Nottingham High School's Modern Foreign Languages Department

German Exchange 2012

Ms Griffin — Wed, 16 May 2012 10:30:22 +0000

Whilst our German guests from Gilching, Bavaria were here some of the Year 9 boys interviewed them to find out a little bit about themselves and what they think about their stay in Nottingham. You might like to watch the video and find out what they have to say.

Bildende Kunstkritik: German Expressionism as Seen by Year 9

Mr Brown — Tue, 08 May 2012 19:28:01 +0000

Bildende Kunstkritik on Prezi

The boys in Year 9 have been studying some works of art by the German Expressionist painter August Macke.

Have a look at some of their critical responses and tell us what you think of the paintings in German or English!

Many thanks to Fawad for putting this presentation together.

Want to write good essays?

Mr Picardo — Sat, 05 May 2012 22:41:01 +0000

When it comes to writing essays in the foreign language, students generally find it difficult to make the leap from the narrations and descriptions required for GCSE to the more sophisticated deeper analysis and structured evaluation required at A Level. Above, you can see a word cloud made from the AQA AS and A2 content assessment criteria, clearly highlighting what you need in order to access the highest grades in writing: relevance, evidence, structure and evaluation are all key requirements.

The traditional concept of introduction, followed by main body and culminating in a conclusion offers a basic structure that you can follow to construct your essay. However, it does not identify what precisely is needed to produce a good introduction, a convincing main body and a sound conclusion that demonstrate to examiners that you can analyse and evaluate – and not just describe and narrate – within a well-built and structured argument. Remember that poorly structured essays will attract a low content mark and that this, in turn, will cap what marks you can achieve in range and accuracy.

So, what can you do to hone those essay writing skills to ensure that you always submit your best possible work? Below is a sequence of four steps – based on John Biggs‘s SOLO Taxonomy describing the different levels of understanding of subjects by students – with sample verbs to guide you and help you in the construction of the perfect essay:

1. Step One – Identify Main Aspect

Read the exam question carefully. Identify the main aspect and establish its relevance to the topic in question. This is crucial if you are to answer the question as required by the examining board. Avoid general answers and always remember to answer the question.

Step Two – Link Other Relevant Aspects

The main aspect of the question is going to be linked to other relevant aspects that will add weight and consideration to your answer. Describe and consider all aspects that you think may be relevant.

Average essays will frequently deal with steps one and two. Excellent essays, however, will go on to tackle steps three and four.

Step Three – Explore Implications

Provide evidence of your knowledge and understanding of the topic by contrasting issues, criticising implications and supplying and justifying a personal reaction, all of which will add depth of treatment to your essay.

Step Four – Review Your Findings

Conclude your essay by reflecting on the implications of your reasoning. Ask What if? questions and explore the hypothetical problems or solutions raised by your findings to provide a fully relevant response and clear evidence of evaluation and abstract conceptualisation.

Although Biggs’s SOLO Taxonomy was never meant as an essay writing aid, following these four basic steps will flesh out your introduction, main body and conclusion, allowing you to tackle the question and all its relevant aspects in a logical and structured manner.

Oh, and remember to do all this in highly accurate Spanish, French or German with only some occasional errors!

If you think following these four steps will help you, why not print out this A4 poster to remind you?

Many thanks to C.A. Muller, Dan Machold, Victor Antunez and the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center for the wonderful photographs used to illustrate this post.

Old Nottinghamian Linguists – Gabriel’s Second Year

Mrs Moorhouse — Fri, 04 May 2012 08:32:44 +0000

Gabriel Currie is studying Spanish at Durham University. Below are his experiences of his second year and his feelings towards his third year abroad in Spain. If you missed last year’s interview you can find it here.

How has second year been compared to first year?

There is definitely a noticeable step up, not so much in the language side of things, but very much so in the cultural and literature modules I’m studying. Concepts are more difficult to understand, and essays are longer and require deeper and more sophisticated analysis. Tricky!

What have you enjoyed studying?

We’ve looked quite extensively at the films of Pedro Almodóvar, and I’ve really enjoyed looking at some of his earlier works. Also, we’ve looked at Simon Bolivar and the myth surrounding him in Latin America, something which I found very interesting. I also enjoyed reading El Conde Lucanor, and would definitely recommend that anyone interested in studying Spanish at university looks at that.

What have you not enjoyed studying?

I got a bit bored with some of the more dense literature, and some of the more obscure poetry was a bit heavy going. Also, grammar is still a drag!

What are your plans for your year abroad?

I’m hoping to study at the University of Salamanca, in Spain, for either one or two semesters. I might also see if I can get a job, and use the money from that to finance a trip to Latin America in the summer of 3rd year.

Why/how did you decide on these plans?

Unfortunately I didn’t really have much choice! Spain has such high unemployment that it’s difficult for anyone to get a job at the moment, and because I’m not an EU citizen I’m not actually entitled to work without huge amounts of paperwork. No one wants to give me a job! However, I get a grant from the EU to go and study in Spain, so this is what I want to do. I chose Salamanca because it’s a really nice city in a great part of Spain, not too far from Madrid, and has a good university with excellent programmes for foreign students.

