May
Glenview Park Secondary School, Cambridge (May 28, 2010)
The last workshop of our three-month Deutschmobil tour across Canada took place at the Glenview Park Secondary School in Cambridge. To be honest, we were a little bit sad. Because it was the last time, that we would set up our equipment and hand out our gifts in a school. As soon as the 25 kids of German teacher Mrs Pauls had a seat in the library, we motivated the kids to speak German as we used to do in all the other workshops before. The students gave their best and impressed us with their clever comments. And as if the students had known before that this was our last workshop, some of them even had a T-shirt on with a special slogan: “German is cool!”
Well, and we all agree, don’t we?! 
Thanks for having us and keep on learning German!
May
Bluevale Collegiate Institute, Kitchener (May 27, 2010)
Hot, hotter, the hottest! That is how our morning began. In boiling heat and slow moving traffic, we drove about two hours to Kitchener and arrived just in time for our presentation at Bluevale Collegiate Institute.
The kids were in good moods and already waiting for us in the air conditioned library. This time, the Deutschmobil Team got support from Aletta, the intern of the Goethe-Institut in Toronto. Thanks to her help, we benefited from new inspriations and mental input. The students laughed a lot, developed great conversations and expressed interest in Germany and everything that has to do with it. We would have loved to stay longer in such an active learning environment. But our schedule was so tight that we had to rush to the next school. Well, maybe another time;)
Keep cool!
May
Eastwood Collegiate Institute, Waterloo (May 27, 2010)
Wow – high temperatures of 30 degress in Waterloo. Thank God the classroom at Eastwood Collegiate Institute had a fan. Otherwise we would have melted away during the workshop. Also the students suffered a bit, but they tried hard to concentrate and focus on the German language.
While Aletta and Florian took pictures and videos, Eva stood right beside the fan and asked questions like: “Why do you find German good? Do you think it is difficult to learn? Which famous sights and people you have identified in the video? Phew, the students sweat kept running down their foreheads. But their answers were brilliant. And so was the cake which Mrs Müller prepared for the “Kaffeeklatsch-Break”. That was really a delicous treat for everyone. Thank you very much!
May
The Woodlands School, Mississauga (May 26, 2010)
High temperatures of 30 degrees accompanied us on the way to the Woodlands School in Mississauga. But not only the weather was extremely hot, also the mood of the students in the auditorium. 80 young people from various German and French classes came to see our workshop. And they were all in a really good mood! The students participated lively and created great rap songs. It was a delight for us to watch with how much commitment and joy the students worked on their rap-performance on stage. Altough we are already at the end of our Deutschmobil tour, the motivation is still high – especially with such a dynamic group as it was today!
Many thanks to German teacher Andrea Irvine for the invitation and the nice conversation with coffee and cake:)
May
Westmount Secondary School, Hamilton (May 25, 2010)
Not far from Toronto is Hamilton, where we held our workshop today. It was not just the scent of fresh flowers, which our spoiled our noses with summer smells, but also the delicious homemade pancakes, which the students of Westmount Secondary School had prepared for us.
Strengthend by the sweet taste of pancakes, the students were energized and well focused during our workshop. Even though most of the students were just beginning to learn the language, they showed no fear to communicate with us in German. For others it was a great opportunity to make their first experience with the language. And according to the reaction of the kids, they had a lot of fun. One student told us after the presentation, she would love to take German in class next year. If that is true, mission accomplished! 
Thank you for the invitation and the great Canadian Souvenirs!
May
DSS Germania, Hamilton (May 22, 2010)
Welcome back to the Greater Toronto Area! After a long week of driving from Calgary to our base in Toronto we finally had a workshop again. It did not take place in a school, but in front of the German grocery store “Denninger” Hamilton. We automatically associated walk-in customers, parking lot, rain, distributing handouts – oh oh…. This is something we haven’t done so far. But actually there was no reason to be worried. Everything turned out great! Petra Hunke-Peitchinis (principal of the DSS) and Mrs. Frank (the owner of the shop) had it all perfectly organized.
There was German music, give aways, happy faces, prezels, coffee and donuts. Lots of helping hands have assisted us to advertise the German language. The reward: the acquaintance of very nice people who already speak German or are interested in developing their language in the future.
May
DSS Oakville (May 22, 2010)
The second workshop this saturday took place at the DSS Oakville. Principal Mrs. Hildegard Schieweck greeted us warmly in front of the town-library and was delighted about our visit. But as we looked around, we wondered: “Where are the children?” We didn’t see any. Maybe because of the long weekend?
Well, we set up our equipment and after a short interview with the local newspaper we saw the first German students approaching us. Thank God! Finally Mrs. Schieweck was relieved that there were about 20 listeners who attended our presentation. Very smart kids showed their excellent German skills in teamwork with their open minded parents. Wonderful!
