New
New
Year 9

Birthdays: recounting personal experiences

I can understand and write about birthday experiences in past and present tenses.

New
New
Year 9

Birthdays: recounting personal experiences

I can understand and write about birthday experiences in past and present tenses.

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Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. Numbers 20 and above are formed as unit + 'und' + ten, e.g., 21 - 'einundzwanzig'.
  2. There are a number of rules for forming noun plurals which should be learnt and practised.
  3. Encountering previously taught language when listening and reading in German develops our comprehension.
  4. Awareness of register helps us choose words and structures suited to spoken or written language.

Keywords

  • Noun - word for a person, place, or thing

  • Register - level of formality or style of language used, depending on the audience, purpose, and context

Common misconception

German numbers 21 and above work the same as in English: ten followed by unit.

In German, numbers 21 and above are structured unit-und-ten, e.g., 'einundzwanzig' - twenty-one. It translates literally as 'one and twenty'.


To help you plan your year 9 German lesson on: Birthdays: recounting personal experiences, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

It would be useful for students to have a copy of the additional materials to allow them to add casual spoken vocabulary. Alternatively, these ideas can be written in an exercise book or on paper.
Teacher tip

Equipment

A mini whiteboard and pen, together with pen and paper for making notes, would be useful, if available.

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Prior knowledge starter quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
Which phrase means 'at home'?
bei Hause
im Heim
im Hause
zu Heim
Correct answer: zu Hause
Q2.
Match the German and English.
Correct Answer:essen,to eat, eating

to eat, eating

Correct Answer:fahren,to drive, travel

to drive, travel

Correct Answer:lesen,to read, reading

to read, reading

Correct Answer:mitbringen,to bring with

to bring with

Correct Answer:backen,to bake, baking

to bake, baking

Correct Answer:feiern,to celebrate, celebrating

to celebrate, celebrating

Q3.
Match the German and English.
Correct Answer:Abend (m),evening

evening

Correct Answer:Geburtstag (m),birthday

birthday

Correct Answer:Geschäft (nt),shop

shop

Correct Answer:Morgen (m),morning

morning

Correct Answer:Nachmittag (m),afternoon

afternoon

Correct Answer:Nacht (f),night

night

Q4.
Order the words to say: 'The singer sang five songs.'
1 - der
2 - Sänger
3 - hat
4 - fünf
5 - Lieder
6 - gesungen
Q5.
Write in English: 'das Essen war lecker'.
Correct Answer: the food was tasty, the food was delicious, the meal was tasty, the meal was delicious
Q6.
Write in German: 'an expensive car'.
Correct Answer: ein teueres Auto

Assessment exit quiz

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4 Questions

Q1.
Register refers to the __________ we use when speaking or writing.
tense
Correct answer: level of formality
connectives
amount of words
Q2.
Match the nouns with the correct rules for forming plurals.
Correct Answer:Geschenk (nt),add -e (sometimes with an umlaut)

add -e (sometimes with an umlaut)

Correct Answer:Kuchen (m),no change

no change

Correct Answer:Kind (nt),add -er (with or without umlaut)

add -er (with or without umlaut)

Correct Answer:Tasche (f),add -n or -en

add -n or -en

Correct Answer:Party (f),add -s

add -s

Q3.
Order the numbers from smallest to largest.
1 - einundzwanzig
2 - achtunddreißig
3 - siebenundvierzig
4 - zweiundfünfzig
5 - dreiundsechzig
6 - neunundsiebzig
7 - hundert
Q4.
Write in German: 'I ate a biscuit'.
Correct Answer: ich habe einen Keks gegessen

Additional material

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