Day 6/30: My favorite free resources for learning German
Is it expensive to learn a foreign language? All those textbooks and audio courses and grammar books you can find in your nearest bookstore aren’t free… But do you really need them to gain basic skills – and develop them further, if you like – in your language of choice? If you’ve decided to study one of the most popular languages, you’ve struck it lucky. There are plenty of free resources out there – on the internet! Finding them might not be easy, so I’ll share some of my favorite German resources with you. German definitely is a big language – many people speak it, and equally many people study it, so no wonder there are a couple of interesting, free resources on the internet!
The BBC Languages website is a good starting point if you’re a beginner, especially if you want to quickly learn some basic vocabulary and phrases before a trip to Germany. Just choose the German Steps section, and you’ll find everything you need to start speaking in a variety of situations, such as introducing yourself, sightseeing and shopping. Here you’ll also find useful cultural notes, thanks to which you’ll be able to better understand the German culture and thus enjoy your travel experience even more.
Mission Europe is made for people who are "interested in language and like crime stories," as we can read on their main page. An interesting idea! To start learning German, click on Mission Berlin. This isn’t your regular language course, but more of an interactive language game!
Deutsche Welle is a real treasure trove for German lovers, both those starting their learning adventure and those more advanced. If you’re a beginner, make sure to check out Deutsch Interaktiv, a comprehensive course that will take you up to the B1 level. You can also listen to a special podcast for beginners, Radio D. Download the episodes to your mp3 player and listen to them when you have some free time – listening comprehension is one of the most important parts of language learning, after all.
Deutsch – warum nicht? is another free course produced by Deutsche Welle. You can start with it if you’re a complete beginner as well, and it will take you pretty far. After you’re done with it, you can check out Wieso nicht? – a similar course for more advanced learners.
And if you already have a pretty solid knowledge of German, and would like to learn some business language, there’s a course for you as well – Marktplatz.
Deutsch XXL is perfect for you if you already feel pretty comfortable with German, but still not ready for making the progression to original German media. You can, for example, download news programs that are spoken more slowly and clearly, together with accompanying transcripts that you can read to make sure you didn’t miss any important words. Deutsch XXL has many more features for advanced learners, and I recommend it to everyone who wants to learn more about the German language, people and culture!
This is just a small fraction of what the internet has to offer for German learners.
