies ......children out and about in Boppard on a

nice day: “Es ist schön.”... at the swimming pool: “Es ist warm.”... using sun protection cream and playing

under a sunshade: “Es ist sonnig.”

NEW WORDS AND PHRASES

es ist schönes ist schlecht

es ist warmes ist kalt

es ist sonniges ist windig

es regnetes schneit

- it’s nice- it’s nasty- it’s warm- it’s cold- it’s sunny- it’s windy- it’s raining- it’s snowing

Wie ist das Wetter?What’s the weather like?

CD Track 33

Scene from film 9: Lorelei on her rock-“Es ist schlecht”.

Scene from film 9: Girl on Rhine steamer -“Es ist windig.”

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... flags flying in the wind:“Es ist winding.”

... snowdrifts and skiing: “Es schneit.”

... snowboarding on a winter’s day: “Es ist kalt.”

... children taking part in a running race in thepouring rain: “Es regnet.”

Activities 1. Warm up

You could start the lesson with a large map ofGermany, and talk about what children thinkthe weather might be like in different parts.Which parts will be warmest in summer? Whatwould it be like in the Bavarian Alps or othermountains in winter? See “talking point”.

2. Watch the film❑ Watch film 9: “Wie ist das Wetter?” tointroduce the new words.

3. Get used to the sounds❑ Echoing: Make flashcards from the weatherpictures on the activity sheets -or display onthe OHP/whiteboard.Show each picture and say what kind of weatheris represented, e.g. “Es ist kalt”. Pupils echo thephrase. Look out of the window and say whatthe weather is actually like today, e.g. “Es istwindig”. Pupils echo the phrase.Can they spot the different structures? Mostare like: “es ist sonnig” (it is sunny), but a feware like:“es regnet” (it rains).

4. Respond with understanding❑ Make copies of the weather pictures activitysheets and give ONE picture to each pupil.You call out, e.g. “Es ist sonnig”; pupils with the“it’s sunny” card hold up it for everyone to see.

Scene from film 9: “Es schneit.”

Asking what the weather is like today:“Wie ist das Wetter heute?”... rambling in the countryside:“Es ist schön

heute.”... eating icecream; buildrers working in the

heat; riding on the “nautic jet”: “Es is warmheute.”

... wearing sunglasses: “Es ist sonnig heute.”

... horrible weather - hail and sleet falling:“Es is schlecht heute.”

... people with umbrellas: “Es regnet heute.”

... trees blowing in the wind: “Es ist windigheute.”

... huge snowdrifts: “Es schneit heute.”

KEY SOUNDSListen and enjoy copying thesetypical sounds: where have youheard them before?

“ ”[an example in English is dish]as in... schön schlecht schneit

“ ” as in sonnig windigHeard before in: ich nicht Leipzig

“ ” as in schönHeard before in: zwölf

DVD MARKERS

1. Weather phrases - introduces new words

2. Germany in different weather- reinforcement

3. What’s the weather like today?- new phrase with previous words

4. Written words

M

Use the skip key on your remote control

Planning your lessonsBefore watching the film, talk about thepatterns of weather in Germany comparedwith where you live.Children will need plenty of activities to getused to the different structures introducedin the film.

“ ” as in warm windig WetterHeard before in: wohnst wie

CD Track 33

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Some extra visual clues may help pupils at thisearly stage, e.g. shiver as you say “Es ist kalt”and fan yourself as you say “Es ist warm”.● To make this into a game, divide the classinto two teams. Each team has an identical setof weather pictures (one for each child).When you call out the weather, e.g. “Es schneit”,the pupils holding the snow picture try to befirst to jump up and echo “es schneit”.

By using pictures as well as “props”, you cantell whether pupils understand the phrases.Some items in the dressing up boxes may beappropriate for more than one kind of weather.

❑ Make multiple copies of the weather picturesfrom the activity sheet. Give a picture to eachchild in the class. Move around the roomasking each pupil, “Wie ist das Wetter?”. Pupilsrespond according to the picture they hold.

5. Working in pairs❑ Pupils can use multiple copies of the pictureson the activity sheet to play “snap”.

❑ Pupils can use their puppets to haveconversations about the weather.