Thank you for the great day!
May
Winston Churchill High School, Lethbridge (May 14, 2010)
What a pity! It was the last school on our long tour in the west of Canada, who was looking forward to a visit of the Deutschmobil. And perhaps without knowing it, the approximately 25 students of Winston Churchill High School shone with their active participation and sincere interest. Surprised by the difference in size of Germany and Canada, captured by the images of the flourishing German landscapes and amazed by the variety of German products, the students learned a lot of new things today.
Keep it up you brave warriors! And many thanks to Margita Witzke, who prepared our coming in the last minute.
Now, the Deutschmobil is on its way back to Toronto. The next blog entry will be published on May 22.
Meanwhile, have a look at the professional slideshow on our page or click through the wonderful pictures we took!
May
“German Day” – University of Calgary (May 13, 2010)
“Eine Schwalbe macht noch keinen Sommer” – that was the motto of the German Day 2010 at the University of Calgary.
Invited were 150 German students (grade 1-12) of various schools in Calgary. And according to the ancient German saying, the students presented their creative ideas in the form of videos, skits and collages, which were rewarded with certificates and prizes.
Our Deutschmobil performance was the beginning of the German Day and we brought the audience with rap in a good mood. Finally, we motivated them to create their own rhymes in German. This wasn’t just a lot of fun but also a proof for the high German knowledge of the students present.
Well, this important event was definetly successfull and we think it should take place every year. Thanks to assistant professor Michael Tylor for the invitation.
May
Bowcroft Elementary School, Calgary (May 12, 2010)
A gymnasium, two microphones, two language ambassadors and about 150 elementary kids. These are the elements of a successful show at the Bowcroft Elementary School. And we have to admit: as our audience has never been so young and so big before, our event was slighlty in the students hands today. Before we could even start to say word, the children asked us a million of quastions!
Congratulations to you kiddies: you refuted the prejudices of a video game addicted and naive next generation thoroughly. We love your energy and curiosity. Way to go!
Next time we will bring more Gummibärchen, we promise….
May
T.B. Riley Junior High School, Calgary (May 12, 2010)
A small school in the north of Calgary and bright sunshine. That was our start in the morning today. Finally it is getting warmer here in Kanada. That makes us happy…
When we arrived at the school we were greeted by 25 eager German students. After a short introduction and teaching the students about Germanys unique geography, we started our workshop. All the students participated well, which was so encouraging for us. But what was really exciting was when one of the shy students assisted us at the map. This student was very brave to come up in front of his peers and demonstrate his knowledge of German cities.
Thank you to all the students who joined us today. We enjoyed your enthusiasm and bright spirits!
May
John G. Diefenbaker High School, Calgary (May 11, 2010)
When we arrived at the John G. Diefenbaker High School in the morning, German teacher Dan Nelles showed us the way to our presentation room: the library. And shortly after that, approximatly 20 interested students came to listen to us. The workshop went great and the students impressed us with their large knowledge of German! It was a lot of fun to work with such a strong group.
Thanks a lot to Dan Nelles for the inviation and dear students: keep it up!
After our presentation we had the chance to have a look a the city centre of Calgary, which is really nice. Especially the Prince’s Island Park with the beautiful promenade along the river is a nice place to relax. Yes, we will keep Calgary in good memory!
May
Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive High School, Red Deer (May 10, 2010)
“Mixed audience,” something like this could be the headline of our second workshop today. Why? Well, the title can be justified due to a wild mix of native and foreign language learners. A combination which inspired the students to do their best in class. German teacher Elke Brase was happy and proud of the excellent behaviour of her pupils. What more do you want? Participating students, a lot of talking about Germany, a highly motivated teacher et voilà (even if this is not German), you get the perfect school for a Deutschmobil visit!
We enjoyed our stay with you very much!
May
Bert Church High School, Airdrie (May 10, 2010)
After a very relaxing weekend in Banff we drove to Airdrie, Bert Church High School. We were warmly received by German teacher Jason Burns, who had gathered about 70 young people in the library. The audience was in a great mood and they understood our principle immediately: listen, participate, learn, have fun and take home gifts. Sure, and that’s how it worked! According to this, the 60 minutes flew by very quickly.
Continue to learn German with so much joy and – oh, before we forget: Maybe one of you can arrange a German flag for the classroom of your great teacher?!
All the best …
May
DSS Vancouver Westside (May 4, 2010)
The second performance on this day took place in the gym of the DSS Vancouver. Big and small children gathered on the benches in front of us. Many of them were very good German speakers and that was once again the opportunity for Florian to show his rap. In a good mood, he sang with four (involuntary) volunteers the Deutschmobil-Rapsong, and prepared the kids for their own presentations. And in the end, almost all participants presented their self designed rap song while parents and the very little kids were watching. Wow!
