Category Archives: Uncategorized

Back to School Traditions: Schultütte

Posted in Crafty Projects, Uncategorized by

Summer is really winding down. My boys go back to school right after Labor Day.

This is a big year for us: our little Hippo is starting school for the first time! He’ll be in preschool three mornings a week. And so it’s time to make a German Schultütte!!

The Schultütte is a wonderful German tradition for the first day of school. It’s a large, colorful cone filled with all kinds of goodies to celebrate that big day. You can put whatever you like into it. Maybe school supplies, stickers, a small toy, candy, or whatever your little one is into!

Froggy got one on the first day of preschool and the first day of kindergarten.

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I can’t remember exactly what we put in the Schultütte. Probably some crayons, pencils, erasers, stickers. I think there were some magnetic letters, a balloon, a maze book, and a small Lego toy, too.

This year, I thought I would enlist Froggy’s help in filling the Schultütte for Hippo. I plan to take him to Target next week and see what we can find. The red dot section is especially good for finding those small, inexpensive treats. The Dollar Store would be a good idea, too. We already picked out a small Lego toy for him: it’s a “Bagger” – one of his favorite things to spot while we’re out driving. And yes, he always says it in German  🙂

I found a great blog post with instructions on making the Schultütte and use it again and again each year. It only takes about 20-30 minutes. And you need just a few supplies – perhaps you already have them in the house: poster board, wrapping paper, tissue paper, tape/glue/staples, scissors, and of course the goodies to put in the Schultütte! The first part of cutting the poster board is a bit tricky until you start to do it  🙂 Check out the comments on the post for a few more tips.

UPDATE:

Hippo got his first Schultütte the day before school started. It was such a hit!

It was almost as big as he is! I was even able to reuse last year’s from Froggy 🙂  Just put on fresh tissue paper! Inside, he found crayons, pencils, colored pencils, a pencil case, glue stick, child scissors, stickers, car, toothbrush, dinosaur workbook, bouncy ball, and a small Lego “Bagger”. Lots of fun!

Olympic Games: LEGO World Flags

Posted in Crafty Projects, Uncategorized by

Earlier this month, I wrote a post about making Lego flags during the Olympics. Froggy not only enjoyed making the flags, but he was eager for me to create instructions for all the flags he made!

Once we got the hang of it, the basic striped flags were really easy. The hardest part was finding enough pieces in all the colors. We also managed to create some flags with plus-shapes, like Switzerland, Sweden, and Finland.

The flags are a great opportunity to practice geography and colors. But as I was creating the instructions, I realized you could also turn this into a math game. For the striped flags, we made them 12 across and 2 rows for each stripe. Challenge your little one to see how many ways s/he can make the row of 12 using pieces in different sizes! Froggy already made a change to the Germany flag, making it with just 15 pieces.

Or you can follow our patterns (click to download the PDF files):

 

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Here are 8 of the 10 flags. Froggy is going to rebuild France & Austria!

Summer Experiment: No English Books

Posted in Getting them to read more, Uncategorized by

Before school ended, I came across a post on Multilingual Living (a great resource for multilingual families, if you’re not familiar with it!). The contributor wrote about her summer experiment: NO ENGLISH BOOKS! Well, at least for the summer. She packed them up and stored them in the guest room, so her kids had only German books to read all summer long.

Now, her boys are older than mine – 9 and 7 compared to mine at 6 and 3. My older son is a good reader in English, though, and my little one loves to be read to. So I decided to try out her experiment.

I thought my kids would revolt when all the English books disappeared on the last day of school! Well, they didn’t entirely disappear…. They were packed up in boxes, but the boxes never made it out of the hall where we have our bookcases, between the boys’ rooms:

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Without the English books, the shelves look a little bare! And you can see, the boxes have been reopened as summer winds down.

I even took it one step further and packed up the English DVDs. Alas, I couldn’t pack up YouTube and all the marble run videos my kids like to watch! In the car, we had only German music and stories.

So how did it go??

Well, we made it through the whole summer … almost. I finally gave in with just over a week to go before school starts. But the boys went along with my experiment!