6. Watch the film again❑ Show film 9: “Wie ist das Wetter?” again.Pupils may notice some children say “-ig” ratherthan “-ich” at the end of words like:“windig” -this is a regional accent.

7. Look again at sounds❑ Now that the new words and sounds arefamiliar, play either “listen to the sounds” or“find the sound” (see chapter 1.2).

Introducing the written wordWhen pupils are familiar with hearing andsaying the new words, show the final part offilm 9, which repeats them with text on-screen.

❑ Play “word snake”Display on the board, OHP or whiteboard, asentence with the spaces and punctuationremoved, e.g. “Esistwarmheute”.Ask the class to help you put them back, thenyou say the sentence: “Es ist warm heute”.When children have got the idea, give themother “word snakes” to do in pairs.

CROSS-CURRICULAR ACTIVITIES❑ Daily routines: “What’s the weather?” Ask pupils“Wie ist das Wetter?” each morningas part of your routine of greetings, taking theregister, asking the date, etc.

❑ Geography/science: Pupils can announcetheir daily weather readings in German, e.g.“Es ist warm heute. Es ist 30 grad.” (See “extrawords and phrases”).

❑ Dressing-up box activities:You say what the weather is, e.g. “Es ist kalt”.Pupils take it in turns to go to the box andchoose any items that represent “it’s cold”.When a child has put on, for example, thewoolly hat and gloves, s/he says: “Es ist kalt”.

■ You ask “Wie ist das Wetter?”Pupils take turns to go to the box and select oneor more items. The rest of the class then has toguess what weather they are trying to show.■ Prepare two boxes, each containing the sameset of props to do with weather: e.g. an umbrella,sunglasses, gloves....Next to each box, arrange sets of weatherpictures (use the flashcards, or cut out picturesfrom magazines); place them face up on tables.Divide the class into two teams. You call out,for example, “Es ist sonnig”. A pupil from eachteam runs to the box, selects an appropriateitem, e.g. a pair of sunglasses, picks up thepicture representing “Es ist sonnig” from thetable and brings it to you.

For these activities, collect a largebox of dressing-up “props” linked

with weather, e.g. wellies, kite,sunglasses, beach hat, fan, woolly

hat, gloves, scarf, umbrella ...

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❑ Geography/Technology - a weather dial:Pupils can design and make a weather dial forthe class weather board (and a game).They cut a large circle from card, and divide itinto segments like slices of a cake - illustratingeach segment with different weather symbols.Fix a “pointer” in the centre to turn like a clockhand, and set it to indicate today’s weather.

The dial can also be used for a game, played inpairs. One pupil spins the pointer and asksthe other, “Wie ist das Wetter?”

❑ Daily routine/ICT/Geography: “Wie ist das Wetter?”Pupils can use the internet to research what theweather is like in Germany - possibly focusingon a town or area you have links with.

Prepare a large map of Germany (you couldenlarge the map from ch.1.7). Label towns thatare relevant to your pupils. Make sets of weathersymbols from the activity sheet, laminate themto withstand regular use, and find a way tostick them to the map (e.g. velcro).

sunny

rain

snow windy

temperature

stormy

cloudy

Find today’s weather in Germany on the Internet.

See www.earlystart.co.uk for a link to the officialGerman weather web site.Ask your partner school to send photographsand pictures which show their town andsurrounding areas at different times of year.■ Ask pupils to compare the two climates.

❑ Geography: TV weather presentersPupils will be familiar with the way weatherforecasters use symbols to show what theweather is like in different parts of the country.

Pupils take it in turns to be TV weatherpresenters. As they place symbols on the map,they say “In Berlin es ist sonnig..”, etc.If you need to prompt anyone, you can ask,“Wie ist das Wetter in Berlin heute?” In their“TV presenter” role, pupils can greet theviewers and say goodbye in German.

❑ Music: singing about the weather:Pupils could write a weather song to a familiartune, e.g. “Frère Jacques”: “Es ist sonnig, es istwindig,...” Discuss possible rhymes, and howsyllables fit with the tune.

❑ Drama: Play “the miming game”Pupils work in pairs. Give each pair a pictureshowing a kind of weather. They have 5 minutesto prepare a mime to represent this weather.They can use speech only if it is in German(e.g. greetings, asking someone how they are)but NOT, of course, to say what the weather is!Each pair performs their mime to the rest of theclass, who guess what the weather is.