How are you feeling about living abroad?

I think it should be really exciting, and I can’t wait! I’ll be gutted to leave everyone back home, and it’s going to be strange making another fresh start all over again. I’m a little bit worried that I’m going to take a while to properly pick up the language to a level where I can understand everything going on, but I hope its not too difficult.

Broadway Films – May 2012

Mrs Moorhouse — Wed, 02 May 2012 08:55:18 +0000

The following films are showing during May and are suitable for Year 11 upwards. Language Ambassadors, you can use your prizes if you wish!

Carancho 4th May-10th May

‘Part classic tragedy, part social commentary, this moody and provocative Argentine drama tells the story of an ambulance-chasing personal injury lawyer with dubious ethics who falls in love with an idealistic doctor.’

Goodbye First Love (in French, Un amour de jeunesse) 4th May-17th May

‘The gorgeous new romantic drama from rising talent Mia Hansen-Løve (Father of My Children) is an unashamedly personal story of love, loss and the tender memories from youth that can never truly be erased. Spring, 1999. Camille is 15 years old and head-over-heels in love with Sullivan, a broody, husky-voiced boy four years her senior. Four years later, Camille is involved with her Danish professor, but when Sullivan reappears, she finds herself caught between two loves…’

Café de Flore 11th May-24th May

‘Writer/director Jean-Marc Vallée returns to the fluid, intuitive filmmaking that made him a sensation with C.R.A.Z.Y. In Café De Flore, he spins a complex, time-jumping narrative involving a present-day Montréal father in the throes of a mid-life crisis and the mother of a child with Down’s syndrome in 1969 Paris. Simply a beautiful, intricate film. A word of advice, though: when the credits start rolling, remain seated.’

Monsieur Lazhar 25th May-31st May

‘During a harsh Montréal winter, a school class is left reeling after its teacher commits suicide. Bachir Lazhar, a charismatic Algerian immigrant steps in as the substitute teacher for the classroom of traumatised children. All the while he must keep his personal life tucked away: the fact that he’s seeking political refuge in Québec – and that he, like the children, has suffered an appalling loss. Mohamed Fellag as Lezhar delivers a performance full of charm, compassion, and humanity allowing the story of a beloved teacher to breathe with wit and originality.’

Picture and synopses from Broadway Cinema

8S Spanish Storybirds

Miss Rigby — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 09:55:55 +0000

The boys in 8S have been practising their extended writing skills in Spanish describing what they do in their free time. They have all tried their best to use more complex structures and a greater variety of vocabulary.

Take a look at the work they have produced, below. There will be a winning Storybird book which will be printed and housed in the school library, meaning that at least one boy in this Year 8 class will have a book they have written in the library… forever!

Further task for the boys: Please pick one of the Storybirds on this page and read it carefully. What advice can you give its writer? Mention two things that they have done very well and one thing that they could perhaps improve. Focus not only on the accuracy of the piece, but also on complexity of the language and the range of vocabulary used.

Mis Pasatiempos on Storybird
Mis Pasatiempos on Storybird
Mis Pasatiampos on Storybird
Mis PasatiemposWill L on Storybird
Mis Pasatiempos on Storybird
Mis Pasatiempos on Storybird
MIS PASATIEMPOS! on Storybird
Mis Pastiempos on Storybird
my storybird on Storybird
Español Story bird. on Storybird
Macho-Man! on Storybird
the spanish adventures on Storybird
¿ Que vas a hacer? on Storybird
¡Hola me llamo Harry y tengo trece me gusta mucho deportes.me gusta mucho futbol es divertido e interesante. by harryb2 on Storybird
¡Mis Pasatiempos! on Storybird
Mis pasatiempos on Storybird
Mis Pasatiempos on Storybird
Mi Pasatiempos on Storybird
Me Vida on Storybird

Mukul and Harry publish their first books

Mr Picardo — Wed, 18 Apr 2012 12:40:38 +0000

Late in the Spring Term, the boys in 8T were challenged to write an electronic book in Spanish describing what they do in their free time, trying to use where possible more complex structures and a greater variety of vocabulary. Their work can be seen here.

They used a web-based tool called Storybird that allows children to create and publish their own books, both electronically and in actual book form.

The challenge became a competition to find the best electronic book which would, as a prize, be turned into an actual book which would then be added to the School Library.

It was really hard to pick a winner among so many excellent entries from 8T and, in the end, it proved impossible to decide between Mukul and Harry, as both their books were astonishingly good, so they were both proclaimed winners!

The photo above captures the moment when Harry and Mukul were presented their books, which they then kindly donated to the School Library. Their first ever book in a library. Hopefully the first of many.

How to make the most of a dictionary

Mr Allerton — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 10:17:12 +0000

Here is a summary of my Year 10 Spanish pupils’ advice for using the dictionary to help get verb form right. It might look like a lot of steps but most of them are common sense, and they will help you learn as well as get the right answer.

· First you need to know that you need a verb (not a noun or an adjective), and which tense you need it in.

· Find this verb in the Learner’s Dictionary.

· For example – ‘book’ is a noun (a book) and a verb (to book a hotel) – make sure you find the Spanish verb.

