Friday, December 23, 2011

'Twas the Night Before Christmas

Here is a classic Christmas poem in its English and German versions for you.  Get more information about it here:  http://german.about.com/library/blkaestner_nikolaus.htm 
Read the poem and answer the questions below!


ENGLISH
A Visit from St. Nicholas
by Henry Livingston, Jr. (1823)*

'Twas the night before Christmas, when all
   through the house
Not a creature was stirring, not even
   a mouse.
The stockings were hung by the
   chimney with care,
In hopes that St Nicholas soon would
   be there.
The children were nestled all snug
   in their beds,
While visions of sugar-plums danced
   in their heads.

And mamma in her 'kerchief, and I in
   my cap,
Had just settled our brains for a long
   winter's nap.
When out on the lawn there arose
   such a clatter,
I sprang from the bed to see what
   was the matter.
Away to the window I flew like
   a flash,
Tore open the shutters and threw up
  the sash.

The moon on the breast of the
   new-fallen snow
Gave the lustre of mid-day to
   objects below.
When, what to my wondering eyes
   should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight
   tiny reindeer.
With a little old driver, so lively
   and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be
   St. Nick.

More rapid than eagles his coursers
   they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called
   them by name!
"Now Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer
   and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donner
   and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of
   the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash
   away all!"

As dry leaves that before the wild
   hurricane fly,
When they meet with an obstacle, mount
   to the sky.
So up to the house-top the coursers
   they flew,
With the sleigh full of toys, and St.
   Nicholas too.
And then, in a twinkling, I heard on
   the roof
The prancing and pawing of each
   little hoof.

As I drew in my head, and was
   turning around,
Down the chimney St. Nicholas came with
   a bound.
He was dressed all in fur, from his head
   to his foot,
And his clothes were all tarnished with
   ashes and soot.
A bundle of toys he had flung
   on his back,
And he looked like a peddler just
   opening his pack.

His eyes - how they twinkled! his dimples
   how merry!
His cheeks were like roses, his nose like
   a cherry!
His droll little mouth was drawn up like
   a bow,
And the beard of his chin was as white
   as the snow.
The stump of a pipe he held tight in
   his teeth,
And the smoke it encircled his head
   like a wreath.

He had a broad face and a little
   round belly
That shook when he laughed, like a
   bowlful of jelly!

He was chubby and plump, a right
   jolly old elf,
And I laughed when I saw him, in spite
   of myself!
A wink of his eye and a twist of
   his head,
Soon gave me to know I had nothing
   to dread.
He spoke not a word, but went straight
   to his work,
And filled all the stockings, then turned
   with a jerk.
And laying his finger aside of
   his nose,
And giving a nod, up the chimney
   he rose!

He sprang to his sleigh, to his team
   gave a whistle,
And away they all flew like the down
   of a thistle.
But I heard him exclaim, ere he drove
   out of sight,
"Happy Christmas to all, and to all
   a good-night!"

DEUTSCH
Als der Nikolaus kam
German by Erich Kästner (1947)

In der Nacht vor dem Christfest, da regte
   im Haus
sich niemand und nichts, nicht mal
   eine Maus.
Die Strümpfe, die hingen paarweis
   am Kamin
und warteten drauf, daß Sankt Niklas
   erschien.
Die Kinder lagen gekuschelt
   im Bett
und träumten vom Äpfel- und
   Nüsseballett.

Die Mutter schlief tief, und auch ich
   schlief brav,
wie die Murmeltiere im
   Winterschlaf,
als draußen vorm Hause ein
   Lärm losbrach,
daß ich aufsprang und dachte: Siehst
   rasch einmal nach!
Ich rannte zum Fenster und, fast noch
   im Lauf,
stieß ich die knarrenden
   Läden auf.

Es hatte geschneit, und der
   Mondschein lag
so silbern auf allem, als sei's
   heller Tag.
Acht winzige Renntierchen kamen
   gerannt,
vor einen ganz, ganz kleinen Schlitten
   gespannt!
Auf dem Bock saß ein Kutscher, so alt
   und so klein,
daß ich wußte, das kann nur der
   Nikolaus sein!

Die Renntiere kamen daher wie
   der Wind,
und der Alte, der pfiff, und er rief
   laut: "Geschwind!
Renn, Renner! Tanz, Tänzer! Flieg,
   fliegende Hitz'!
Hui, Sternschnupp'! Hui, Liebling! Hui,
   Donner und Blitz!
Die Veranda hinauf und die
   Hauswand hinan!
Immer fort mit euch! Fort mit euch! Hui,
   mein Gespann!"

