Translation Activity
About This Activity
Language
German
Level
Intermediate 1
(3rd semester college level)
Topic
Planning a German Club event
Time Needed
50-70 minutes in class
One week out of class
Goal
For students to plan an event and make a video to display their speaking abilities through conversation.
Materials Needed
- Kaltura through Blackboard
- Video recorder (students phones ok)
- Video playing software in the classroom
- Handouts 1-2
Project Description
With about 20 minutes left of class, the instructor describes the project to the students. This activity is split into two parts – in class and out of class. The planning of the event (handout 1) will be done in class, and the video portion (handout 2) will be done outside of class. Students will have one week to finish their video, so if we do the in-class portion on a Monday, we will watch the videos in class on the following Monday.
Geschprächsprojekt
Sie und Ihr Partner/Ihre Partnerin sind jetzt Offiziere der U of A German Club! Sie müssen ein Event für das Herbst Semester planen. Es muss einen deutschen Grund für dieses Event geben. Ideen sind Feiertagen, Feste, Spiele, usw. Nutzen Sie Ihre Einbildungskraft, um ein lustiges und kulturellreiches Event!
Diskutieren Sie:
- Warum Sie dieses Event haben
- Welche Materialen Sie brauchen (Essen, Flyer, informationelle Handouts, Requisiten, Spiele, Kunsthandwerke, Videos, Musik, usw. – zahllose Möglichkeiten!)
- Was Sie beim Event machen
- Was das kulturelle Thema ist (Warum macht German Club dieses Event?)
Sie müssen ein Video machen und das Video auf Blackboard mit Kaltura Media in „Content Folder“ (Aufgabe Name: German Club Event Aufgabe – Video Upload) hochladen. Wir werden Ihre Videos im Unterricht am (Datum) schauen!
Eine Hilfe für Kaltura Media ist hier: https://bbhelp.uark.edu/kaltura-video-assignment-submission/
Das Event, das Sie geplant haben, muss im Video sein, aber Sie können in verschiedene Arten darübersprechen. Beide Partner müssen im Video sprechen (und ein/e Partner/in muss nicht mehr als den/die andere/n sprechen). Hier gibt es manche Ideen:
- Diskutieren Sie das Event mit Ihrem Partner/Ihrer Partnerin
- Planen Sie das Event, und drehen Sie die Planung
- Laden Sie Ihren Partner/Ihrer Partnerin zum Event (aber es soll dialogorientiert sein)
Sie können andere Ideen haben, aber sie können diese als Inspiration nutzen. Ihr Video muss einen Dialog haben – seien Sie nicht ein „Talking Head“!
Conversational Project
You and your partner are now the officers of German Club at the U of A! You need to plan an event for the fall semester. There needs to be a German-related reason as to why you’re having this event. Ideas for this could be holidays, festivals, games, etc. Use your imagination to create a fun and culturally rich event!
Discuss:
- why you’re having this event
- what materials you’ll need for the event (i.e. food, flyers, informational handouts, props, games, crafts, videos, music, etc. – countless possibilities!)
- what you will do at the event
- what is the cultural theme (i.e. why is German Club having this event?)
You are to create a video and upload it to Blackboard with Kaltura Media to the assignment in our Content Folder (Assignment Name: German Club Event Assignment – Video Upload). We will watch your videos in class on (Date)!
An article for Kaltura Media can be found here: https://bbhelp.uark.edu/kaltura-video-assignment-submission/
Your video needs to use the event that you planned as the topic, but you can talk about it in different ways. Make sure each of you speaks an equal amount (i.e. don’t make your partner speak the entire time). Here are some ideas:
- Have a conversation with your partner about the event
- Film yourselves planning the event
- Invite your partner to the event (but make sure its conversational)
You aren’t limited to these ideas; however, you can use them as inspiration. Just beware becoming a talking head – you need to have a conversation with your partner.
My Thoughts
I feel that this activity is beneficial because it allows students to be creative while still having guidelines through a set topic. They can plan whatever event they find interesting and really make it their own, and also have fun recording their video however they choose. Students can feel comfortable in their speaking abilities because they control the conversation through their own planning. This aspect will make both the planning of the event and the videos more enjoyable for the students to do. (And maybe it’ll inspire some students to become German Club officers in reality!)