Finally! A Reader That Motivates a First-Year German Class!
Meet Fritz, a 10-year-old German mouse who travels to the United States to spend a year in Bangor, Maine with Peter and his family. A likable, Lederhosen-wearing mouse, Fritz does all the typical things American kids do, like going to the mall and the beach. Fritz likes soccer and is annoyed by chatty girls. Designed to be read in the first few months of German class, the book contains a complete vocabulary list, plus comprehension questions.
This story is also digitally available on Flangoo. Sign up for a free trial and read it for free (no credit card required).
Level 1
Unique Words: extensive
Tense(s): present
Glossary: yes
©2009. German. Level 1. Elementary, middle school, high school. 62 pages.
Print Book: 5 x 7 inches, Softcover.
The activity book contains a student worksheet and a quiz for each of Fritz's twelve chapters. Enhance the reader experience and your students’ comprehension with our extra, book-related activities. The perfect teacher tool for a lively German class! Answer key included.
©2011. German, English. Level 1. Elementary, middle school, high school. Reproducible. 52 pages.
Activity Book Download: PDF. Adobe® Reader® required to view PDF.
***
Teacher Reports: Fritz REALLY Works for First-Year German Students (and Beyond)!
"I am just finishing reading Fritz Abenteuer in Amerika as a review with my high school German 1 students. I have NEVER in my 12 years of teaching had a group of students so excited about reading in German.They are begging for a sequel! They want more books just like this. I try to read a fair amount with my upper levels, but this reader convinces me that even the lowest level can be motivated to read an entire book without any fear. I cannot express in words how this book re-energized my class (and it is the middle of May!)
I used the Fritz reader in two classes. In German 1 we read the book as group, out loud. I read, they read, they read to each other... It took us about a week, but the students were so motivated—like I had rarely seen them during the year. My goal in reading the book was to review all of the vocabulary we had learned; they were guaranteed success with fairly little effort. One student even pointed out that the chapters seemed to go in the exact order that we learned the vocabulary, completely by coincidence!
In German 3 we read the book in one-and-a-halfdays, quickly reading everything out loud, and the students quickly answering every question after every chapter. In German 3, Fritz was primarily used as a time-filler and to remind the students just how much they really did know (following numerous challenging units of grammar and vocabulary). They loved it as much as the German 1 students! I also had the students write their own sequel as a fun writing project."
Sarah B., German Teacher, Wisconsin
***
About the Author
Fabiola Canale was raised by German parents living in Venezuela. She has lived all over the United States, and currently resides in Colorado. She has been teaching and writing stories for her students for many years. While she truly loves cooking, reading, and watching TV, her favorite free-time activities are working out and hiking with her husband. She wishes she could live in Maine, just like the mice in her books.
