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      Vor und nach der Schule: word order with 'nachdem' and 'bevor'

      Lesson details

      Learning outcome

      I can use prepositions ‘vor’ and ‘nach’ and conjunctions ‘bevor’ and ‘nachdem’ in the context of routines and activities before and after school.

      Vocabulary and transcripts for this lessons

      Key learning points

      1. 'Vor' and 'nach' are prepositions used with nouns to express 'before' and 'after'. They take the dative case.
      2. 'Bevor' and 'nachdem' are conjunctions meaning 'before' and 'after' and link two clauses.
      3. 'Bevor' and 'nachdem' are followed by word order 3 and send the verb to the end of the clause.
      4. In two-verb structures, the finite verb, not the past participle or infinitive verb, are sent to the end of the clause.
      5. ‘Bevor’ and ‘nachdem’ can also start a sentence, creating verb-comma-verb word order.

      Keywords

      • Noun - word for a person, place, or thing which has a grammatical gender in German

      • Clause - a group of words, consisting of a subject and a finite form of a verb

      • Preposition - a word that is used before a noun, a noun phrase, or a pronoun, connecting it to another word

      • Conjunction - word that connects ideas between clauses in a sentence

      • Word order 3 - (WO3) after certain conjunctions, the verb is sent to the end of the sentence or clause

      Common misconception

      'Vor' and 'bevor' and 'nach' and 'nachdem' are interchangeable because they mean 'before' and 'after'.

      'Vor' and 'nach' are prepositions and are followed by a noun, 'bevor' and 'nachdem' are conjunctions which link clauses and trigger word order 3.

      Teacher tip

      Word order 3 after conjunctions with single verb structures is Foundation tier and Higher tier with 2-verb structures. Mini whiteboards could be used effectively for Task B2 to enable quick feedback and correction.

      Licence

      This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), 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

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the German and English.

      Correct Answer:heiß,hot
      Correct Answer:offen,open
      Correct Answer:lokal,local, locally
      Correct Answer:tot,dead
      Correct Answer:stolz,proud
      Correct Answer:zufrieden,satisfied

      Q2.
      Match the German and English.

      Correct Answer:das Gymnasium,grammar school
      Correct Answer:die Hochschule,college, university
      Correct Answer:die Bildung,education, learning
      Correct Answer:das Studium,study, studies
      Correct Answer:die Grundschule,primary school
      Correct Answer:sitzenbleiben,to repeat a school year

      Q3.
      What type of words are 'vor', 'nach', 'mit' and 'für'?

      Correct Answer: prepositions, preposition, a preposition

      Q4.
      What type of words are 'und', 'aber', 'wenn' and 'als'?

      Correct Answer: conjunctions, connectives, conjunction, connective, a conjunction

      Q5.
      Match the phrases. Think about the different meanings of 'vor' and 'nach'.

      Correct Answer:vor drei Jahren,three years ago
      Correct Answer:vor dem Fenster,in front of the window
      Correct Answer:vor der Schule,before school
      Correct Answer:nach der Schule,after school
      Correct Answer:nach Deutschland,to Germany
      Correct Answer:nach Hause,(to) home

      Q6.
      Put the words in the correct order to show word order 3 with 'wenn'.

      1 - wenn
      2 - ich
      3 - einen Vogel
      4 - finden
      5 - kann

      6 Questions

      Q1.
      Match the German and English.

      Correct Answer:gleichzeitig,at the same time
      Correct Answer:der Alltag,daily routine, everyday living
      Correct Answer:besondere(r)(s),special, particular
      Correct Answer:bewegen,to move, moving
      Correct Answer:seitdem,since then
      Correct Answer:der Termin,appointment

      Q2.
      Translate the following sentence into German: 'He eats an egg and drinks tea.'

      Correct Answer: Er isst ein Ei und trinkt Tee.

      Q3.
      What type of words are 'vor' and 'nach'?

      Correct Answer: prepositions, preposition, a preposition

      Q4.
      Which part of the clause goes to the end when using word order 3?

      the infinitive
      Correct answer: the finite (conjugated) verb
      the past participle
      the noun
      the subject

      Q5.
      Sort the words below into the correct order to complete the following sentence: 'Nachdem ich aufgestanden bin, __________.'

      1 - trinke
      2 - ich
      3 - ein
      4 - Glas
      5 - Wasser

      Q6.
      Translate the following sentence into German: 'before I go to the cinema'

      Correct Answer: bevor ich ins Kino gehe, bevor ich in das Kino gehe

      To help you plan your 10 German lesson on: Vor und nach der Schule: word order with 'nachdem' and 'bevor', download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...