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Year 8 - German

Places and people: now or then? Imperfect tense: 'war', 'hatte', 'gab'

Then and now: imperfect tense and comparatives

Unit Summary

This unit introduces the imperfect tense forms war, hatte, and es gab to compare places and experience in the past and present. The comparative is also introduced, and adjective endings revisited.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to compare the past with now using the imperfect tense words 'war', 'hatte' and 'es gab'.

Key Notes

  • Mastering German phonics is essential for good understanding in listening, speaking and writing.
  • Practising vocabulary in a range of ways helps with recall.
  • The imperfect tense can be used to describe how things were in the past.
  • 'War' means 'was'; 'es gab' means 'there was, were'; 'hatte' means 'had'.

Vocabulary To Learn

  • SSC: stands for sound-symbol correspondence - the relationship between letters and their sound
  • imperfect tense: German single-word past tense used mainly to narrate past events in writing, e.g., 'war', 'hatte', 'gab'

Common Mistakes To Avoid

  • 'Was' and 'had' have different forms in German for 'ich' and 'er, sie'.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

1. Explain what you can now say or understand in this lesson.

Mastering German phonics is essential for good understanding in listening, speaking and writing. Practising vocabulary in a range of ways helps with recall.

2. Define this key language word and use it in context. 'SSC'

stands for sound-symbol correspondence - the relationship between letters and their sound. Say or write it in a short sentence so you use the word actively.

3. Correct this common language-learning mistake.

Mistake: 'Was' and 'had' have different forms in German for 'ich' and 'er, sie'. Correction: In German, 'war' means 'was', 'hatte' means 'had'. Both forms remain unchanged for 'ich' and 'er, sie', like in English.

More Lessons In This Unit

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