I just asked my student, “What support do you need from me while you finish writing this paper right now?”
He said, “Nothing. I just need to type.” But then he added, “How about every five minutes you spin your chair around and tell me how awesome I am…in German!?”
“That’s EXACTLY what I’d love to do to support you,” I responded.
Thanks to an online English-German translator, here’s what I told him (how well did I do?):
- Sie sind unglaublich klug! (You are unbelievably smart!)
- Sie sind auch ein Arbeitspferd! (You are also a workhorse!)
- Sie machten Sachen, Mann! (You get things done, man!)
- Ich denke, dass Sie schrecklich sind! (I think you’re awesome!)
- Sie werden so eingestellt, das ist unglaublich! (It’s unbelievable how focused you are!)
- Sie schaukeln Ihre Welt! (You rock your world!)
- Reisen Sie ab, wie stellar Sie sind. (Check you out, how stellar you are!)
- Sie sind so stark, Sie machen Wellen! (You are so powerful, you make waves!)
When he got done, we rocked out to Falco’s “Rock Me Amadeus” (on my iTunes) and “Panzurlied” (on his iPhone).
Whatever works!
Dear gretchen,
This sounds like so much fun and the kind of support I would have loved when writing papers!
For what it’s worth now, may I correct your German a little? The use of “Sie sind…” is for talking formally to an adult. Which may be desirable for showing respect to this young person. I think more traditionally when speaking to a youth, you would use “Du bist…”
Keep up the good work!
Of COURSE you may correct the German online translator! 🙂 I didn’t know you speak German, Elizabeth. That’s cool; perhaps we should co-teach in German. For anyone stumbling across this entry, Elizabeth and I co-teach the Tuesday night InterPlay class in Oakland, California. She’s an amazing dancer; I’m an amazing, uhhhhh, something-or-other. Together we are a force to be reckoned with, soon to be translated into German.