I’m not sure that I saw an improvement in their German. But then, we didn’t work much on actually speaking German this summer. Tja. We’re still working on it! Still, I’m pleased with all the exposure they got.

We also kept the Dutch books out, so my husband had something to read at bedtime. The only trick was what to do when we had a babysitter or my mom putting the boys to bed, since they only speak English! I think my mom managed Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt (The Very Hungry Caterpillar) in German, since she’s heard it so many times! And Hippo helped her  🙂

I think the most successful part of the experiment for us was listening to German in the car. I have a CD of Eric Carle stories. They are not too long, about 7 minutes each. It was by far the most requested playlist in the car all summer!

Eric Carle CD

We also have a CD called Nimmersatt Singspiel by Viktor Christen, but I can’t find it anywhere online now. Froggy loved singing along with the somewhat quirky musical adaptation of the story!

Now that school is about to start, I have started opening up the boxes of English books. Froggy was so happy to have his Kids First Big Book of Space back 🙂

However, we also made a deal. My husband and I take turns putting the boys to bed (and then our au pair gets one night a week while we go out on a date night!), so I have 3 bedtimes each week. And we agreed that one of those nights would be a German night. So the experiment continues….

Olympic Games: Vocab Cards

Posted in Uncategorized, Word Posters by

I decided to make a set of vocabulary cards to go with the Summer Olympics. I found a cute set of clip-art for making the cards. But they provided me with a somewhat unusual set of words, in my opinion! That is to say, I’m not sure these are the 8 sports I would have selected. But it’s still a nice introduction.

I looked up the official titles of the Olympic sports and thought some were a little long or complicated. So I made the decision to use simpler, more common names, where I could. For example, track & field is known as Leichtathletik, but I used Laufen instead. I realize this word does not begin to cover all the different events in track & field. But since we are still working on very basic vocabulary, I thought this made sense.

Included in the set are cards that have images with words, just images, and just words. You can use these cards to print full-size for vocab posters. Or you can print them 6-to-a-page on heavy cardstock to use for games such as Memory or Go Fish.

I’m also trying something new! I made a set of cards with the images plus jumbled letters. But then some of the words are so long, that the jumble looked way too complicated! So I made one more set with jumbled letter groups. Use these cards for spelling and writing practice. For independent work, children can use the cards with images and words to self-check their work.

Vocabulary words included:

  • das Schwimmen
  • das Bogenschießen
  • das Reiten
  • das Laufen
  • das Gewichtheben
  • das Turnen
  • der Stabhochsprung
  • der Fußball

Download the PDF file here: Olympische Sommerspiele (PDF)

If you’re enjoying this site, I’d love to hear from you! Please let me know how you’re using the materials and if you have any ideas for improvements! Thanks 😉

Olympic Games: National Flags

Posted in Resources, Uncategorized by

The Summer Olympics are upon us! I don’t watch a lot of sports, but I always love the Olympics. I suddenly find myself watching sporting events that normally hold little interest for me. There’s just something so exciting about it all! And I love the way it brings countries together.

It’s also a great opportunity for the boys to learn about both sports and the world!

The other day, I was inspired by Froggy. He’s so into Legos these days. And he came up to my office asking for some flag pictures, so that he could make them out of Legos. What a great idea!!

I found these images of national flags on Kindersuppe.de. It’s a great website with all kinds of useful documents and activities in German. (There is a fee to use the site: € 35,88 per year.) Then Froggy and I got busy collecting Lego pieces, especially red ones 🙂 I’m not much of a Lego-builder, myself, but I really go into with him! Of course, some of the flags would be really hard! We stuck mainly to the striped ones. Although Froggy made a great Swedish flag, and I managed to make a decent Swiss flag. Stay tuned for instructions on how to make your own Lego flags!

 

Scavenger Hunt at Longwood Gardens

Posted in Taking German with You, Uncategorized by

We are back from our travels and finally settling back into our regular routine. I have a number of things to post … once I finish cleaning them up 🙂

For now, I have a scavenger hunt. It is specific to Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, PA.

