Weekly Email for German 101-231 – 16. Dezember 2019

Hartmut Rastalsky Weekly Email Archive

Dear all,

Schokoladenstunde, Max Kade events, and the German Lab will resume/reopen in the Winter semester.

If you are staying in Ann Arbor for a bit longer, you may want to see “A Hidden Life“, which will be open in the Michigan Theater this Friday.

Wherever you will be, you may enjoy watching some of the winning German 221/231 final projects from the Kothe-Hildner Prize competition.

If you are still choosing classes for Winter 2020, please address any questions about German courses to the German Peer Mentors (germanmentors@umich.edu) or to our advisors Mary or Kalli (their contact info is below in the “German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German” section). Here is a list of German classes offered in Winter 2020, and here are descriptions of the Winter 2020 232 sections.
 
We have four openings for females in Max Kade for the Winter 2020 term (one in a single, one in a double in a 4-person suite, one in a double in a 5-person suite, and one in a triple in a five-person suite). Any interested students with sophomore or higher standing who will have completed at least German 102/103 (or equivalent) by the end of this semester are encouraged to send an email to maxkade@umich.edu or fill out the application form.
 
You can apply to become a campus tour guide for visitors and interested high-school students, with whom you can share your enthusiasm about the University of Michigan and your experience in the German program 🙂  The application deadline is January 10.
 
Please click the link to see information about summer work/internship positions in Germany that are offered through International Cooperative Education (ICE) in California.  You will have to pay a fee to obtain one of these positions.  If you have any questions please contact Dr. Seefeldt (ICE) directly.
 
Two additional internship positions that require a knowledge of German are offered through LSA.  One of these positions is located in the Kyrgyz Republic.
 
Other highlights from this week’s email, and what section to check for more details:
  • Job Posting: University of Michigan Tour Guides (apply by 1/10/20) – Local Events and Opportunities
  • A Hidden Life (as of 12/20/19) and Wozzeck (as of  1/11/2020) at Michigan Theater – Local Events and Opportunities
  • Study Abroad (Freiburg!), Internships, Scholarship Deadlines – Study Abroad/Internships/Scholarship Info AND Upcoming Deadlines and Events
  • Advising Hours – German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German
  • Conversation Partner Options – Miscellaneous
  • International Center Global Engagement and Education Abroad email list – Miscellaneous
  • HelloTalk: Free App for finding Conversation Partners World-Wide – Miscellaneous
  • David Lynch’s Interview Project Germany – Miscellaneous
  • learnoutlive German Resources – Miscellaneous

Upcoming Deadlines and Events

Conversation Hours, German Lab

All of the events listed here are on hiatus until the Winter semester – except for the Ann Arbor Stammtisch and the LRC Conversation Partner Site

Schokoladenstunde (with games!): Tuesdays 5:30-6:30 and Thursdays 11-12, in the Language Resource Center in North Quad.

  • Schokoladenstunde will take place in the comfy seating area between the two computer classrooms in the Language Resource Center. There will be some German chocolate there 🙂  All students at all levels are welcome to come and chat and play games in German (e.g. Tabu etc.). Schokoladenstunde will be facilitated on Tuesdays by Silvia Grzeskowiak, and on Thursdays by Mary Gell or sometimes Veronica Williamson.
  • If you ask Silvia/Mary/Veronica to email your instructor that you were there, you can use this to make up 2 “A&P points” in 101-232.

Max Kade Kaffeestunde (Thursdays 9-10 pm) & Deutschtisch (Sundays 6-7 pm)

  • Kaffeestunde at the Max Kade Haus takes place Thursdays 9-10 pm in the Said Lounge on the Residential Side of North Quad – but please check this page for occasional updates!
    • The Said Lounge is in the residential portion of North Quad, which is only open to residents ==> when you go, please email Reid (gordreid@umich.edu), so that someone can come to the front door and let you in. You can also just knock on the door of the residential portion and tell a residence staff member that you are there for the Max Kade House event, and you will be let in.
  • Deutschtisch in the North Quad dining hall: Sundays 6-7 pm.
    • You will need a meal plan or Entrée Plus to enter, or you can purchase a meal at the door (note that this is not cheap) – but you may also be allowed to come in just to talk and not eat, if you say at the door that you are there for the Max Kade event.
    • The group has yellow signs with “Max Kade Deutschtisch” to identify where they are sitting.
    • For questions, contact Reid (gordreid@umich.edu).
  • German students at all levels (101 and up) are welcome at all Max Kade events. You can make up “A&P Tally” points in 101-232 by attending Max Kade Deutschtisch or Kaffeestunde. Just ask Reid to email your instructor that you were there!

German Lab in Alcove B in the Language Resource Center in North Quad is open Mon-Thu 1-4 pm.

  • The German Lab is open Monday-Thursday 1-4 every week. It’s in Alcove B in the LRC (ground level of North Quad, Room 1500).
  • Go to the German Lab for any kind of help (except we can’t proofread your essays for you): if you need help with homework or a test review sheet (we can proofread your test essays for German 101-231), if you need grammar topics explained or reviewed or need more practice, if you just want to speak some German for fun and/or for your AMD etc. If you have time in the afternoons from 1-4, do your homework in the LRC! Then if you get stuck on something, you can just stop by the German Lab alcove so we can get you unstuck.
  • Click here for more info!