Wie das Laub, das der Herbststurm die
   Straßen lang fegt
und, steht was im Weg, in den Himmel
   hoch trägt,
so trug es den Schlitten hin auf
   unser Haus
samt dem Spielzeug und samt dem
   Sankt Nikolaus!
Kaum war das geschehen, vernahm ich
   schon schwach
das Stampfen der zierlichen Hufe
   vom Dach.

Dann wollt' ich die Fensterläden
   zuzieh'n,
da plumpste der Nikolaus in den
   Kamin!
Sein Rock war aus Pelzwerk, vom Kopf
   bis zum Fuß.
Jetzt klebte er freilich voll
   Asche und Ruß.
Sein Bündel trug Nikolaus
   huckepack,
so wie die Hausierer bei uns
   ihren Sack.

Zwei Grübchen, wie lustig! Wie blitzte
   sein Blick!
Die Bäckchen zartrosa, die Nas' rot
   und dick!
Der Bart war schneeweiß, und der
   drollige Mund
sah aus wie gemalt, so klein und
   halbrund.
Im Munde, da qualmte ein
   Pfeifenkopf,
und der Rauch, der umwand wie ein
   Kranz seinen Schopf.

--- [Kästner apparently chose not... --

--- ...to translate these two lines.] --

Ich lachte hell, wie er so vor
   mir stand,
ein rundlicher Zwerg aus dem
   Elfenland.
Er schaute mich an und schnitt
   ein Gesicht,
als wollte er sagen: "Nun, fürchte
   dich nicht!"
Das Spielzeug stopfte er, eifrig
   und stumm,
in die Strümpfe, war fertig, drehte
   sich um,
hob den Finger zur Nase, nickte
   mir zu,
kroch in den Kamin und war fort
   im Nu!

In den Schlitten sprang er und pfiff
   dem Gespann,
da flogen sie schon über Täler
   und Tann.
Doch ich hört' ihn noch rufen, von fern
   klang es sacht:
"Frohe Weihnachten allen, - und allen
   gut' Nacht!"

Questions:
1.  Do you know the English or German version of this poem?
2.  Were there some new words for you in the English version?  Send us a list!
3.  Can you write a short summary of the story?  Write a few sentences about the story and send it to us!

Send us your answers to tutor@virtualingua.de!  If you are already a student with us, do this as an extra tutored exercise, if not, you can send us your answers and test our tutoring for free.  Your answers will be checked by a qualified English native speaker tutor and you will get a personal reply with corrections, suggestions for improving your English and learning tips!

Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!

Wednesday, October 26, 2011

Grammar and graffiti

Do you often see graffiti where you live or where you travel?  Do you always see the same things again and again-the same picture, the same words, the same mistakes?  Someone in England doesn't like seeing mistakes in graffiti and corrects them!  Read the article, then answer the questions and send us an email (to tutor@virtualingua.de) with your answers!

Superhero fights bad graffiti grammar

Friday, September 16, 2011

An operation to speak better Korean?


Wednesday, August 24, 2011

Holiday!

I'm going on holiday soon--I'm taking my first trip to the Baltic Sea. I am excited to have a few free days and bike, go to restaurants and relax. To get ready, I'm listening to this song:

Madonna - Holiday

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"Holiday"
(Holiday-Urlaub, Ferien, Feiertag)

Holiday Celebrate (celebrate-feiern)
Holiday Celebrate

[chorus]

If we took a holiday (took-nähmen)
Took some time to celebrate
Just one day out of life
It would be, it would be so nice (it would be-es wäre)

Everybody spread the word (spread the word-sag's weiter)
We're gonna have a celebration (we're gonna-we're going to-wir werden)
All across the world
In every nation
It's time for the good times
Forget about the bad times, oh yeah
One day to come together
To release the pressure (release the pressure-Dampf ablassen)
We need a holiday

[chorus]

You can turn this world around
And bring back all of those happy days
Put your troubles down
It's time to celebrate
Let love shine
And we will find
A way to come together
And make things better
We need a holiday

[chorus]

Holiday Celebrate
Holiday Celebrate

[chorus]

Holiday Celebrate
Holiday Celebrate

Holiday, Celebration
Come together in every nation

Now answer these questions and send your answers to us (tutor@virtualingua.de)

1. What does Madonna want to do on her holiday?
2. What do you like to do on your holidays?
3. Where did you go on your last holiday? What did you do?

Talk to you later,
Your Virtualingua Team

Friday, August 12, 2011

Quidditch in school?

What sports did you play when you went to school? Would you like to learn to play quidditch like Harry Potter? Kids at a school in Texas are doing just that. They even want to make quidditch an official school sport. Read more here: http://www.spoton.de/news/us-canada/school-tries-to-make-quidditch-official

What sports do you like to play? What sports did you play when you were younger? Would you like to learn to play quidditch? Write us your answers (tutor@virtualingua.de). You can do this as a tutored exercise if you're already a student with us or test our tutoring for free if you're not a Virtualingua student yet!