But it was easy to make. The last time we were at the gardens, I took close-up pictures of about 25 things in the indoor Children’s Garden located in the Conservatory. Then I picked out 12 of them and made up a sheet with the images and the words in German.

Hippo (age 3 /12) needed some guidance to find everything, but he did it! And it was a fun way to spend our morning. We of course got distracted, chasing the leaping water up and down along the wall. And he explored the many other water features. (I often bring a change of clothes, just in case!) We also got to sit in the little red chairs to read a book that one of the volunteers lent to us.

 

If you happen to be in southeastern PA or want a daytrip from Philadelphia, Longwood Gardens is a beautiful destination. The property is so vast with so many different things to see! And there are a number of fun things for the children to find, such as the indoor and outdoor children’s gardens and several huge treehouses!

To download the scavenger hunt, click here: Longwood Gardens Suche im Kinder-Garten (PDF)

Some of the images on the scavenger hunt:

And here we are on the hunt:

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Germany with Kids: Technik Museum Speyer

Posted in Travel, Uncategorized by

If you are in the Heidelberg area and you have kids who are into trains, planes, and automobiles, then make your way to the Technik Museum Speyer! It is worth the detour!

Unless, of course, you have a fear of heights, as I do 🙂  All the airplanes are mounted high in the sky, and you climb circular staircases to get up to them. There is even a Boeing 747 about 6 stories off the ground. Those stairs were a bit easier … until you got to the last set. I just couldn’t do it! But PER and the boys did!! Hippo even went with PER out on the wing! Yup you can just walk out on the wing of the 747 SOOOOOO high off the ground!! Don’t worry, though, there is fencing to keep you safe!

The kids liked the planes best of all. But inside, you can also see vintage cars, an old train, and even a space shuttle! They also have an IMAX theater. And there is a cafe where you can get lunch.

Is it good for kids?

You bet! It’s a kid’s paradise! Unless they aren’t into mechanical things. Our boys aren’t even all that into cars and such, but they loved this museum!

What about the cost?

For just the museum, the tickets are free for children 4 and under. Ages 5 – 14, tickets cost €13. Adult tickets cost €16. If you want to do the IMAX film, there is a combination ticket, too.

Where is it?

It’s about a 25 minutes west of Heidelberg.

Traveling Abroad, Part I: On the Plane

Posted in Travel, Uncategorized by

Not only are we traveling by plane to Europe, but we have a 4 to 5-hour drive once we arrive. So I pack the kids’ backpacks with activities to keep them busy on the plane. And then I pack another set of things in one of the suitcases. It takes a lot of organization!

I try to sneak in German where I can. But there is a mix of English and German materials. I didn’t actually create any of the things below. But there are still some good resources!

Some of the things in the boys’ backpacks are the same:

  • a set of headphones in the backpack (We got these headphones that are meant for kids.)
  • a couple of snacks
  • a set of pajamas and nighttime diaper/pull-up
  • an extra set of clothes

But then they have different things to keep them busy. Here’s what’s in Hippo’s backpack:

  • a folder with coloring pages that I printed (some with Van Gogh images, since we might go to the museum in Amsterdam; some German ones I found here)
  • books – Hippo chose two (Bist du meine Mama? and Das kleine Glühwürmschen)
  • a drawing pad with plain paper
  • a foam giraffe sticker kit (from AC Moore)
  • an activity pad
  • 2 Dover Little Activity Books
  • 2 busy bags
  • box of crayons
  • pencil case with colored pencils (the case is personalized, but I wiped out the name on the picture)
  • a pencil case with a pencil, sharpener, and eraser

He has two busy bags:

  • a dinosaur puzzle (This is from the Melissa & Doug set that comes with 4 puzzles. I made a colored photocopy of the finished puzzle, so he would know what it was supposed to look like.)
  • stickers (I cut up some card stock and folded it, so he has something to put the stickers on. There are also several Dover Little Sticker Books.)

Froggy’s backpack is a bit bigger and so it is stuffed with a bit more!

