Dictation
Hearing a sentence and writing it down in German, every word spelt right.
Learn
Dictation, explained point by point
Everything the GCSE specification expects you to be able to do, and how to actually do it - the same lesson a signed-in student studies from.
Know how the dictation is set and marked
Dictation is Section B of the listening paper with both boards. AQA's is 8 marks at Foundation, with at least 20 words in all, and 10 marks at Higher, with at least 30; you hear each sentence three times, once whole, once in short sections, then whole again, and it is marked across all the sentences for how well the meaning comes across (AO1) and how accurately the words and grammar are transcribed (AO3). Edexcel's is 10 marks at both tiers: six short sentences, the first ones with single words to fill in, marked on one scale by the number of words you spell right.
Use the three hearings for three different jobs
On the first hearing, listen for the meaning. On the second, in short sections, write each section as it comes. On the third, check: capitals on the nouns, umlauts, endings, and any small word such as den, im or sehr that slipped past.
Spell from the German sound rules
German spelling follows its sounds closely. Ei sounds like the English eye (mein, Zeit) and ie like the ee in see (Liebe, spielen). W is said like an English v (Wasser), v usually like an f (Vater), z like ts (Zug) and j like the y in yes (ja). Sch is the sh of shop, and sp and st at the start of a word sound shp and sht (Sport, Straße).
Hear the umlauts and write them
An umlaut changes the sound, and the word: schon is already but schön is beautiful, zahlen is to pay but zählen is to count. Listen for the rounded ü and ö and the open ä, and put the two dots in. Pearson does not credit a word with a missing umlaut.
Give every noun its capital
Every German noun has a capital letter, wherever it stands: Mein Bruder spielt am Samstag Fußball. If you hear der, die, das or ein, the noun after it starts with a capital. A verb used as a noun does too: das Schwimmen.
Use the grammar to fix endings and small words
The meaning helps the spelling. A plural subject takes a plural verb (meine Eltern arbeiten), and an article after mit is dative (mit dem Bus, mit der Bahn). Long and short vowels show in the spelling too: a double consonant follows a short vowel (kommen, Mutter), while an h after a vowel lengthens it (fahren, Uhr).
Have a go at the words from outside the list
Every dictation includes words that are not on the vocabulary list. You can still spell them, because German is mostly written as it sounds: write what you hear using the sound rules, with a capital if it is a noun. A sensible spelling keeps the meaning moving, so never leave a gap.
Dictation key terms
The words the specification and the mark schemes use, each defined the way an examiner wants it.
- Dictation
- A listening task where you write down in German exactly what you hear. At GCSE it is marked for meaning and for accurate spelling and grammar.
- Communication of meaning
- The first thing a dictation is marked for (AO1): whether what you wrote would let a reader understand what was said.
- Transcription
- Writing spoken words down in their written form. In the dictation it is marked for accurate spelling and grammar (AO3).
- Umlaut
- The two dots on ä, ö and ü. They change the sound and the word, so a missing umlaut is a spelling mistake that changes the meaning.
- Capital letter
- Every German noun starts with one: der Hund, das Wetter, die Schule.
- ß
- The sharp s, a hissed s after a long vowel or ei, au: Straße, groß, heißen.
- Long and short vowels
- A double consonant follows a short vowel (kommen); a double vowel or an h marks a long one (Meer, fahren).
Common mistakes in Dictation
The slips that cost marks year after year, and what to do instead.
Spelling a sound the English way, such as Vasser for Wasser or shön for schön.
Learn the German spelling of each sound: the v sound is usually w, the sh sound is sch, and sp and st at the start already contain it.
Leaving off the umlaut, writing schon for schön or fur for für.
An umlaut is part of the spelling and changes the word. Listen for the rounded sound and put the dots in.
Writing nouns with a small letter.
Every noun has a capital. After an article, start the next noun with one: der Bahnhof, eine Katze.
Swapping ei and ie, as in Zieit or speilen.
Ei sounds like eye, ie like ee: Zeit, spielen.
Leaving a gap for a word you did not catch or do not know.
The dictation is marked as a whole, and a sensible attempt can still carry the meaning. Write the word as it sounds using the sound rules, and fix it on the next hearing if you can.