Wednesday, July 6, 2011

English Phone Calls

Telephoning in English isn't easy. The only thing that really helps is a lot of practice. We can help!

Watch this video on Focus Online entitled "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof". Then answer the questions below and write a phone conversation. Send us your answers and your phone call to tutor@virtualingua.de. You can do this as a tutored exercise for your Virtualingua course or if you're not a student with us, test our tutoring for free!

Questions about "Ich verstehe nur Bahnhof":

1. What does the man say that's impolite (unhöflich) when he doesn't understand?
2. What polite (höflich) phrases can you say when you don't understand on the phone?

Now write a phone call. The caller (Anrufer) should talk and talk and talk, and the receiver (Empfänger) should tell the caller that he or she doesn't understand with polite phrases from the video.

Talk to you later!

Thursday, June 9, 2011

Some news from Australia

Below is a link to an article from Spot on magazine. It's about a boy who is the youngest person ever to have a sex change. Read the article, and answer the questions below.

The article:
http://www.spoton.de/news/australia-new-zealand/boy-becomes-youngest-ever-to-have-sex-change

The questions:

1. How old is the boy?

2. Where does (s)he live?

3. What’s his name?

4. What will the medication do?

5. How long has he been living as a girl?

6. What could happen in puberty?

7. Why will he have to go to court at age 16?

8. Do you know anyone in a situation like this?

Send us an email with your answers to tutor@virtualingua.de and a qualified, native speaker teacher will check these. Then we'll send you back your answers with corrections and language tips for you. If you're already a student with us, you can do this as a tutored exercise, if you're not a student with us yet, do this and test our tutoring for free!

Schicken Sie uns Ihre Antworten an tutor@virtualingua.de! Sie erhalten eine Email zurück mit Ihren korrigierten Antworten und Tipps zum Englisch. Wenn Sie bei uns schon lernen, ist diese Aufgabe eine fakultative Tutoraufgabe, sonst können Sie unser Tutoring einmal kostenlos testen!

Friday, May 20, 2011

Do you live in a yellow submarine?

Probably not, but who knows? Do you know this song? Listen to it and read along, then answer the questions!

The Beatles - Yellow Submarine - Yellow Submarine (2009 Stereo Remaster)

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The Beatles - Yellow Submarine
In the town where I was born (1)
Lived a man who sailed to sea (2)
And he told us of his life
In the land of submarines

So we sailed up to the sun
Till we found the sea of green
And we lived beneath the waves
In a yellow submarine

We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

And our friends are all aboard
Many more of them live next door
And the band begins to play

We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

As we live a life of ease
Everyone of us has all we need
Sky of blue and sea of green
In our yellow submarine.

We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine
We all live in a yellow submarine,
Yellow submarine, yellow submarine

Grammar: (1) "where I was born" is a defining relative clause. What does it define?

(2) "who sailed the sea" is also a defining relative clause. What does it define?

We can also use "which" or "that" in defining relative
clauses. What do they define here:
A book is something which you read.

A ticket is a paper that you need to go into the cinema.

Write who, which, that, or where in these sentences.
a. The yellow submarine is the boat _______ we live in.
b. We're the people ______ live in the yellow submarine.
c. The land of submarines is _______ the man lived.

Where do you live? What is it like? Write a short text about your house or apartment/flat and send it to us for correction at tutor@virtualingua.de! If you're a student with us, you can do this as a part of the tutoring that's included in your course, if you're not a student with us, test us for free!

Sunday, May 1, 2011

May Day!

Visit the site below and read about the holiday May Day and how it is celebrated in England.

http://www.ukbankholidaydates.co.uk/may_day_holiday.html

Answer these questions about May Day and email them to your tutor (tutor@virtualingua.de) for correction!

1. When is May Day celebrated?

2. What things do people celebrate on May Day?

3. How do people celebrate on this holiday?

4. Does May Day or something like it exist in Germany? What do people do on this day in Germany?

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Do you live in a house or a flat?

Now that it's finally spring, it's also time to do some spring cleaning...but before you do that, take some time to practice your English! Do you live in a house or a flat? Is it big or small? Do you live in the city or the country?

Visit this link and listen to Clare talking about her house: http://elllo.org/pages/clhome.htm The listening will open in the same window, then you can go back to take a quiz about the listening. After finishing this, please send us a description of your house or flat to tutor@virtualingua.de! We'll check it and send it back to you. If you're already a student with us, you can do this as a tutored exercise, if you're not a student with us yet, test our tutoring this way!

