hi pal! we've been mutuals for a while but never really talked much haha. but I was wondering if you could give any tips or resources for learning german? (cus I think you speak it right?) I'm actually moving to germany really soon to finish my phd there. I have some very rudimentary knowledge from several attempts on duolingo in the past but I really want to learn it well, in the case I end up living there for a long time! anyway feel free to do with this message as you please
Hi dear! Ahh thatβs amazing that youβre moving to Germany to finish your PhD, congratulations!! Thank you for thinking of me for this kind of advice, Iβm honored <3 and of course, Iβm more than happy to give you some tips! This got super long lol I hope you donβt mind!
Here are some of the things that worked for me, feel free to take them or leave them depending on what you think would work best for you! As with any language, I think the best way to learn is to try to get as much exposure as you can, so here are some tips and resources organized by topic:
There are a lot of online courses available for free! Here are some of the ones Iβve seen (some are borrowed from this post and I added some others I found!)
Getting Started with German (I, II, III)
Intermediate German: The world of work
Advanced German: Language, culture and history
This depends on your proficiency level and areas of interest, but Iβd recommend starting with those that are more focused on language learners! In particular I found those from Deutsche Welle really helpful.
Once you feel a bit more comfortable, you can slowly work your way up to more technical or specialized podcasts, such as those related to your PhD subject! For me this is a great way to keep my German up to speed, especially since Iβm unable to practice it much where I live. Some of my recommendations are:
Slow German mit Annik Rubens, focused on everyday topics spoken slowly for easier understanding! There are even transcripts available so you can read along
Langsam gesprochene Nachrichten, news spoken slowly for easier understanding
Top-Thema mit Vokabeln, discussing current topics with a focus on vocabulary (~B1 level)
Wort der Woche short episodes focused on learning one new term per episode (~B2 level)
For more advanced podcasts, try filtering the charts for Germany and see which ones look interesting to you! I personally love science topics, so I usually listen to Spektrum der Wissenschaft and Wissen Weekly among others!
I think one of the best ways to improve your German is to actually practice it with other people. It might be scary at first but trust me youβll see a huge improvement if you try it!
I particularly recommend an app called Slowly. Itβs a charming concept, with the traditional pen pal experience where your letters actually take time to deliver depending on how far away you are. You can specify the languages you speak and your level of proficiency, so you will be able to match more easily with people according to your level!
(Also, Iβm personally a bit shy so something I really liked about this app is that itβs practically anonymous, you can just use a nickname and an avatar and youβre all set!)
Here is a wonderful masterpost of fiction books in German! It contains novels such as the Lord the Rings, the Hunger Games, and even classics such as the Metamorphosis. You can find the link to the Google Drive folder here!
I didnβt really listen to audiobooks when learning German, but Iβve heard theyβve really worked for some people! Here are some of the ones Iβve been recommended (although I havenβt personally used them). These are links to Audible for reference, but Iβd suggest using your alternate platform of choice or try to see if your local library has any available!
German Short Stories for Beginners
Learn German with Paul Noble for Beginners
This is the more traditional way of language learning, but to be honest this was what most helped me learn grammar! I think resources such as Duolingo are great for day-to-day practicing, but they can be a bit lacking in terms of grammar, which is where educational books come in handy.
I mostly used the Menschen books for the beginner levels and Mittelpunkt for more advanced levels. These can be a bit expensive, so Iβd recommend getting used books or looking in your local library, or even online.
For example, in the Deutsch Akademie website you can practice some exercises taken from these books among others for free!
Try to incorporate German into your social media experience as much as you can!
Tumblr: some blogs I follow are @thatswhywelovegermany @official-german-puns and @inoffizielles-deutschland and you can also try to follow some studyblrs to focus on vocabulary and grammar such as @learngermanblog
Twitter/Facebook: DW Deutsch lernern, they focus on language learners and sometimes they even post simple practice exercises!
This is more of a tip than a resource but one of the first things I did was switch the language on my phone and laptop to German. This forced me to read the language every day and I even picked up some new vocabulary thanks to this! Even stuff like the directions on Google Maps were in German so it was a great way of practicing. At first I really struggled, but you just have to stick with it and eventually it gets easier, I promise!
It really depends on your taste in music but here are some of the ones I listen to! I usually lean more towards indie pop/rock. But Iβd recommend trying to find a specific playlist for your favorite genre, e.g. rock in German and so on!
Playlists: Deutscher Indie, Deutschpop Hits
Artists: Phela, Joris, Philipp Dittberner, Yvonne Catterfeld, Kenay, Mark Foster
Of course movies, TV shows, and even YouTube are a great way of practicing the language even during your downtime!
In general, what worked for me was starting out by watching stuff with German audio and English subtitles (or your language of choice), and then slowly try to shift to using German subtitles only! Anyway Iβll try to recommend one of each:
TV shows: Dark on Netflix, great show and thereβs really not a lot of dialogue so itβs good for a beginner/intermediate level!
Movies: Run Lola Run (1998), a thriller movie with a time loop concept
YouTubers: here is a Reddit masterpost of German-speaking YouTubers! I personally started out watching Gronkh which is a gaming channel. His Life is Strange letβs play has the game in English and commentary in German so itβs a good way to start out!
I hope some of these resources are useful, dear! As I mentioned, in the end youβre the one that knows what works best for you! But these are just some tips and resources that I personally found useful.
Either way, once youβre actually in Germany I promise youβll see that your progress will increase exponentially just by simply listening and speaking the language daily in places like the supermarket, restaurants, etc. But you can always try to cover all your bases with additional resources such as these ones!
Again, hope this is helpful and please let me know how your journey goes! Iβm excited to hear all about it :D