I realize that the accusative case is not generally something that inspires poetry. To be honest, it usually inspires groans. For those (blissfully?) ignorant of German cases, the accusative has two basic uses: it points out the direct object of a sentence and it is used after a bunch of prepositions.
My German IB class sings a song to remember them. It's to the tune of "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes":
Durch, für, gegen, ohne, um, bis entlang!
Durch, für, gegen, ohne, um, bis entlang!
Die brauchen Akkusativ!
Durch, für, gegen, ohne, um, bis entlang!
I wrote that strictly to get my students to remember the prepositions. We do hand gestures while we sing to help remember the meanings. This poem got me thinking that real poems could be written to help remember the list and their meanings. Here's a poem by Burckhard Gabe:
für sorge
ich für mich
du für dich
er für sich
wir für uns
ihr für euch
jeder für sich
for worry
I for myself
you for yourself
he for himself
we for ourselves
you for yourself
everyone for himself
Here's one that I wrote as a sample for my students. I like to think that an "accusative" could be a word in English too-- like a "laxative" or a "restorative":
Accusative
um das Haus, wiesse Haare
gegen die Tür, ein gekauter Plastiktopf
durch die Küche
bis das Wohnzimmer, schmutzige Spuren
für mich auch ein extra Geschenk im Keller
ohne einen Hund wäre das Haus viel sauberer!
Accusative
around the house, white hairs
against the door, a chewed plastic container
through the kitchen
until the living room, dirty footprints
for me also an extra present in the cellar
without a dog the house would be much cleaner!
I assigned this form to my German IB class. They worked about 10 minutes in class. I'll post the results next week. Tschüß und gutes Wochenende!
