Multilingual UN refugee game

These days it's impossible not to see news of refugees fleeing their home countries travelling thousands of miles, crossing deserts and the Mediterranean sea to get to safety and a better life.
Have you ever wondered what it might feel like?
Follow this link to play a PC game where you get a glimpse-

http://www.playagainstallodds.ca/


Choose the language you are learning - there is French, German and Spanish as well as English.
Choose your character and follow the instructions! Feel the oppression in your home country and try to get to a land where you can get help! Learn about the difference between migrants and refugees! Experience the prejudice and difficulty in finding a job! Open your mind!

If you manage to get out of the dark town with the dog patrols let me know how you did it...

The game was created for the UNHCR - the organisation of the United Nations looking after refugees. If you're further interested in the topic, they have also produced an app called 'my life as an refugee'  which you could download following this link: 

http://mylifeasarefugee.org/

If you're studying languages at A-level you find lots of info in your target language on the home pages of the UNHCR:
French: http://unhcr.fr
German: http://unhcr.de
Spanish :http://acnur.es/


Mit herzlichen Grüßen,
Frau Mahler

Great Language Learning App - Duolingo

Some classes at Tomlinscote (and some staff!) are developing a slight addiction to Duolingo - a clever language learning and revision app (available for free, for example from itunes). You can also play online on www.duolingo.com.

You can choose between several languages, for example Spanish, French, German or Italian. In your first session, you complete a quick initial assessment and then you can practise and revise new skills, from colours and clothes to future tenses and conditionals, so students of all levels will find useful tasks. Before moving on to the more complex skills you need to pass tests, assessing your reading, translating, listening writing and grammar skills, as well as your pronunciaton. (Careful when you have a cold though: it might not understand you very well!)

Although the app gives you some vocab and grammar hints, it is probably better to use it for a language you have already started to learn, rather than attempting a completely new one. However, it is great fun and rather addictive- and your feathery coach will keep you motivated. You can also link with others and compare results. Who will earn the most lingots? Maybe give Portuguese or Dutch a try, if you're feeling really adventurous. By going into your profile you can even learn and revise two or three languages at the same time!
Have fun and let us know how you get on by leaving a comment here! 

Märchenwelten - Fairy Tale Day for Feeder Primary Children

43 children from Ravenscote (one of Tomlinscote's main feeder primary schools) have enjoyed a day of fairy tales and German. As this year is the 200th anniversary of the publication of the fairy tales collected by the Grimm brothers, the Goethe Institut have created Märchenwelten, an exhibition and range of events to explore these stories, relate them to today and learn German in the process.

Through Tomlinscote's Pasch-Partnership, the primary children were invited to travel to London to visit the exhibition and to listen to the story teller Katharina Ritter perform  die Bremer Stadtmusikanten (The town musicians of Bremen). The pupils watched film clips of stories like Rapunzel, der Froschkönig (the frog prince), Aschenputtel (Cinderella) and Dornröschen (Sleeping Beauty) and completed various tasks around the plots and characters.

While they had to cope with a lot of German, the young linguists hugely enjoyed all the activities.
They also made a Schatztruhe (a treasure chest), practiced their speaking skills ordering 'Limonade' and tasted giant Brezeln, kindly provided as an additional treat!

Vielen Dank for a fantastic experience!

For more information from the Goethe Institut about fairy tales, read the original German texts or listen to the stories being told in German, follow this link: http://www.goethe.de/lrn/prj/mlg/mad/gri/deindex.htm

Play a fairy tale game by following this link: You can choose the characters' roles - does the brave prince save the innocent maiden kidnapped by the evil stepmother and protected by the nasty dragon? Or does the brave princess rescue the dragon....? Have a look! You need to know a little German and it helps if you know some fairy tales, but it's weird and good fun!
http://www.goethe.de/lrn/prj/mlg/mud/spi/de9829464.htm

with Katharina Ritter, the story teller from Germany

in the princess section of the exhibition!

at the exhibition

solving puzzles and finding clues at the exhibition

the big bad wolf!! 

some Schatztruhen

doing tasks at the work shop

decorating the treasure chests

Enjoying the Brezeln!

Alles klar!! A great day out!

Free German Game App!

Learn and practise your German while playing a game on your computer or your phone!

Adventure German - The Mystery of Nebra combines following an exciting adventure and solving tricky puzzles with practising German use and understanding.
Players go on a trip to Germany with art expert Vincent Mirano to unravel the mystery of the 4000-year old Nebra Sky Disc.

screen shot from itunes

Devised by games experts in cooperation with the Goethe-Institut, the game is recommended for KS4 and above.
The dialogues and puzzles are in German, but you can choose to have help in English.
You can download the app for iphone and ipad, for android phones or you can play it on your computer on the web!

Follow this link to watch a teaser video, find out more and to download the game for FREE!

http://www.goethe.de/lrn/duw/lad/enindex.htm

Viel Spaß mit dem Spiel!

Happy Chinese New Year!

Today is Chinese New Year - it's the start of the 

Year of the Dragon! 

People in China clean the house to attract good luck and give one another presents. On New Year's Eve, families have a big feast together and set off fireworks, and in the morning children receive money in red paper envelopes.

A special greeting to all the Chinese learners at Tomlinscote!

Click on the image below to get a link for a really tricky game identifying Chinese sounds! How many will you get correctly?

Games

You don't speak German?? - Are you absolutely sure??

Try these online-games and you'll be surprised! Play with a partner!
Can you beat your family members? Click on the link above!

Viel Spaß! Have fun!