· The different learner’s dictionaries have different systems to help you find the page in the middle blue pages with all the verb forms. Many verbs are regular so you will be directed to an ‘example’ verb page. For example the verb ‘comer – to eat’ is given as the ER model for all regular ER verbs.

· Other verbs are irregular. In one of our learners dictionaries irregular verbs are asterisked, which means you have to look in the glossary at the end of the blue section to find which numbered entry to look at. In the other learner’s dictionary the irregular verb is numbered in the definition page.

· Sometimes verbs are based on other verbs – for ‘obtener’ and ‘mantener’, you will be told to use the endings provided for ‘tener’.

· Once you get to the blue page for your verb, think carefully about which tense you need, and which person is doing the verb. Then it is easy to find the right ending.

Quick Guide

1. Find the VERB definition

2. Find the entry for that verb (regular or irregular) in the blue central section

3. Find the person and tense you need.

My Year 10s have discovered that this is much more helpful than becoming reliant on GoogleTranslate or similar. The computer often cannot know which form you mean (it doesn’t have enough context) and sometimes even chooses the wrong definition.

YOUR BRAINS + DICTIONARY > GOOGLETRANSLATE

A final piece of advice – get yourself a dictionary for home. The Learners Dictionaries are fine for GCSE learners and cost around £5, and the much larger hardback dictionaries, ideal for A level students, are often on sale on amazon for as little as £15.

There are also on-line dictionaries and apps which are equally good BUT you still have to take the time to read through the entries and USE YOUR OWN BRAIN to make intelligent decisions, guided by the examples given, about the word you need.

Photograph thanks to TexasT’s

Broadway Films – Easter 2012

Mrs Moorhouse — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 11:41:13 +0000

There are lots of foreign-language films coming up at Broadway Cinema. Most of them fall in the Easter holidays. They are ideal revision breaks!

The Woman in the Fifth (La femme du Vème) Friday 23rd March – Thursday 29th March (in French)

In this thriller based on Douglas Kennedy’s novel Ethan Hawke plays American writer Tom Ricks, who comes to Paris desperate to put his life together again and win back his estranged wife and daughter. When things don’t go according to plan, he ends up in a shady hotel in the suburbs, having to work as a night guard to make ends meet. Then Margit (played by Kristin Scott-Thomas), a beautiful, mysterious stranger walks into his life and things start looking up. Their passionate and intense relationship triggers a string of inexplicable events… as if an obscure power was taking control of his life.

L’Atalante Monday 2nd April – Thursday 5th April (in French)

Vigo’s masterpiece, depicting a newly-wed couple’s travels on a barge, is one of the iconic films in cinema. Poetic, surreal, earthy and capped with a brilliant performance by Michel Simon as the irrepressible first mate, this is a film to return to time and time again.

La grande illusion Friday 6th April – Thursday 12th April (in French)

A beautiful new restoration of the most lyrical attack that the cinema has ever launched against the institution of war. It’s ‘a film about war without a single scene of combat’ as historian Jonathan Rosenbaum put it, ‘but it’s still one of the key humanist expressions to be found in movies.’

Delicacy (La délicatesse) Friday 13th April – Thursday 26th April (in French)

Audrey Tautou, the luminous star of Amélie and Coco Before Chanel, returns in this charing fable about starting over again. Nathalie is young, beautiful, and happily married, But then her husband’s accidental death stops her in her tracks. For several years, she buries herself in her work and puts her love life on hold. Then suddenly, without really knowing why, she kisses on of her colleagues, Markus, a very unusual man…

Breathing (Atmen) Friday 20th April – Thursday 3rd May (in German)

Breathing is a brilliantly nuanced portrayal of youthful rebellion and the struggle to build a constructive future from a disadvantaged start in life. 18-year-old Roman is serving time in a juvenile detention centre and attempting to find gainful employment that could earns him release on probation. His chances are poor as he doesn’t have a family and doesn’t respond well to authority. He slowly works towards an unexpected redemption in a challenging job as an undertaker’s assistant leading to a newfound interest in his estranged family.

See Mrs Moorhouse for more details of the latter two films.

Picture thanks to filmequals.com

Synopses thanks to Broadway Cinema

8T Storybird Competition

Mr Picardo — Thu, 15 Mar 2012 13:26:02 +0000

The boys in 8T have been practising their extended writing skills in Spanish describing what they do in their free time. They have all tried their best to use more complex structures and a greater variety of vocabulary.

Help to choose the winning book by leaving a comment!

Further task for the boys: Please pick one of the Storybirds on this page and read it carefully. What advice can you give its writer? Mention two things that they have done very well and one thing that they could perhaps improve. Focus not only on the accuracy of the piece, but also on complexity of the language and the range of vocabulary used.

En Mi Tiempo Libre on Storybird

Mi tiempo libre on Storybird

En Mi Tiempo Libre on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre… on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre on Storybird

En mi Tiempo Libre on Storybird

En Mi Tiempo Libre on Storybird

En mi Tiempo libre on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre on Storybird

En Mi Tiempo Libre. on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre…. on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre on Storybird

En mi tiempo libre… on Storybird