This key facts covers Key rules at a glance within The 150-word task for GCSE German. Revise The 150-word task in Writing and Translation into German for GCSE German with 10 exam-style questions and 12 flashcards. This topic appears regularly enough that it should still be part of a steady revision cycle. It is section 3 of 4 in this topic. Use this key facts to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
📌 Key rules at a glance
- Opinion frames: Meiner Meinung nach… / Ich bin der Meinung, dass… — open with a strong view
- Justify every point with weil or da — verb goes to the end of the weil clause
- The conditional: ich würde / ich möchte + infinitive at the very end
- Subordinate clauses with obwohl / dass / wenn send the finite verb to the end
- Three time frames: past, present, and future or the conditional — varied connectives show range
- Target ~150 words: cover both bullets with developed, justified points
Practice questions for The 150-word task
Which German phrase introduces a personal opinion and is particularly appropriate at Higher tier?
Which sentence correctly uses 'obwohl' (although) with the verb in the right position?
Quick recall flashcards
obwohl...
Although...
obwohl introduces a concession — use it to acknowledge the other side before making your main point:
• Obwohl ich müde war, habe ich Sport gemacht.
(Although I was tired, I did sport.)
• Obwohl es teuer ist, möchte ich ins Ausland fahren.
(Although it is expensive, I would like to go abroad.)
Note two things:
1. verb goes to the END after obwohl
2. when the obwohl-clause comes first, the main clause starts with the VERB (inverted V2)
This double word-order challenge is what makes obwohl a higher-level structure.
deshalb / trotzdem / jedoch
deshalb = therefore / that is why
trotzdem = nevertheless / even so
jedoch = however (more formal than aber)
All three are adverbs — they trigger V2 (verb immediately after them in the main clause):
• Das Wetter war schlecht. Trotzdem sind wir ausgegangen.
(The weather was bad. Nevertheless we went out.)
• Ich mag Fleisch nicht. Deshalb esse ich vegetarisch.
(I don't like meat. That is why I eat vegetarian.)
• Der Film war lang. Jedoch war er sehr interessant.
(The film was long. However it was very interesting.)
Vary these to avoid repeating aber.