Picture 4 - Die Geburtstagsüberraschung

Oral Exam Structure and Where the Picture Sequence Fits

The Leaving Certificate Higher Level German oral examination lasts roughly fifteen minutes and accounts for 25% of your overall mark (100 marks total). It consists of three distinct parts:

1. General conversation (covering personal background, family, school, free time, German studies, and life in Ireland versus German-speaking countries).
2. Either a project presentation or a picture sequence narration and discussion.
3. A role-play situation chosen from the published cards.

If you choose the picture sequence, the official syllabus describes the requirement as story narration and brief discussion of issues arising from story. This means your preparation must cover two areas equally: delivering a smooth, accurate retelling of the six panels in roughly 10 to 15 sentences, and answering the examiner's questions about what happens next, character motivations, and broader themes. Check with your teacher which sequences are currently issued for your examination year, and always describe what you actually see on the printed panels in front of you.

Frame-by-Frame Storyline and Core Vocabulary

The sequence illustrates an unexpected turn of events on an eighteenth birthday across six panels:

• Bild 1 – Im Flur: Lena kneels near the front door letterbox (der Briefkasten) in the hallway (der Flur). She opens a birthday card (die Geburtstagskarte) from her grandparents with the greeting: „Alles Liebe zum 18. Geburtstag!“. Inside the card she finds three fifty-euro banknotes (drei Fünfzig-Euro-Scheine), giving her a total of 150 Euro.
• Bild 2 – Das Verlassen des Hauses: She puts on her jacket, pockets the cash (Geld einstecken), and calls out „Bis gleich!“ (See you in a bit!) to her parents as she leaves through the front door.
• Bild 3 – Das Esszimmer: In the dining room, her family waits around a table laid out for traditional afternoon celebrations (Kaffee und Kuchen). The table has coffee cups, wrapped gifts (die Geschenke), and a celebration cake (die Torte) with lit candles showing the number 18. The family cat sleeps peacefully on the floor under the table.
• Bild 4 – Die Einkaufsstraße: Lena walks along a pedestrian shopping street (die Einkaufsstraße). She passes a florist (Blaue Orchidee), a wool shop (Bestrickend), and a hairdresser (Struwwelpeter). Holding a €50 note, she heads straight into a tattoo parlour named RATTATTATTOO.
• Bild 5 – Im Tattoo-Studio: Inside the studio, a sign on the wall asks „Bist du 18?“. The tattoo artist (der Tätowierer) displays flash sheets (die Vorlagen) with various designs (die Motive), including skulls (die Totenköpfe), flowers, and hearts. Lena selects a large motif for her upper arm (der Oberarm).
• Bild 6 – Die Rückkehr nach Hause: She returns home wearing a sleeveless top (ein ärmelloses Top) and presents her fresh tattoo. Her family is horrified: her mother holds her hands to her face in sheer shock (der Schock).

High-Yield Vocabulary (Wortschatz)

• der Briefkasten, die Briefkästen – letterbox
• der Umschlag, die Umschläge – envelope
• die Geburtstagskarte, die Geburtstagskarten – birthday card
• der Geldschein, die Geldscheine – banknote
• die Torte, die Torten – celebration cake / layer cake
• die Vorlage, die Vorlagen – template / flash sheet
• das Motiv, die Motive – design / motif
• der Oberarm, die Oberarme – upper arm
• die Nadel, die Nadeln – needle
• ein Tattoo stechen – to do/ink a tattoo
• sich tätowieren lassen – to get oneself tattooed
• volljährig – of age / having reached the age of majority
• die Entscheidung, die Entscheidungen – decision
• bereuen – to regret
• entsetzt – horrified / appalled

If the Examiner Asks About the Shop Names

• Bestrickend: A clever pun combining the adjective bestrickend (captivating/enchanting) with the verb stricken (to knit).
• Struwwelpeter: The unkempt boy from Heinrich Hoffmann's classic 1845 children's book—a humorous name for a hairdresser (der Friseur).

Essential Grammar: Conjunctions, Word Order, and Separable Verbs

Clear storytelling depends on connecting sentences smoothly and placing verbs where German rules require them.

Parallel Action: während and währenddessen

Bild 3 and Bild 4 occur at the exact same moment. You can express this parallel timing in two ways:

• Subordinating conjunction (während + verb final): Während die Familie am Tisch wartet, geht Lena in die Stadt. (While the family waits at the table, Lena goes into town.) Notice that the two verbs sit side by side across the comma (wartet, geht): the subordinate clause ends with its conjugated verb, and the main clause begins with its conjugated verb.
• Adverb (währenddessen + inversion): Die Familie wartet am Tisch. Währenddessen geht Lena in die Stadt. (The family waits at the table. Meanwhile, Lena goes into town.)

The als, wenn, and wann Rule

English uses 'when' in many contexts, but German strictly separates them:

• als = a single, completed event in the past: Als sie nach Hause kam, war die Familie entsetzt. (When she came home, the family was horrified.)
• wenn = present or future occurrences, or repeated events in the past ('whenever'): Wenn sie nach Hause kommt, sieht die Familie das Tattoo. (When she comes home, the family sees the tattoo.) Immer wenn sie Geld bekam, ging sie einkaufen. (Whenever she received money, she went shopping.)
• wann = direct or indirect questions only: Wann kommt sie zurück? / Die Mutter fragt, wann sie zurückkommt. (When is she coming back? / The mother asks when she is coming back.)

All three send the conjugated verb to the end of their subordinate clause (wann only in indirect questions).

