<p>Hi,</p>
<p>Perhaps this information is irrelevant to you because I have had a very different experience with the German language, and I go about it differently, but I’ll try to contribute as much as I can. I’m a high school senior and I’ve been teaching myself German since I was 12 (albeit very inconsistently) and in that time I’ve racked up A LOT of resources for learning the language. I’m relatively fluent now but I had to hit a lot of dead ends to find what worked for me.</p>
<p>Now I understand that AP German is very structured (if my experience in AP Spanish is in any way telling) and probably focuses a lot more on grammatical elements than I do personally. Despite being very thorough I cannot recommend a better reference than Hammer’s German Grammar (link here: <a href=“http://www.amazon.com/Hammers-German-Grammar-Usage-Edition/dp/1444120166”>http://www.amazon.com/Hammers-German-Grammar-Usage-Edition/dp/1444120166</a> ). It’s an excellent book and will last you through college. There’s also a workbook available if you look for it. I would go through the syllabus and hit on all your grammatical weaknesses through this book. Trust me - it’s worth the money.</p>
<p>With vocabulary, I use a site called <a href=“http://www.memrise.com”>http://www.memrise.com</a> . It’s a user-created database so you can either create your own personal wordlist (as I did - with over 1100 words now!) or work with someone else’s. It’s not just a flashcard thing - it’s dynamic, with lots of audio and mnemonics. I can’t really describe it as well as I want to, so definitely check it out.</p>
<p>Best online dictionary is <a href=“http://www.dict.cc”>http://www.dict.cc</a> . They have audio recordings and plenty of idiomatic expressions.</p>
<p>Pronunciation: <a href=“German pronunciation dictionary”>http://www.forvo.com/languages/de/</a> Type in a word and you have native-speaker articulation at your fingertips.</p>
<p>The best thing you can do for yourself with listening comprehension is just to watch German movies / TV. Most films are still too fast for me but I watch a kids show that I found on youtube from the 70s, called Löwenzahn. The great thing about kids’ shows is that they show the words in context with their meaning with images so you can understand what’s going on. If Löwenzahn is still a little fast-paced for you try EXTRA German, a series made specifically for foreign speakers ( <a href=“null - YouTube”>http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtNrSzeverm1nhwlausema6N2BEd_zINx</a> ).</p>
<p>For speaking practice I literally just found someone on Skype. There’s a huge thread here: <a href=“Redirecting”>Redirecting;
<p>And finally, for cultural stuff, watch the news. Read, I guess. Talk to people. I’m not as well-versed in this to be honest.</p>
<p>And there you go. This is the way I learn all my languages. Working on Russian and Hindi, woohoo!</p>
<p>All the best!</p>