New
New
Year 8

News article: 'gegen', 'laut'

Learning outcomes

I can use my developing vocabulary and grammar knowledge to infer the likely meanings of unfamiliar words in a news article.

I can differentiate the two [ch] sounds from each other and from [ck].

New
New
Year 8

News article: 'gegen', 'laut'

Learning outcomes

I can use my developing vocabulary and grammar knowledge to infer the likely meanings of unfamiliar words in a news article.

I can differentiate the two [ch] sounds from each other and from [ck].

These resources will be removed by end of Summer Term 2025.

Switch to our new teaching resources now - designed by teachers and leading subject experts, and tested in classrooms.

These resources were created for remote use during the pandemic and are not designed for classroom teaching.

Lesson details

Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

Key learning points

  1. German [ch] is two sounds, hard and soft, depending on the preceding vowel. [ch] and [ck] are different sounds.
  2. Word patterns can help you understand unfamiliar words in a text, e.g., German words with -cht may be -ght in English.
  3. It helps to think creatively; some words have second meanings which are related to the meaning you already know.
  4. Vocabulary and grammar knowledge (e.g., word order and word forms) help to work out the meaning of unknown words.

Keywords

  • [ch] - as pronounced in 'Buch' and 'Bücher'

  • Infer - work out the likely meaning of an unfamiliar word based on knowledge of the surrounding words in the text and the structure of the word itself

Common misconception

Cognate recognition is the only strategy I need to understand texts in German.

Cognates are helpful, but not always enough. You will understand much more if you know some common word and spelling patterns in German, and if you use your vocabulary and grammar knowledge creatively to work out the meanings of unfamiliar words.


To help you plan your year 8 German lesson on: News article: 'gegen', 'laut', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

With guidance, pupils learn that inferring word meaning isn’t wild guessing. Build on this lesson’s strategies: spotting spelling patterns, using word parts, and applying grammar knowledge like syntax and morphology.
Teacher tip

Equipment

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

Loading...

Some of our videos, including non-English language videos, do not have captions.

Prior knowledge starter quiz

Download quiz pdf

6 Questions

Q1.
Which word means 'instead (of)'?

besonders
gern
lieber
ohne
Correct answer: statt

Q2.
Match the German and English.

Correct Answer:Bild (nt),picture

picture

Correct Answer:Musik (f),music

music

Correct Answer:Uhr (f),o'clock, clock, watch

o'clock, clock, watch

Correct Answer:Firma (f),firm, company

firm, company

Correct Answer:Garten (m),garden

garden

Correct Answer:Tasche (f),bag

bag

Q3.
Match the German and English.

Correct Answer:arbeiten,to work, working

to work, working

Correct Answer:brauchen,to need, needing

to need, needing

Correct Answer:danken,to thank, thanking

to thank, thanking

Correct Answer:gewinnen,to win, winning

to win, winning

Correct Answer:kriegen,to get, getting

to get, getting

Correct Answer:sagen,to say, saying

to say, saying

Q4.
Order the words to say: 'I gave him a lovely present.'

1 - ich
2 - habe
3 - ihm
4 - ein
5 - schönes
6 - Geschenk
7 - gegeben

Q5.
Write in English: 'er hat eine Zeitung gelesen'.

Correct Answer: he read a newspaper, he read a paper

Q6.
Write in German: 'I am studying art'.

Correct Answer: ich lerne Kunst, ich studiere Kunst

Assessment exit quiz

Download quiz pdf

4 Questions

Q1.
Which statements are correct?

Cognate recognition is the only strategy I need to understand texts in German.
Correct answer: Inference is working out the meaning of a new or unfamiliar word in a text.
Nouns always have only one meaning.
Correct answer: Looking at the rest of the sentence can help work out a word's meaning.
[ch] always corresponds to [ck] in English.

Q2.
Which words are missing the sound [ch]?

Dru__er
Correct answer: Da__
Gepä__
Correct answer: To__ter
Dre__

Q3.
Match the German and English.

Correct Answer:Licht (f),light

light

Correct Answer:Macht (f),might, power

might, power

Correct Answer:Nacht (f),night

night

Correct Answer:Sicht (f),sight

sight

Correct Answer:Fracht (f),freight

freight

Correct Answer:Recht (nt),right

right

Q4.
'Er hat nur eine Stimme gewonnen.' What does 'Stimme' mean in this context?

speech
noise
sound
voice
Correct answer: vote

Additional material

Download additional material