Some vocabulary to help you:
house das Haus
flat / apartment die Wohnung
room das Zimmer
big groß
small klein
city die Stadt
country das Land (in the country=auf dem Land)
kitchen die Küche
bathroom das Badezimmer
bedroom das Schlafzimmer
dining room das Esszimmer
basement / cellar der Keller
attic der Dachboden

Jetzt ist es endlich Frühling, Zeit für den Frühjahrsputz...aber bevor Sie damit anfangen, üben Sie Ihr Englisch mit uns! Wohnen Sie in einem Haus oder einer Wohnung? Ist es groß oder klein? Wohnen Sie in der Stadt oder auf dem Land?

Klicken Sie hier und hören Sie Clares Beschreibung von Ihrem Haus. Der Musikspieler wird im selbem Fenster aufgemacht, Sie können auf "Back" oder "Zurück" klicken, um zurück zu der ersten Seite zu gelangen. Dort können Sie ein Quiz über Clares Beschreibung machen. Danach schicken Sie uns bitte eine Beschreibung von Ihrem Haus oder Ihrer Wohnung an tutor@virtualingua.de! Wir korrigieren sie und schicken sie Ihnen zurück. Testen Sie unser Tutoring!

Wednesday, March 16, 2011

Fast Food in America

Read this article from the Spot On website and tell us what you think!

1. Do you like any fast food? (Be honest! I love french fries and milkshakes, for example :-)

2. How often do you eat fast food? How often do you think the average European eats fast food?

3. Are there laws in Europe for labelling fast food with calories, fat content, etc.?

4. Do you think labelling fast food with calories, fat content, etc. can make a difference in how often
people eat it?

Tell us what you think in the comments below or by email! (tutor@virtualingua.de) If you are a student with us already, this counts as a tutored exercise, if not, test our tutoring for free!

Saturday, March 5, 2011

Virtualingua News

Be sure to follow Virtualingua Blended ELearning on Facebook and like our page Virtualingua so you receive our English tip of the day. Also check us out on Twitter (VirtualinguaDD) for a short form of our word or tip of the day.
Here's our page on Facebook.
Of course, there will continue to be longer updates, activities and links on the Virtualingua blogs.
Enjoy!
-Your English Tutor

Tuesday, March 1, 2011

International Hand Gestures



Learning a language doesn't always only involve words...maybe you use hand gestures in your home country that have a very different meaning in different countries. The video above shows this, so does the article you can read here.

Did you ever make a big mistake with body language or hand gestures? Tell us about it in the comments below or by email! (tutor@virtualingua.de) If you are a student with us already, this counts as a tutored exercise, if not, test our tutoring for free!

Monday, February 14, 2011

Happy Valentine's Day

Here is a song that fits the day: It had to be you
Enjoy!

Frank Sinatra & Harry Connick, Jr. - It Had To Be You

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It had to be you, it had to be you
I wandered around, and finally found
The somebody who
Could make me be true,
And could make me be blue
And even be glad, just to be sad
Thinking of you

Some others I've seen,
Might never be mean
Might never be cross,
Or try to be boss
But they wouldn't do
For nobody else, gave me a thrill
With all your faults, I
Love you still
It had to be you, wonderful you
It had to be you

Thursday, February 3, 2011

English learning games

Practice your vocabulary with some online games. Click here to visit a site with crossword puzzles you can work on for free.
Have fun!

Üben Sie ihren Wortschatz mit online Spiele! Klicken Sie hier um eine Seite zu besuchen worauf Sie kostenlose englische Kreuzworträtsel für Anfänger machen können.
Viel Spaß!

Monday, January 17, 2011

Introductions in English

Watch a video about introducing yourself, study the phrases and introduce yourself!

Below the video window on the page the link sends you to you can read the transcript of the video. During the video there are also subtitles during the conversation.

Schauen Sie das Video an, lernen Sie die Phrasen, die man auf Englisch verwendet, um sich vorzustellen, und schließlich stellen Sie sich vor!

Auf der Seite, die Sie über den Link erreichen, können Sie den gesprochenen Text im Video mitlesen. Während des Videos gibt es während des Gesprächs auch Untertitel.

Als Tutoraufgabe schreiben Sie eine kurze Vorstellung von sich selbst und schicken Sie es an tutor@virtualingua.de! Wenn Sie bei uns schon lernen, ist diese Aufgabe eine fakultative Tutoraufgabe, sonst können Sie unser Tutoring einmal kostenlos testen!




Thursday, January 6, 2011

Free eBooks!

You can download free eBooks in English from Project Gutenberg.
There are thousands of books available and they are really free, with no memberships or registration required.

Go here and start reading:

http://www.gutenberg.org/wiki/Main_Page

Monday, January 3, 2011

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year everyone! Here is a traditional song that is often played and sung on New Year's Eve.

Listen to it and read about it by clicking the links below.

Auld lang syne


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Information and lyrics in German from Wikipedia
Information and lyrics in English from Wikipedia