German Resources
If you are an individual trying to learn German on your own, there are, of course, thousands of German
resources available on the internet, some of them truly excellent. However, I may be old-fashioned, but I
still feel that some resources in book form are indispensable for reference. Here are some of my personal
recommendations that I have found to be most useful.
1. Dictionaries: A dictionary with a minimum of 50,000 references is recommended for anyone studying
German. Personally, in my 30 years of professional experience as a translator and teacher, I have found
Langenscheidt German dictionaries (the yellow ones with the big blue L on the front) to be the most useful.
They do not simply throw words at you, but provide an abundance of information on usage if you know how to
quality of the dictionary you are using. A really good dictionary can be expensive, but Langenscheidt has
reasonably priced dictionaries that are quite comprehensive (e.g. Compact German-English/English-
German dictionary with over 70,000 references for around $20). If you are in the market for a dictionary,
check out Powell's Books. They carry a selection of Langenscheidt German dictionaries, both new and used.
The following sites are good online dictionaries:
words are used in)
2. Grammar: -There are tons of books that turn grammar into a really unsavory mess. I think sometimes
have used it with my own children. It explains the grammar, gives lots of examples, and provides plenty of
practice exercises (with answers in the back). I don't think Schaum's Outlines would be sufficient on its own,
but it's great as a supplement if you have another source that explains the grammar in more depth. It's
particularly useful for reference or review, and it's reasonably priced (under $20).
- If you are really serious about your grammar, you will probably want to invest in German in Review by Kimberly Sparks/Van Horn Vail. A new copy will cost you $60 or more, but this book has been around for over
forty years, and you may well be able to obtain an older edition used for a lot less and derive the same
benefit from it.
3. Movies: A number of German movies are available for purchase or rental in the US. If you are looking
downloadable workbooks for a large number of German movies. Check out my movie review page for German movies you may or may not want to use in the classroom. Remember to check the region coding
when you buy German DVDs. Germany is Region 2; the US is Region 1. You may need to get a code-free
DVD-player to play a German DVD in the US. Both amazon.com and amazon.de feature a number of German
movies, but some of them, even if they are available on amazon.com, are still Region 2 coded. I suggest you try
amazon.de because the prices are sometimes pretty good and it may end up being cheaper to pay the s&h of
(currently) 14 Euros per shipment to the US, rather than buying the movie at a US dealer specializing in
foreign-language films.
4. German Textbooks: After teaching college German for over 15 years with a number of different
textbooks, I feel qualified to review some textbooks from personal and classroom experience. Of course,
there have been tremendous changes in teaching philosophy during that time, which, in turn, have been
reflected in the textbooks most schools have adopted, but my reviews will focus on fairly recent editions
of popular textbooks for German.
5. New German Spelling Rules: If you have trouble with the new German spelling rules, check out
the list of words affected by the new rules (pdf file) or the following site for rules, explanations, and
6. Geography Games:
7. German Names: Do you need some good German names for your students? Are you curious about
what the most popular German names are this year or maybe a hundred years ago? This site has the
answers: http://www.beliebte-vornamen.de/ . Also, be sure to check out my activity worksheet for
German last names.
8. Other German Resources:
http://www.uni.edu/becker/German2.html (extensive collection of materials and links to all things German)
http://www.aatg.org/teaching-resources/255-grow-german-resources-on-the-web (great resource from
American Association of Teachers of German)
http://www.nthuleen.com/teach.html (lots of original worksheets for German students, incredible site)
http://www.mrshea.com/work.htm (huge site, particularly for background info on history, customs etc.)
http://www.shambles.net/pages/learning/mfl/german/
http://language-directory.50webs.com/languages/german.htm (extensive list of specialized dictionaries and
media resources)