  • a folder with coloring pages that I printed (some with Van Gogh images, since we might go to the museum in Amsterdam; some German ones I found here)
  • a drawing pad with plain paper
  • a foam giraffe sticker kit (from AC Moore)
  • 2 puzzles: alphabet & the US (in a 2-gallon Ziploc bag)
  • a magnetic game similar to Chutes & Ladders (also in a large Ziploc bag)
  • a sticker book – World Atlas
  • mini pinball game
  • 3 books (Mars, Planes, & Die kleine Raupe Nimmersatt)
  • Dover Little Activity Books
  • Carlsen Sticker-Malbücher (I found these at a bookstore in Frankfurt last year)
  • 2 busy bags
  • box of colored pencils
  • pencil case filled with markers (we had to really pare these down – he wanted to take every color!)

He also has 2 busy bags:

  • stickers (Again, I cut up some card stock and folded it, so he has something to put the stickers on.)
  • a set of strip puzzles – you have to first figure out which pieces go together, but they are color-coded and numbered at the bottom (I found them in the red dot section of Target)

Are you familiar with busy bags? Do a quick search on Google or Pintrest and you’ll find innumerable ideas from a whole variety of mommy blogs. Last year, I ordered a case of 24 pencil cases with mesh windows and zipper closures for about $29 on Amazon. (I had bought a bunch at a dollar store the year before, and the zippers broke almost immediately, so I thought this was a pretty good deal!) One activity goes into each busy bag to help keep things organized. I keep them in a small closet near the mud room, and we only use them on our travels.

Links to products are provided purely for your convenience. I receive no compensation for the mention of products.

Koffer Packen: Kids’ Packing List

Posted in Getting them to read more, Travel, Uncategorized by

Koffer Packen GitA-page-001

Last year when we went to Europe, I found some great packing lists for kids online. But of course, they were all in English! (See for example: this one from Lemon Lime Adventures; or this one from Stuffed Suitcase with images for non-readers.) They worked great for our preparations last year. But this year, I just had to make my own!

Here is what they look like:

 

 

There are three packing lists:

  • Kleidung (Clothing)
  • Toilettenartikel (Toiletries)
  • Rücksack (Backpack)

You can download all three of them here: Koffer Packen GitA (PDF)

Only the Kleidung page has images. I haven’t decided yet if I want the images on there or not 🙂  For Hippo (age 3), the images make sense. But if the goal is to get Froggy (age 6) reading as many German words as I can put in front of him, then the pictures may be doing him a disservice. We haven’t actually done the packing yet, so I’ll see how it all goes! If I think they could use some adjusting, I’ll edit the pages and repost.

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Travel Games for Germany and the Netherlands

Posted in Games, Travel, Uncategorized by

We’ll be heading back to the Netherlands and Germany this summer. We fly in and out of Frankfurt and then have about a 5-hour drive to and from the Netherlands. So in addition to packing things to keep the kiddos busy on the airplane, I have a separate stash of things to keep them busy in the car.

I just finished creating a set of cards that can be used in a variety of ways. You can play Memory, I Spy, Go Fish. Or laminate an entire sheet and mark off the things you see with a dry erase marker (did you know they make washable ones?!) or a small post-it. There are two pages of various items – one for each of the boys (that way there is no competition over who sees what first!). And there is also a one-page set of just vehicles. At the end, there is an additional sheet to help count up a few of the things you might see on a long drive.

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Items included are:

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The vehicles page includes: das Flugzeug, der Bus, der LKW, das Fahrrad, ein gelbes Auto, der Bagger, der Traktor, der Kipper, das Motorrad, der Hubschrauber, das Feuerwehrauto, & der Zug.

I’d love to hear how you use the cards!!

UPDATE- August 2016:

Froggy really enjoyed the game of looking for items on his page. Hippo lost interest after finding just a few. We went with the option of covering the found items with post-its (the 1 7/8″squares worked perfectly):

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UPDATE – July 2017:

We will be taking the scavenger hunt with us again this year! But I also found another, longer hunt – with only German words! – at another blogger’s site. Check out THIS POST for more info!

UPDATE – May 2018: 

I have made a new version of my Road Trip Scavenger Hunt! This one is adjusted more to traveling by train, but it could work well from the car, too! Check out THIS POST to get the new FREE download!