February 20, 2010: Fabulous Show at the beautiful Paramount Theatre in Oakland

I want to let you know about the show that's coming up at the Paramount on February 20:

Max Raabe & Palast Orchester

Greg and I went to see him perform in October 2008 at the Paramount, and the show was really something special. With elegance and biting humor, Raabe sings both English and German songs from the 1920s. He also known for his interpretations of today's pop music - his version of Britney Spears' "Oops I Did It Again" is a hoot. The group is very popular in Germany, and they are developing a significant following here in the Bay Area as well - this will be their third visit here in as many years.

http://www.palastorchester.de/

Prof. John Connelly's fascinating speech on the fall of the Berlin Wall

Connelly is a professor of history at UC Berkeley and describes his first-hand experiences during this amazing time.

http://webcast.berkeley.edu/event_details.php?seriesid=f9cd6448-710b-484a-95dc-dd14987b26e3&p=1&ipp=15&category=

20th Anniversary of the Fall of the Berlin Wall

As you know, today marks the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

There is lots of information on the news, but the most exciting for Foothill HS has to do with our partner school in former East Germany, the Herder-Gymnasium in Halle, Germany.
I have not had a chance to pick up the Tri-Valley newspaper today, but it seems that a photo on the front page of the Morning Report section clearly features the giant domino that was painted by students at Herder (the giant dominos are being toppled tonight in Berlin to symbolize the fall of the wall).

Even more exciting: according to the exchange partner of one of my students (yay Facebook!), CBS news came to Herder-Gymnasium and interviewed students there, and the segment will be on the news tonight!

Here are several articles on the anniversary and the celebrations:
http://www.insidebayarea.com/search/ci_13746385?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com

http://www.insidebayarea.com/search/ci_13736987?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com

http://www.insidebayarea.com/search/ci_13745178?IADID=Search-www.insidebayarea.com-www.insidebayarea.com

http://www.insidebayarea.com/nation-world/ci_13747110

Waldsee: German Immersion Summer Camp

One cool way to boost your German language skills is to spend two or four weeks at the famous (at least, among American German teachers of every ilk and level) Waldsee summer camp (one of the Concordia Language Villages) in Minnesota.

The program has a fabulous reputation, and everyone I've ever known to attend the camp or work there as a counselor or teacher reports having a GREAT time.

Check it out: http://waldsee.villagepages.org/

USA-BRD Solar Energy Collaboration

As I've mentioned before, the alternative energy industry offers career opportunities for American speakers of German, especially those living in California, because German solar energy companies are very interested in the resources available in Sunny California!


http://usa.sanfrancisco.ahk.de/index.php?id=78&tx_mjseventpro_pi1%5BshowUid%5D=139&L=15

16.06.2009 09:00 hour - 20:00 hour San Francisco, California
5th Germany California Solar Day
June 16th, 2009 - 5th Germany California Solar Day
PROGRAM GERMAN COMPANIES VENUE / HOTEL MEDIA / SPONSORS
When: Tuesday, June 16, 2009, 9.00am-8.00pm
Where: PG&E Auditorium, 245 Market Street, San Francisco, CA
What: One-day Symposium & Networking Reception along with B2B Meetings
Cost: Free

The German American Chamber of Commerce Inc., California Branch (GACC), will hold its “5th Germany California Solar Day” in San Francisco on Tuesday, June 16th, 2009. This year marks the fifth installment of a highly successful bilateral platform for U.S. and German experts to exchange the latest knowledge, thoughts and trends in the solar power industry with the goal of fostering successful German-American business partnerships. Last year's symposium attracted 264 guests, including German and American company executives that also participated in the one-on-one meetings scheduled throughout the day. Upholding its reputation as a successful conference and business networking platform, the GACC San Francisco, is again expecting a record attendance for the “5th Germany California Solar Day”. The audience will include solar industry representatives as well as members of governmental organizations, associations and members of the R&D community. German and American expert speakers will discuss the newest solar power industry developments during the first half of the conference. In the afternoon, the German companies will have a chance to present their products and services to the audience. The symposium and its accompanying networking event are a great opportunity to reach out to the solar energy industry as well as to the German-American business community.


This event is supported by the Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology based on a decision by the German Parliament.

German @ FHS: lots goin' on in April and May!

No rest for German students! From the awards reception for the National German Exam to the AP German Exam to the Soccer Bridge, FHS German students have been busy!

http://picasaweb.google.com/HeatherLeeFleming/GermanEventsAprilMay2009?authkey=Gv1sRgCKnAgr7wz7XIOA&feat=directlink

All students who scored in the 70th percentile or higher nationwide were invited to attend the awards ceremony, hosted by the American Association of Teachers of German at UC Berkeley, and of the 79 FHS students who took the exam this year, a full 48 FHS students were invited to this event! The German Consul General Rolf Schütte gave the opening address.

17 FHS students took the AP German exam this year on May 7, 2009. They got together for breakfast that morning to relax and enjoy the company of good friends.

On May 9, 2009, a tough team of German students competed in the annual Transatlantic Soccer Bridge, hosted by the Goethe Institute. Coached by Mike Regan, Derek Easley, Shannon Easley, Jessica Klahr, Jordan Sabhlok, and Autumn Whitney played with heart and soul and were a wonder to behold! Gut gemacht, Falken!!

Nanotechnology in Germany

"Today, Germany stands right at the forefront of international nanoscience. [...]"
http://www.research-in-germany.de/nanotechnology

Auschwitz plans put on display in Berlin

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2009/02/16/international/i021830S46.DTL&hw=germany&sn=005&sc=608

Interested in hosting a German exchange student for a semester or a year?

I am posting this notice on behalf of Kirsten Jacobs in Germany. Please fill out the form and return it to Frau Jacobs at the following email address: hostfamilies@gmx.de

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~
Hostfamilies:
We are interested to host an exchange student in the future:
- Name:
- E-Mail:
- City:
- State:
- Country:
- My / our Age:
- Child(s):
- Age of the child(s):
- About my / our family:
- Hobbies from the family:
- That is our high school:
- Our high school offers the following foreign languages:
- My / our child(s) is / are in following classes:
- Knowledge of languages:
- Self description:
- I / We want to host a student from:
- I / We want to host a student in (year):
- I / We want to host a boy / a girl:
- Duration (5/6months or 10/11months):
- - 5/6 months - I / we want to host from summer / january:
-- 10/11 months - all students start in july/august!
- In my / our family we make these sport(s):
- My / our family has / have following members:
- I / we have following animals:
- I / we have these religion:
- I / we go to church: .x the week
- I / We had exchange students before:
-- from:
-- how many:
-- what were the reasons:
- Why I / we want to host an exchange student? What I / we want to learn in these time? What do I / we expect of this year and my / our exchange student?
Please send this filled out profil back to hostfamilies@gmx.de

~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~.~

http://www.schueleraustausch.de/

Frau Jacobs' daughter is on a year abroad to the USA right now. You can read about her experiences here:

http://www.exchangeyear.net/forum/
http://www.sabrinajacobs.de/
http://www.sabrinajacobs.de/blog

Don't use translation websites!

This could happen to you if you complete an assignment for German by translating English into German:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BlJsPEgXhC0

The moral of the story?

“This whole is quite fine good!”

More about Felix Bethmann from the video "Greenagers"

Interview über Lehrer in Berlin
Outreach Jugendradio RSS-Feed
MySpace
YouTube

German in the News

sfgate.com, 21 August 2008

“Because the Magdeburg-bred quartet has dominated Europe in every way possible…Tokio Hotel has no recourse but to turn its attention to America.”