EXTRA WORDS AND PHRASES 1

- it’s hot- it’s wet- it’s cloudy- it’s foggy- there’s thunder- there’s lightning- is it raining?- is it nice?

es ist heißes ist naß

es ist wolkig es ist neblig

es donnertes blitzt

regnet es?ist es schön?

CD Track 33

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Talking point

Germany’s climateContinental weather inlandContinental weather inlandContinental weather inlandContinental weather inlandContinental weather inlandAs you go inland towards the centre of Europe,the weather gets more extreme: summers canbe baking hot, and winters freezing cold.Much of Germany has “continental” weatherlike that.Milder weather towards the coastMilder weather towards the coastMilder weather towards the coastMilder weather towards the coastMilder weather towards the coastThe North and West of Germany tend to berainier and milder: as you get nearer the NorthSea coast (towards Köln and Bremen), the wintersare not so cold and the summers not so hot.

MAP of GERMANY: height above sea-level, and some cities.

Winds blowing from the sea are not only moist,bringing rain, but also carrying mildertemperatures to North Germany.Eastern GermanyEastern GermanyEastern GermanyEastern GermanyEastern GermanyThe Ostzee (Baltic Sea) is shallower, and therecan be ice on the sea in cold winters: theweather is not so mild on the Baltic coast.So eastern Germany (towards Berlin) has amore “Continental” climate: we see a typicalhot summer in Berlin.

Berlin

Köln

München

NORDZEE

Bremen

A mild winter in Boppard: people walk in the rain by theRhine. Germany gets wetter and milder as you go North.

This is the effect of the Nordzee (North Sea) andthe Atlantic Ocean. The deep seas are slow toheat up, and slow to cool down compared withland surfaces. While central Europe heatsup quickly in summer, the sea stays quite cool.In winter, central Europe gets bitterly cold;the deep sea gets chilly but remains unfrozen.

OSTZEE

ALPS

= over 1500 m (mountains)

= 300 - 1500 m

= under 300 m (much is flat plain)

Freezing in Bavaria: people in central Europe have to bewell-prepared for cold and snowy winters.

A hot summer in Berlin: people dance in the streets duringthe July “Love Festival” (see Ch.1.7).

Winter snow in the mountains: a Christmas card scene...

Mountain snow: a chance for winter fun and sport.

Health consciousHealth consciousHealth consciousHealth consciousHealth consciousIt can get very sunny and hot in Germansummers, especially in the south towardsMunich, where people like to sit outside like inItaly (which is quite close).

Many Germans are as conscious of keepingthemselves fit and healthy as they are of lookingafter the environment. Government officialswarn parents to protect children’s skin withsun-block, and not to stay out in the fierce mid-day sun for too long.

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Children need sun-block cream in the strong summer sun.

Fun-run: parents and children finish in the summer rain.

Sunburn: a net curtain protects a family from harmful rays.

In North Germany, we see children and parentscompleting a keep-fit fun-run through townstreets in the mild summer rain!

MountainsMountainsMountainsMountainsMountainsAs go climb higher in the mountains, it getscooler whatever the season. In the mountainousregions (like the Alps in Bavaria) there is lots ofsnow in winter, and lakes and canals freezewith temperatures well below freezing.People make their houses with steep-slopingroofs, so the snow slides off; and all bunchedup with thick walls, so they keep warm inside.Skiing is a popular sport; many Germans alsotake summer walking holidays in themountains.■ What can you do to enjoy a cold winter?■ Make a listof the good points and bad points aboutcold, snow and ice.■ What can people do to prepare themselves so thatthey can carry on doing everyday things even whenit is very cold?■ Talk with the class about why it can be dangerousto risk getting sun-burnt in hot summers.What precautions can you take?See www.earlystart.co.uk for more informationand links to official advice. You could talk withchildren about what policy your school couldhave about risks of sun-burn and also icy days.

This page may be photocopied for classroom use © 2005 Early Start Languages

Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Ich heiße.........................

This page may be photocopied for classroom use © 2005 Early Start Languages

Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Ich heiße.........................

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This page may be photocopied for classroom use © 2005 Early Start Languages

Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Wie ist das Wetter? Ich heiße.........................