Foreign Language German - Basic study plan
Foreign Language German - Basic · Give each week a clear focus.
8 weeks · About 6 hours per week
Listening Comprehension & Grammar and Structure
Transcribe 40 short spoken German utterances (greetings, numbers, times, prices) from audio you record or generate yourself, writing digits as numerals
Identify and drill the present-tense conjugation of sein, haben, and werden plus 20 regular verbs until you can produce all forms from memory without prompts
Distinguish and produce the nominative and accusative definite and indefinite articles for 30 nouns, marking gender and case in a personal table
Shadow 10 minutes of slow, clear German audio daily, repeating each sentence aloud immediately after hearing it
Your checkpoint
A dated listening log of 40 transcribed utterances with your error count and a one-page verb and article reference sheet written from memory.
Listening Comprehension & Reading Comprehension
Answer 30 short-answer listening questions about everyday dialogues (shopping, directions, appointments), extracting names, times, and prices
Read 6 short authentic-style texts of 100-150 words each (notices, emails, simple articles) and underline every unknown word before looking it up
Build a 60-item vocabulary deck from those readings, tagging each entry with gender and plural for nouns
Practice scanning for keywords in questions before reading the passage, timing yourself at 90 seconds per text
Your checkpoint
A scored set of 30 listening questions and 6 reading texts with answers, plus a 60-entry vocabulary deck exported as a list.
Reading Comprehension & Vocabulary and Idiomatic Usage
Complete 8 reading passages of 200 words with mixed question types (main idea, detail, inference) and record accuracy per question type
Memorize 15 separable-prefix verbs and 15 inseparable-prefix verbs, then use each in a written sentence
Categorize 80 new words into thematic groups (housing, work, travel, health) and test yourself on each group twice
Explain in writing why three incorrect answer options in a reading set were wrong, citing the exact line that rules each out
Your checkpoint
An accuracy table for 8 reading passages broken down by question type, plus 30 original sentences using prefix verbs.
Grammar and Structure & Listening Comprehension
Conjugate 25 verbs in the perfect tense, choosing haben or sein correctly, and justify each auxiliary choice in a margin note
Form and use the simple past of sein, haben, and the modals in 20 sentences
Complete 4 timed listening sets of 10 items each, aiming for at least 70 percent accuracy by set four
Write down every number, time, and date you mishear across the week and drill those forms aloud
Your checkpoint
A 25-sentence perfect-tense paragraph with auxiliaries justified, and a listening accuracy trend across 4 timed sets.
Grammar and Structure & Vocabulary and Idiomatic Usage
Apply correct word order in main clauses, subordinate clauses with weil, dass, wenn, and in questions, across 40 transformation exercises you write yourself
Decline adjectives in all three patterns (after definite article, indefinite article, no article) for 20 noun phrases
Master 20 fixed preposition-verb combinations (warten auf, sich freuen über, etc.) and write one sentence for each
Identify and correct 15 typical interference errors from your own writing, labeling the rule violated
Your checkpoint
A self-made error log listing 15 corrected sentences with the rule named for each, plus a 20-item preposition-verb quiz scored.
Reading Comprehension & Cultural and Pragmatic Knowledge
Read 6 longer texts of 300 words on daily life in German-speaking countries and summarize each in 3 German sentences
Learn and apply the formal/informal distinction (Sie versus du) in 20 written requests and invitations
Describe 12 culturally specific practices (mealtimes, Sunday rules, small talk, punctuality norms) and note which register each requires
Recognize 10 common idioms and explain each in plain German without using the idiom itself
Your checkpoint
Six three-sentence German summaries plus a one-page register guide covering Sie/du, greetings, and 10 idioms with plain-language explanations.
Listening Comprehension & Writing and Text Production
Write 3 short texts (a 60-word email, a 100-word informal message, a 120-word opinion paragraph) using connectors like deshalb, trotzdem, außerdem
Complete 3 full-length timed listening sections under exam conditions and review every miss for cause (vocabulary, speed, or distraction)
Revise your three texts once each, cutting filler and checking verb position in every subordinate clause
Practice note-taking while listening: capture 5 key facts from a 2-minute monologue without pausing
Your checkpoint
Three polished German texts with first and revised drafts, plus a full-length listening section score with an error-cause tally.
Listening Comprehension & Reading Comprehension & Grammar and Structure
Take 2 complete timed practice exams covering all six domains and score each domain separately
Re-drill your weakest 30 flashcards and 10 grammar rules identified by the practice exams
Rehearse the writing task once under a 20-minute limit and self-assess against a checklist of task, grammar, and connectors
Review your error log and confirm you can explain each corrected rule aloud
Your checkpoint
Two scored full practice exams with a per-domain comparison showing improvement, plus a final one-page weak-point list for continued study.
Milestones
Week 2: You can transcribe a 30-second everyday dialogue with at least 80 percent of key details (names, times, prices) correct and read a 150-word text answering 4 of 5 questions correctly.
Week 4: You score at least 70 percent on a timed 10-item listening set and correctly choose haben or sein in 20 of 25 perfect-tense sentences.
Week 6: You write six accurate three-sentence German summaries and correctly apply Sie versus du in 18 of 20 written requests.
Week 8: Your second full practice exam improves on the first in at least three domains, and no domain falls below 60 percent.