Notes from Teach Yourself German

THE TEACH YOURSELF BOOKS

  • Edited by Leonard Cutts

UNIFORM WITH THIS VOLUME AND IN THE SAME SERIES

  • Teach Yourself Arabic

  • Teach Yourself Chinese

  • Teach Yourself Dutch

  • Teach Yourself English Grammar

  • Teach Yourself French

  • Teach Yourself Everyday French

  • Teach Yourself French Phrase Book

  • Teach Yourself More German

  • Teach Yourself German Phrase Book

  • Teach Yourself German Grammar

  • Teach Yourself Greek

  • Teach Yourself Good English

  • Teach Yourself Hindustani

  • Teach Yourself Hebrew

  • Teach Yourself Italian

  • Teach Yourself Italian Phrase Book

  • Teach Yourself Latin

  • Teach Yourself Malay

  • Teach Yourself Norwegian

  • Teach Yourself Polish

  • Teach Yourself Portuguese

  • Teach Yourself Russian

  • Teach Yourself Russian Phrase Book

  • Teach Yourself Spanish

  • Teach Yourself Spanish Phrase Book

  • Teach Yourself Swahili

  • Teach Yourself Swedish

  • Teach Yourself Turkish

TITLE PAGE

  • TEACH YOURSELF GERMAN

  • A BOOK OF SELF-INSTRUCTION IN GERMAN

  • BASED ON THE WORK BY SIR JOHN ADAMS, M.A., LL.D., COMPLETELY REVISED AND ENLARGED BY SYDNEY W. WELLS, B.A.

  • AND FURTHER REVISED BY E. S. JENKINS, B.A.

  • ENGLISH UNIVERSITIES PRESS LTD. LONDON

PREFACE

  • Historical context of language learning; reflects previous attitudes toward learning foreign languages.

  • Humorously discusses the differences in mistakes made by English and non-English speakers.

  • Importance of practical language skills over grammar-heavy approaches discussed.

  • Suggests the necessity of regular short practice rather than infrequent intense study.

  • Assures students will achieve basic reading, writing, and speaking proficiency with conscientious effort.

INTRODUCTION

  • Aims to develop reading, writing, and speaking abilities in German.

  • Emphasizes the vastness of language study; encourages consistent practice.

  • Vocabulary is modern and relevant for contemporary use, including travel and literature.

  • Recommends frequent practice, including reading aloud and self-quiz techniques.

CURRICULUM OVERVIEW

PART 1

I. The German Alphabet

  • Description of the letters, pronunciation, and special sounds.

II. The Simple Sentence: Masculine, Feminine, and Neuter Nouns

  • Discussion of noun gender's importance; rules for determining gender based on endings.

  • Practical examples of nouns and their genders provided.

III. The Weak Verb

  • Introduction to weak verbs and their conjugation.

IV. The Cases

  • Detailed explanation of nominative, accusative, and dative cases.

V. Haben, Sein and the Imperfect

  • Explanation of the auxiliary verbs haben and sein; their importance.

VI. Demonstrative Adjectives and Some Prepositions

  • Explication of demonstrative adjectives, prepositions with their cases (accusative or dative) indicated.

VII. Declension of German Nouns

  • Detailed rules for noun declensions and their applications with examples.

VIII. Rules for Gender

  • Comprehensive rules for determining noun genders based on endings and generalizations.

IX. Non-personal Element in Verbs

  • Discussion of how the subject of action influences the forms of verbs.

X. Personal Pronouns

  • Comprehensive explanation of personal pronouns, their forms, and uses.

XI. Strong Verbs

  • Conjugation details of strong verbs and the distinction from weak verbs.

XII. Prepositions and Werden

  • Overview of various prepositions and how they govern nouns.

XIII. The English Present Participle

  • Forming and using the present participle in the German context.

XIV. Conditional Sentences

  • Formation and use of conditional constructions in German.

XV. Reflexive Verbs

  • Identification and usage in sentences, including pronouns and meanings.

XVI. Impersonal Verbs

  • Exploration of impersonal structures and common usages in conversation.

XVII. Auxiliaries of Mood

  • Verbs that convey ability, necessity, permission, etc. noticed in context.

XVIII. Separable and Inseparable Verbs

  • Distinction between these types of verbs with examples.

XIX. Noun Behavior

  • Special notes on noun characteristics and inherent traits.

XX. Comparison

  • Explanation of how adjectives and adverbs are compared in German, including forms of superlatives.

XXI. Possessive and Correlative Pronouns

  • Focus on the use and forms of possessive and correlative pronouns.

XXII. Order of Words

  • Detailed look at typical word orders in sentences, including subordinate and principal clauses.

KEY TO EXERCISES

  • Comprehensive answers provided for all exercises given throughout the lessons, exemplifying the teaching material and allowing for self-assessment and review.