A special highlight for us was this sweet kid because he was so brave and sang into the microphone all alone ….
Many thanks to principal Isolde Winter for the great preparation and thanks to Werner Kuret (German Canadian Business Association Vancouver) for the fantastic dinner at the Granville Island Hotel.
May
Burnaby Mountain Secondary School (May 3, 2010)
After a 45 minutes drive to Burnaby near Vancouver, we reached the Burnaby Mountain Secondary School. With dynamic steps the German teacher Erin Yakiwchuk approached us. She guided us to the large multipurpose room where we quickly set up everything. Our target group: a very strong beginner German class and some students of other foreign languages. This time it was up to Flo to teach the young people adequately about Germany. Those present were interested to absorb new information and participated actively in games and quizzes. Flo rewarded them with small gifts. And at the end a group of guys congratulated us for the “great presentation” . Thanks, that made us very happy. Especially after such a long day.
After work we took a stroll through downtown Vancouver for a little while. Great city! We love it!
May
St. George’s Senior School (May 3, 2010)
It seems Vancouver is not only famous for the highest quality of life but also for a very high level of teaching and learning. At least that was our impression when we came to the St. George’s Senior School. In the sunny main building gathered about 50 well-dressed gentlemen, who more or less spoke a bit of German. And as there were only male students in the audience, Eve gave them a German lesson (which underlines the sense of an enlightened emancipatory image of Germany). And as usual, she knew to inspire the young gentlemen in a charming way for our language. No less charming, the well-behaved boys participated lively at the presentation.
Oh we wish we could have stayed longer in this nice atmosphere, but the next school was already waiting for us …
Many thanks to the kind German teacher Heather Schütze for the wonderful morning!
May
DSS Victoria (May 1, 2010)
Victoria – yes, we felt like ‘winners’ when we arrived in the picturesque town on Vancouver Island, BC. The day of our performance at the German School. Around 20 young people and adults celebrated the German language with majestic power of words. Our little gifts winged many of the participants to peak performance. The very young kiddies (3-6 years) were supplied with Deutschmobil-Souvenirs as well.
But it was not only me and Florian who asked tons of questions during the workshop. The kids of the DSS turned the tables this time and interviewed us in front of a video camera. Wow, luckily we found the right words.
Anyone who thinks we relaxed after that is mistaken. A visit at the local Mercedes dealer was on our schedule. And as royal as the day had begun so royal it ended – with a nice lunch at the Marina Harbour Restaurant together with Horst Meissner from Mercedes Benz.
Apr
Parkland High School, Sidney (April 30, 2010)
The ferry to Vancouver Island was breathtaking! We had a great view of the Pacific ocean and the surrounding islands. With the Deutschmobil on board the ferry brought us slowly to the most western part of Canada. Wow, so now we drove completely from east to west and have seen both oceans already – the Atlantic and the Pacific.
At Parkland High School Angela Kleine-Büning welcomed us joyfully. And with her about 350 interested students, who (apart from the exchange students) could not speak German. Unfortunately, German is no longer offered at Parkland School. But Mrs. Kleine-Büning tries is trying hard to change this. Perhaps we could contribute something to get German back into the language program of the school. The students obviously had a lot of fun. Thank you very much for the invitation and the warm reception on the island!
Apr
Mennonite Educational Inst., Abbotsford (April 29, 2010)
Our second gig was at the Mennonite Educational Institute Abbotsford. After slight organizational problems concerning the room and the length of the event, we figured everything out: our projector was running at full speed, the 50 kW sound system was switched on and our presents were displayed nicely on the table. But we were wondering: where are the students?
Suddenly, an announcement of the Vice Principal: “Anyone who is interested can go to the Deutschmobil-show.” Seconds later, tons of students streamed into the auditorium. As soon as they all sat quietly in their seats (app. 100 people), we began with our workshop. Wow, the atmopshere was great and we enjoyed working with the group. Thanks to a good mix of information and entertainment, time went by very fast.
It was obvious to see that you get very good German lessons at your school.
Thanks for the great day Arthur.
Apr
WL Mouat Secondary School, Abbotsford (April 29, 2010)
The day in Abbortsford began as usual: drive to the school, unload the van, set up, introducing ourselves, etc. But whoops! Besides the two local teachers of the Mouat Secondary School another guest honored us with his presence – Ulrike Laskovski from the Consulate General Vancouver!
The 50 students understood our geography information about Germany pretty well. But when they heard that they would rap their first German hip-hop song today they were quite astonished. The most courageous students stood up in front of the audience and tried their best! A young man had had particular fun and surprised us in the end with a great freestyle beat boxing!
Thank you very much for the invitation and the delicious ‘Butterbrot’ afterwards….
