People and things: relative clauses to define who, which, that
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can understand relative clauses that identify and add information about people and things.
Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons
Key learning points
- Relative clauses add information about the noun in the main clause, without starting another sentence.
- English uses relative pronouns ‘who’, ‘that’, ‘which’, while German uses the definite article that matches the noun.
- In German the relative pronoun kicks the verb to the end of the relative clause; this is called word order three (WO3).
- Use indefinite pronouns 'jemand' ('someone') or 'niemand' ('no one') instead of a noun when the exact person is unknown.
- When using 'jemand' or 'niemand' in subject relative clauses, use the relative pronoun 'der' as for masculine nouns.
Keywords
Relative clause - adds information about the noun in the main clause
Relative pronoun - pronoun that introduces a relative clause, e.g., ‘who’, ‘that’, ‘which’ - in German words 'der', 'die', 'das' are used
Word order three (WO3) - the verb is sent to the end of the sentence or clause
Common misconception
The word for 'who' in German is 'wer'.
We use 'wer' to ask or report a question: 'Wer ist das?', 'Ich weiß nicht, wer das ist.' But in sentences like 'that is someone, who ...' we use a relative pronoun - 'der', 'die', 'das' - which matches the gender of noun it refers to.
Teacher tip
Relative clauses are a useful structure for all sorts of definition games. Pupils can be encouraged to create clues for others to guess, e.g., 'das ist jemand, der ...' or 'das ist etwas, das ...', helping them practise both vocabulary and grammar in context.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which phrase would you use to address group of friends?
Q2.Match the German and English.
to attract, put on
to serve, serving
to feel, feeling
to hold, stop, keep
to name, naming
to wash, washing
Q3.Match the German and English.
bed
service
end
number
grandmother
chair
Q4.Order the words to say: 'We are expecting the guest at 7 o'clock.'
Q5.Write in English: 'das Feuer ist zu heiß'.
Q6.Write in German: 'she collects the wood'.
Assessment exit quiz
4 Questions
Q1.Match up the sentence halves.
die hier arbeitet.
das interessant ist.
der sehr freundlich ist.
wer eine Katze hat.
Q2.Order the words to say: 'The children who play here are funny.'
Q3.Write in German: 'somebody who is nice'.
Q4.Write in English: 'niemand, der hier wohnt, ist laut'.
To help you plan your 9 German lesson on: People and things: relative clauses to define who, which, that, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 9 German lesson on: People and things: relative clauses to define who, which, that, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs.
The starter quiz will activate and check your pupils' prior knowledge, with versions available both with and without answers in PDF format.
We use learning cycles to break down learning into key concepts or ideas linked to the learning outcome. Each learning cycle features explanations with checks for understanding and practice tasks with feedback. All of this is found in our slide decks, ready for you to download and edit. The practice tasks are also available as printable worksheets and some lessons have additional materials with extra material you might need for teaching the lesson.
The assessment exit quiz will test your pupils' understanding of the key learning points.
Our video is a tool for planning, showing how other teachers might teach the lesson, offering helpful tips, modelled explanations and inspiration for your own delivery in the classroom. Plus, you can set it as homework or revision for pupils and keep their learning on track by sharing an online pupil version of this lesson.
Explore more key stage 3 German lessons from the Family experiences: relative clauses unit, dive into the full secondary German curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.