Daily German Grammar Tips. Is There Such a Service?
I’m not really aware of something just like that. There is a site along those topic lines that I’ve always liked:
However, it’s not exactly what you are looking for I don’t think. First of all, it’s not really daily anymore and is not always on grammar. Also, for the grammar parts, it tends to EXPAND on certain grammar items, or idiosyncrasies of the German language. I have found it very helpful in the past on some topics. There is a “grammar course” section which maybe you could use to look at a different grammar topic each day (until you run out).
It’s also not the best laid out website which is a bit of a shame. Seems even worse than before as it seems to be even hard to find things the way I used to…but it could be because he added a bit of a paywall (I think it used to be that you could read some number of articles free a day but maybe it has changed). Or maybe you just use the search function now.
You could check our the Dartmouth grammar site:
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~deutsch/Grammatik/Grammatik.html
Again, just pick a different topic a day. Or the “super easy german” playlist of videos on easy german channel on youtube. Those cover various grammar topics. Watch one a day.
Thanks, I know yourdailygerman but I don’t find it useful unless I want to go deeper on some word or verbs, but I don’t think it’s necessary for my poor level. Same thing for easy german, that’s something else.
Maybe there’s not something like that. I had it in English a lot of time ago and it was really useful. Just a short grammar tip to refresh my memory. I’ve bought a couple of grammar books now, and I create them by myself but it’s not the same.
ALSO, I was wondering what tool I could use to create something like this by myself. In the past I tried to use ANKI but I don’t want something that constantly appear (maybe I should change the parameter to appear once every couple of month!). Something that I can send to myself a random email taken from a database I create!
You can create many short stories for one grammar concept by using chat GPT. After a couple of days create a new set of stories with the same grammar concept. Then slightly increase you time interval for the same grammar concept.
This is how a grammar concept is covered in a coursebook aimed at foreign language learners. They teach you a rule then a handful examples and then select a few very short texts in the coursebook that have used such a grammar concept.
Even though these texts are used for reading purpose, but they are more like used for intensive reading. In the end, with enough exposure your mind will nail it.
For me my mind learns the best when it sees the rule being used in the text. No matter how many tips about a rule I get to read about but if there is no real context, I easily forget about it.
I understand your concern what you mean by it. You want to cement grammar points through interleaving process and would like to make it automatic.
Unfortunately, your best bet would be Anki with example sentences containing a particular grammar point.
Thanks, that would be an idea to consider.
I read in context as you say, I just like to have an automatic system that send me 5’ grammar rules daily. Those rules will stimulate my mind before starting to read on LingQ. So that, somehow, my mind will pay extra attention to that rule while reading.
And then, after a while, this rule come back again. In the meantime, every day I jog my mind with a new rule, and the I read on LingQ.
That’s the system I was looking for. But I can create something like that myself, if I want to put the time on it. (I wouldn’t like to use an app but mostly receive it through email).
However, I’ve bought a bunch of second hands grammar books yesterday, so I’ll have to read for a while.
The problem is that I need to tackle this in a different way because I keep forgetting those rules as soon as I don’t use them.
I think I’m going to fix some strong point, and I’ll leave the rest for later. For example, I think I’m going to focus on nominative and accusative only for a while. By reading I understand everything but by writing or speaking is different because I never do it, so I forget about it.
Now I’m starting with listening though.
Great question davideroccato!
I’ve been watching your thread because I find the idea particularly attractive.
It doesn’t seem you’ve got your answer yet.
My cursory glance of the Internet has likewise failed to produce any fruit.
But I found this:
which is host of three minute video clips relating to German grammar and vocabulary titbits.
The 19 video snippets have been amalgamated into a single YT video of 53 minutes. You can scroll in 3 minutes at a time to listen to a different topic on different days.
Unfortunately, it’s primarily in English with the salient German bits in German of course and sadly not the daily prompts you want - but hopefully other members come up with exactly what you want (and I want).
Thank you Maria, I’ve bookmarked the video you linked. It doesn’t hurt to watch 60 minutes more.
On a side note, I like the way you write and express yourself.
I admire your tenacious approach to learning German grammar - and that every day!
Personally I would find that a terrifying prospect.
I know you do a lot of reading, but I am sure Professor Stephen Krashen is right in noting that “reading gives you spelling, grammar, writing style - and you pick up a huge amount of vocabulary and knowledge” along the way. His suggestion that you need “comprehensible input” - or at least the “illusion of comprehension” - has plenty of research underpinning. But of course he adds too that this reading needs to be “compelling”.
And personally I find grammar books or videos anything but compelling!
You have already gathered some useful resources with other helpful comments, but I would also suggest:
- One set of resources I have already mentioned to you before are the free videos and free PDFs from Julia Brodt of the “Lingster Academy” which are always lucid. She is sponsored by Duden and is also developing courses you pay for, if you want to go deeper.
- Your “daily diet” requirement suggests to me the Olly Richards “Story Learning“ approach. He is a fan of Krashen so concentrates on listening and reading, but he also recognises that “grammar is important, but just not that important…” His stories are not always completely “gripping” in my opinion, but compelling enough, and they are backed up by a daily video on grammar points. One of his teachers on the German courses, a Canadian called Logan Jacques, is in my view excellent, so maybe you could try out one of the 30 day courses such as “Master Modal Verbs” or ”101 Essential German Verbs” and see how you like it?
- People learn in different ways, e.g. visual, oral, kinaesthetic, etc, but an interesting, and free, “visual” course on German grammar, which you can break down on your own daily basis is at:
https://www.dieseskleinebuch.de/images/Dieses_kleine_Buch.pdf
Viel Glück - aber meiner Meinung nach ist in Bezug auf die deutsche Grammatik “Spaß” nich garantiert!
Thank you Bembe. Sooner or later I’ll find a way to stick it to my mind.
I’ve started reading again some grammar book and doing some exercise. I’ve been collecting now all sentences and steps that require more attention and I’ll build my own bible. I’ll keep reading, of course, but my mind is smart enough to understand how to skip all grammar rules.
I don’t believe at all that reading gives you spelling, grammar, writing style and so on. Maybe that’s true for native people, that by reading improve their own language and writing style, I can relate to that.
I’ve read tons of material in English but I’ve stopped focusing on grammar and never learnt to upgrade my writing style. The consequence? That even reading (because I like it and without using LingQ) tons of articles, books, listening to tons of audiobooks in the last years, my English never upgraded much. And I even lost some grammar rules or punctuation that I don’t remember anymore because I don’t apply them anymore. (But I’ll regain them in the future!).
I believe that, as a second language learner, we improve spelling, grammar and writing style by writing (and speaking with our mind visualising the writing and remembering the rules). This is why I don’t mix Italian, Spanish or French when I talk.
BUT by paying attention step by step to pieces of grammar rules before reading, I’ll give some hints to my mind to pay some extra attention here and there.
The real test will come later, when I’ll start training writing and speaking.
Anyway, I try to find solutions that can possibly work in the long term.