Apr
South Kamloops Secondary School (April 28, 2010)
A beautiful drive through the hilly landscape of BC brought us to Kamloops. The city welcomed us in brilliant colors and a positive atmosphere. And in springlike high spirits were also the 50 kids of Anna Romano, the highly motivated German teacher.
Full of energy they participated in our workshop and asked intelligent questions. With joy we were able to observe how the teacher’s positive attitude motivated the students. They had no fear to make mistakes and they don’t find German difficult at all! Well, it all depends on how and by whom a foreign language is taught …
Apr
Duchess Park Secondary School, Prince George (April 27, 2010)
Pupils who go to school here are really lucky! The brand new Duchess Park Secondary School has recently opened its doors and about 900 young people will now benefit from this super modern building. But not only the facade shone today, also the German knowledge of the 80 Kids in the auditorium. As the time window of our presentation was very short, we had to bring our message down to 30 minutes: German is fun and a great language!
Apr
John McInnis Secondary School, Prince George (April 26, 2010)
The drive from Jasper to Prince George was like in a picture book. The highway wound through the snow-capped Rocky Mountains, past crystal clear lakes and lush green forests! Yes, just as we imagined Canada and its breathtaking scenery.
And since the Florian is a vigilant driver, we even saw a female bear with two cubs on the edge of the street before they scurried into the woods.
Well, as strong as a bear were also the students from John McInnis Secondary School, the first school in British Columbia on our route. With humor and lightness of youth, they listened and spoke 1.5 hours of German. Their teacher Corine Masich was full of enthusiasm too.
Apr
DSS Edmonton (April 24, 2010)
The last presentation in Edmonton took place at the German Saturday School. In general, I would like to take this opportunity to praise all the students who got et up so early on the weekend and went to school again. That’s remarkable! Moreover the students are so motivated to learn German! Working with 19 boys and girls in the class was really fun. Eventually the small groups wrote a short text about their favourite city and rapped it selfconfidently as you can see in the follwing video.
For the younger kids of the DSS, we built up a goal wall in the schoolyard. They enjoyed more kicking the ball against me instead of kicking it through the hole….
Many thanks to principal Kerstin Bühlow for the invitation!
Apr
WP Wagner High School, Edmonton (April 23, 2010)
It’s show time! Something like this could have been the headline of our performance today, as we stood in front of 80 people in the huge theater of the WP Wagner High School.
Eva was brilliant with animating words, Flo was (as usual) in the mood for joking. Although the school has mainly specialized in “Science & Technology”, the language section there is not too short. Thanks to Eckhard Strelau, the lively German teacher, his students surprised us with enormous knowledge. It showed once again that it only requires a dedicated teacher to defend a language against other sciences and competing languages like Spanish, French or Japanese.
Bravo!
Apr
Strathcona High School, Edmonton (April 23, 2010)
The holy God seemed to have heard our prayers! Finally we had a smaller group ahead of us, so we were able to see the students of the last row without glasses. Exactly 19 students came to enjoy the Deutschmobil in Ms. Rita Sarrates class. After a brief introduction Flo surprised them with an awesome freestyle rap. Wow! Amazement went through the round. But not for long. Shortly thereafter, the kids were encouraged to rhyme their own thoughts about their favourite city. The German beginners did an excellent job. Really well done!
Apr
Harry Ainlay High School, Edmonton (April 22, 2010)
“In these halls walk Titans” is written on the long corridor to the cafeteria. And just like strong titans, the German students acted a little shy at first – Flo understood very well how to loosen them up with his scary microphone!
And in the end, Eva clearly expressed her message of how important it is to learn another language or to study abroad: “speaking German gives you only advantages. Take the chance – and it will open many doors for you in the future! ”
In this sense, keep up your enthusiasm!
Apr
Allendale Junior High School, Edmonton (April 22, 2010)
This morning began in a turbulent way! Half of the gym was full of students who behaved anything else but shy! 80 boys and girls full of energy and high communication needs. Motivating this lively group for our language was really no problem. Whenever we asked them questions, many kids raised their hands to give answers or assist us in front of the class as a volunteer. We tried our best to be fair and let each of them say something in German.
But it is no wonder that the kids at the Allendale Junior High School are so advanced in German as this is the only Junior High School in Edmonton, which offers the “German bilingual program”. Keep it up!
Apr
Lillian Osborne High School, Edmonton (April 21, 2010)
Leather chairs with lounge character in the entrance of a high school – where do you find that? Well, in the brand new Lillian Osborne High School, which opened in September last year. Its design is extremely modern and also more energy efficient. It is also interesting that the school was named after the first female teacher in Edmonton.
Originally we planned to meet around 10 to 20 listeners in our workshop, but then there were 50 young people sitting in front of us. Even better! Although there is no German class at this school yet, we hope that this will change in the future.
