English at the Geschwister-Scholl-Realschule
English is THE international language nowadays and so of course it is very important to learn English at school.
At the GSR English lessons are a lot of fun.
You start learning English in class 5 at the age of about ten or eleven. English lessons in class 5 aren‘t difficult at all – instead it is great to start learning a new language. You sing songs, play games and much more, just to get the young students motivated. You have to start at the very beginning and learn the basics like the colors, the numbers and a little bit of small talk. At the end of the first year you are even able to give a short presentation about your hobby for example.
From class 6 on you learn a lot of English each year with four to five lessons each week and in some lessons you get extra training with only half a group and an extra teacher. This is great, because then you have more time with a teacher who has lots of time for your questions.
Starting in class 7 you have a special focus each year. In class 7 the big topic is Great Britain. You learn about traditions, special holidays and food in Great Britain. We go on tours through different cities like London and meet the royal family in our book.
Then in class 8 your focus is on the USA. This is a very popular year for English, because many students are very interested in the lifestyle and culture of the USA. We learn about the different landscapes of the United States and also about the differences of American and British English. It is very interesting to find out more about New York or other famous sights and also about the history of the US. Some of us are also interested in the Native Americans.
In class 9 your topic is Australia – what a big continent of outback and beaches! In that year you find out about the history, the landscape, flora and fauna of Australia. And of course we don‘t forget the history of the Aborigines.
In every year we continue with our presentations, but in class 9 the presentations are more important because they prepare us for the final exam in class 10. Our final year is all about getting prepared and repeating for the last class tests and exams.
When you leave the Geschwister-Scholl-Realschule you have a basic knowledge of English and that helps you if you go on with school or go abroad to any English speaking country. Sometimes I‘m surprised at how much English I understand when I watch You Tube videos or English films. And of course I speak English whenever I get the chance! That’s great, isn’t it?
Viktoria Lostalgio, 10c