What I prefer to do and why: 'weil', 'denn' and 'lieber'
Lesson details
Learning outcome
I can understand about and write what I love and prefer doing, extending my sentences to give reasons for my preferences.
Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons
Key learning points
- The 's' in [sp] and [st] sounds like [sch] at the start of a word, as part of a compound noun or after a prefix.
- The adverb 'lieber' means 'rather', and is used to say 'prefer' with a verb. The verb ‘lieben’ means ‘to love, loving’.
- The conjunctions 'denn' and 'weil' both mean 'because'.
- The verb follows the subject when using 'denn'. This is standard word order or word order 1 (WO1).
- The verb moves to the end of the clause when using 'weil'. This is word order 3 (WO3).
Keywords
Lieber - adverb meaning ‘rather’, used after a verb to mean ‘prefer’
Denn - conjunction meaning 'because' after which word order 1 (WO1) follows
Weil - conjunction meaning 'because' followed by word order 3 (WO3)
Common misconception
Word order in German remains the same as English after ‘weil’ ('because').
When using ‘weil’ to give a reason, the verb moves to the end of the clause, e.g., ‘ich spiele gern Fußball, weil es Spaß macht'.
Teacher tip
Use transition moments, when handing out resources or changing activities, to ask opinion-based questions in German (e.g., 'Siehst du lieber Filme oder liest du lieber Bücher?', 'Warum?'). These low-stakes moments are ideal for practising preferences and justifications, helping pupils build fluency.
Equipment
A mini whiteboard and pen, together with pen and paper for taking notes, would be useful, if available.
Licence
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Which word can mean 'even'?
Q2.Match the German and English.
to write, writing
to learn, learning
to go, going
to run, running
to see, watch
to hike, to go walking
Q3.Match the German and English.
book
picture
film
concert
pasta
mountain
Q4.Order the words to say: 'an expensive flat and a safe house'.
Q5.Write in English: 'the food was cheap'.
Q6.Write in German: 'water is better than milk'.
Assessment exit quiz
5 Questions
Q1.Match the words to the missing sounds.
[sch]
[sp]
[st]
Q2.Match the German and English.
I like swimming.
I prefer swimming.
I love swimming.
Q3.Order the words to say: 'I prefer dancing because it is great.'
Q4.Order the words to say: 'I prefer reading because it is interesting.'
Q5.Write in German: 'I prefer eating pizza to bread'.
To help you plan your 8 German lesson on: What I prefer to do and why: 'weil', 'denn' and 'lieber', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...
To help you plan your 8 German lesson on: What I prefer to do and why: 'weil', 'denn' and 'lieber', 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 What we like and prefer doing: separable verbs, 'gern' and 'lieber' unit, dive into the full secondary German curriculum, or learn more about lesson planning.