Anders Gedacht by Michaela Spainghaus, Motyl (2004, Paperback, Student Edition)

Written entirely in German, this class-tested, content-based text helps intermediate-level German students to communicate meaningfully in interpersonal, interpretive, and presentational modes. With a stimulating, comparative focus on topics such as contemporary politics, the environment, history, film, music, fine art, literature, and technology, the text encourages creative self-expression as well as critical thinking about the German language and contemporary cultures of the German-speaking world.

Anders gedacht engages students in the learning process through inductive grammar instruction and review; cultural interpretation; analysis and comparison with students' own culture; and interactive, task-based practice.

• A complete review and expansion of German grammar, along with correlated grammar and vocabulary practice, is located in the workbook and referenced in textbook chapters.
• Numerous task-based activities-designed for individual, pair, group, or whole-class work-reinforce chapter topics while fostering verbal and written communication and personal expression. Some activities include speaking-strategy instruction that provides techniques to help students build their speaking skills in areas such as persuasion, exposition, and description.
• Students listen to and think critically about a variety of authentic recordings, including music, a fairy tale, an excerpt from a novel, an interview with a contemporary German author, excerpts from a speech given by a Swiss politician, and several film soundtracks.
• Reading strategies encourage students to implement techniques that will make them more successful readers and prepare them for advanced German study.
• Writing practice-including biographical sketches; film-plot summaries; personal and public narratives; song lyrics; and argumentative, expository, and compare/contrast essays-appears throughout the text as free-form, personalized, and creative-writing assignments.