LRC Conversation Partner Site

Go to this page to sign up or find a conversation partner. Please notify the LRC if you notice problems (e.g. outdated records etc.). Don’t be shy: the more people sign up, the better the site will work!

RC Coffee Hour: Mondays 4-5, Greene Lounge, East Quad

  • All are welcome to come to this German conversation hour!
  • This is NOT something you can do to make up an absence, but you can still go for fun and/or write about it for an AMD.

Ann Arbor Stammtisch

  • A German Stammtisch meets once a week, usually on Thursdays at 8:00 pm at Grizzly Peak or another bar near Main Street. Join the email list to stay up-to-date on where and when the group will meet.
  • Alternatively, contact the organizers – this contact info will be updated soon!
  • This is NOT something you can do to make up an absence, but you can still go for fun and/or write about it for an AMD.

German Club

Questions/Comments: email Paul (pauljc@umich.edu) or Drue (druefro@umich.edu)

Email germaneboard@umich.edu to get put on the email list, or “like” the club on Facebook at facebook.com/germanclubumich for updates!

Please note that by attending German Club meetings, you can make up “A&P” points in German 101-232. Just ask one of the German Club officers to email your instructor (or write a note) saying you were there!

German Courses & Majoring/Minoring in German

Faculty Advisors Mary Rodena-Krasan & Kalli Federhofer

  • Contact our two faculty advisors, Mary or Kalli, for advice on study abroad, internships abroad, a German major/minor, upper-level German courses, career opportunities in German, study-abroad and work-abroad opportunities, etc. They have frequent office hours in Fall/Winter, as follows:
  • Mary Rodena-Krasan (MLB 3128; mkrasan@umich.edu):
    • Her office hours are: will resume in January!
  • Karl-Georg Federhofer (MLB 3422; kallimz@umich.edu):
    • His office hours this week are:
      Monday, December 16: 10-11:30, 1:30-4:30 p.m.,
      Tuesday, December 17: 10-12:30, 2:30-4:30 p.m.,
      Wednesday, December 18: 10-11:30, 2-4:30 p.m.,
      Thursday, December 19: 9-12 p.m.,
      Friday, December 20: no office hours,
      and by appointment
  • To reach either advisor: germanadvising@umich.edu
  • You can also schedule appointments with Mary & Kalli by clicking here
  • …and you can contact Kalli via text message (734-277-7341) or via Facebook (Kalli Federhofer)

German Peer Advisors/Mentors

If you would like to get in touch with a peer mentor in our Department, please write to: germanmentors@umich.edu. Their expertise includes:

  • Current classes and potential courses
  • Study abroad, internship, and traveling in Germany
  • Academic requirements (major/minor, LSA language requirement) and combination (engineering, pre-health, etc.)
  • Max Kade House
  • Departmental scholarships/fellowships
  • On- and off-campus German opportunities (German Club, German Day, etc.)
  • Career/job search
  • Getting involved – enhancing your undergraduate experience with the German Department

Study Abroad/Internships/Scholarship Info

German-Related Jobs and Opportunities

This page will only include entries in this category when there is a job/internship etc. aimed at German students at all levels. To see more internship and job opportunities, scroll through Kalli’s blog, addressed to all upper-level German students

Local Events and Opportunities

UofM German bei Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn und Blogger

There are two German Department facebook groups:

  • “German Advising at University of Michigan” [Read news here!]
    • Join this group to see much of the information you see in this email, as well as other relevant info, in the form of individual announcement posts.
  • “German Program at University of Michigan – Vorwärts Blau!” [Post things here!]
    • You are encouraged to join this group to in order to read and post interesting/fun items related to German language and culture. If you have trouble joining the group or posting something, please email Hartmut!

AND there is a German Department facebook page. Check it out: https://www.facebook.com/umichGerman/

You can find weekly updates similar to this email but with lots more content on this blog.

We also encourage you to join us on our LinkedIn site: ‘University of Michigan German Department’

You can also follow us on Twitter: @umichGerman

Miscellaneous

Conversation Partner Options: Various options for finding conversation partners are listed on this page.

Sign up here for the International Center’s Global Engagement and Education Abroad email list. Weekly emails include info on workshops regarding travel and work abroad, conversation groups, cultural info sessions etc. SEHR interessant!

HelloTalk: Free App for finding Conversation Partners anywhere; includes speech recognition!

  • This is a free app (Android and iOS) for finding conversation partners around the world and at home. Click the link for more info on HelloTalk.

learnoutlive German Resources

learnoutlive is a great collection of ideas and resources for learning German, with a great motto: “If it sounds too harsh, you’re trying too hard” 🙂

David Lynch’s Interview Project Germany

  • Interview Project Germany – German Version
  • Interview Project Germany – English Version
  • The project crew went on a road trip through Germany in 2011 and recorded short interviews (about 5 mins each) with 50 people they met along the way. Each video is briefly introduced by David Lynch, and accompanied by a German text summary; there is an option to turn on English subtitles. Going to the /en version of the site lets you see the summaries in English, and the videos automatically appear with subtitles. Based on a similar series filmed in the U.S. in 2009-2010: http://interviewproject.davidlynch.com/  Watching the German version with subtitles is great listening practice, and also a chance to hear a variety of German dialects!