Separable Verbs (Trennbare Verben)

In a main clause, the conjugated stem occupies the second position, and the prefix moves to the very end:

• anziehen → Lena zieht ihre Jacke an. (Lena puts on her jacket.)
• einstecken → Sie steckt das Geld ein. (She pockets the money.)
• aussuchen → Sie sucht ein Motiv aus. (She picks out a design.)

In a subordinate clause, prefix and stem reunite at the end: …weil sie das Geld einsteckt. In the Perfekt, ge- sits between the prefix and the stem: Sie hat ihre Jacke angezogen. Sie ist nach Hause zurückgekommen.

Formulas for Congratulating, Reacting, and Managing the Conversation

Syllabus Sections 1.1, 1.8, and 1.9 test your ability to exchange social greetings, express immediate emotional reactions, and manage communication breakdown.

Birthday Wishes

• Herzlichen Glückwunsch zum Geburtstag! – Happy birthday! (the most common phrase)
• Alles Gute zum Geburtstag! – All the best on your birthday!
• Alles Liebe zum 18. Geburtstag! – Much love on your 18th birthday (the exact text in Bild 1)
• Ich gratuliere dir ganz herzlich! – I congratulate you warmly (gratulieren takes the dative case)

Reacting with Surprise, Shock, and Disappointment

• Lena freut sich riesig über das Geld. – Lena is delighted with the money (sich freuen über + accusative).
• Das darf nicht wahr sein! – That cannot be true!
• Die Mutter ist völlig sprachlos und fassungslos. – The mother is completely speechless and stunned.
• Die Eltern sind entsetzt und schwer enttäuscht. – The parents are horrified and deeply disappointed.
• Es hat mich nicht gewundert, dass die Eltern schockiert waren. – It did not surprise me that the parents were shocked.
• Wie schade, dass sie nichts gesagt hat! – What a shame that she said nothing!

Repair Phrases If You Get Stuck

• Wie bitte? – Pardon / Sorry?
• Könnten Sie die Frage bitte wiederholen? – Could you repeat the question, please?
• Ich habe die Frage nicht ganz verstanden. – I did not quite understand the question.
• Können Sie das bitte anders erklären? – Could you explain that differently, please?
• Wie sagt man das auf Deutsch? Ich meine … das Bild auf der Haut. – How do you say that in German? I mean … the picture on the skin.

Pronunciation and Spoken Delivery

Oral assessment directly considers pronunciation and natural intonation. Rehearse these target sounds out loud:

The Rounded Umlaut ü and French Loanwords

• Push your lips forward into a tight circle while holding your tongue in the 'ee' position: Überraschung, fünfzig.
• In standard German, the suffix -ig sounds like the soft -ich: fünfzig is pronounced roughly 'FÜNF-tsich'. The same applies to wichtig, lustig, and zwanzig.
• eu in French loanwords (-eur): pronounced like a long German ö: der Friseur ('fri-ZÖÖR').

The Two ch Sounds

• Hard ch (ach-sound): Formed in the back of the throat after a, o, u, au: achtzehn, Tochter, Buch, auch.
• Soft ch (ich-sound): A forward hiss between the tongue and palate after e, i, ä, ö, ü, ei, eu and in diminutive endings: Mädchen, ich, möchte, vielleicht.

Initial sp-, st-, and Final Consonant Devoicing

• At the start of words or stems, pronounce sp- and st- as 'shp' and 'sht': später ('shpay-ter'), das Studio ('shtudio').
• Word-final consonants b, d, and g harden into p, t, and k: Geld ('Gelt'), und ('unt'), Geburtstag ('ge-BURTS-tak').

Connecting Oral Narration to Written Production

The material from Picture 4 transfers directly to Leaving Certificate written tasks, such as diary entries (Tagebucheintrag) and short opinion pieces (Äußerung zum Thema).

Shifting from Oral Präsens to Written Perfekt and Präteritum

• Präsens: Lena findet eine Karte. → Perfekt: Lena hat eine Karte gefunden.
• Präsens: Sie geht in die Stadt. → Perfekt: Sie ist in die Stadt gegangen (movement verbs use sein).
• Präsens: Die Familie ist entsetzt. → Präteritum: Die Familie war entsetzt.
• Past sequencing: Nachdem sie das Geld bekommen hatte, ging sie in die Stadt. (nachdem takes the Plusquamperfekt with a Präteritum main clause).

Key terms

die Geburtstagsüberraschung

The birthday surprise; in this sequence, the surprise is the shock experienced by the family rather than the birthday girl.

volljährig

Of legal age / having reached the age of majority (eighteen years old in Ireland and Germany).

sich tätowieren lassen

To get oneself tattooed; a causative construction with 'lassen' showing that a professional carries out the action.

das Motiv, die Motive

The design, motif, or artwork selected for a tattoo.

der Totenkopf, die Totenköpfe

Skull; one of the flash sheet designs displayed in the tattoo studio in Bild 5.

das ärmellose Top, die ärmellosen Tops

Sleeveless top; worn by Lena in Bild 6 to display her new tattoo.

bereuen

To regret an action or decision (essential when discussing future consequences).

der Flur, die Flure

The hallway or entrance corridor of a house.

schimpfen (mit + Dativ)

To scold or give out to someone: 'Die Eltern schimpfen mit ihr.'

entsetzt

Horrified or appalled; ideal for describing the family's reaction in Bild 6.

während

While/whilst; a subordinating conjunction introducing simultaneous actions and sending the conjugated verb to the end of the clause.

währenddessen

Meanwhile; an adverb that occupies position one and triggers subject-verb inversion.