German-language storybooks written by UCalgary students released

“I have brown hair.” 

“There are four people in my family.” 

“I enjoy baseball and if you go straight and take the second left, you’ll reach the library.”

Second-language learning often follows a predictable pattern; through familiar situations and contexts, students learn to integrate new verbs, nouns and lessons into their wider understanding of how a language works.

But language is more than just verbs and nouns — it's the context and culture that give it meaning. 

For learners, this is where scholastics give way to stories, and the impact of projects like By Learners for Learners: Level-Appropriate Children's Literature for Bilingual German Primary Education become significant. 

Funded by a Teaching and Learning Grant and SU Quality Money in 2023, the project aimed to refine, illustrate and publish age-appropriate children’s stories written by UCalgary undergraduate students in the German language program. For many, this work continued well beyond graduation. Co-investigator Dr. John Scott, PhD, an adjunct assistant professor in the Faculty of Arts, says the students’ commitment to ongoing learning has been remarkable.

“The students understand that learning doesn’t stop with the course," Scott says. "Motivated to affect young learners with their work, they’ve picked up new idioms, vocabulary and language to make their stories even more impactful.”

To date, five books have been published through the project. The stories range from the adventures of an interplanetary letter carrier, to a nervous cat heading to its first veterinarian visit, to ladybugs discovering their unique value in the ecosystem.

Dr. Roswita Dressler, professor with the Werklund School of Education and principal investigator for the grant, says that books like these play an important role in serving the North American German language market.

“The design, font and style of these books have a different flavour from those produced in Europe. They deal with the lived experience of German speaking children in North America, offering a unique take on the language that’s not found in children’s literature in German-speaking countries,” says Dressler, MA'08, PhD'12.

Rodie De Wall, co-author of Der Briefträger im Ausserweltraum (2024) and illustrator and layout designer for several stories, echoes the importance of creating material that meets young readers where they are. 

“The goal for our book was to make it accessible for first- and second-grade boys," says De Waal. "We created an intergalactic adventure with alien animals, strange worlds and a blazing climax, and leaned heavily on dialogue to progress the story since it’s more engaging for teaching and learning at a young age.”

A linguistics student in the Faculty of Arts, De Waal’s involvement in the project aligns with her interest in children’s psychology and multilingual families. As a speech pathologist aide during her undergraduate degree, she saw first-hand how illustrated character expressions in a boy’s favourite storybooks helped him recognize emotions in himself and others.

“Storybooks make children’s eyes light up with wonder and excitement," she says. "They give them something to connect to and are a helpful tool for therapists and family members to teach essential life skills or share beginner friendly language.”

Adds Scott: “For undergraduate students, the project asked them to consider and appeal to the needs of a young audience. Children want to talk about their pets and their family — and not necessarily using the high-frequency words determined by a textbook publisher.”

Dressler says practical language exposure is essential: “If you’re handed a baby, you wouldn’t know how to sing it a lullaby or how to offer a child a snack based on what you learned in class. In a narrative, the challenges faced by characters don’t always use vocabulary from the course textbook. That’s where self-directed learning takes over." 

With five of 11 of the project’s books now published and hosted on the university's digital repository, Dressler and Scott plan to write a practice-focused academic article addressing approaches to German instruction in post-secondary settings. 

Opportunities to expand the project are also on the horizon, including adapting the framework for other languages or collaborating with student illustrators at design colleges. 

“The framework behind By Learners for Learners motivates students to read long-form text and accomplishes the teacher’s goal of teaching people how to write.” says Scott.

“It’s an easy sell.”

By Learners For Learners titles

By Learners for Learners: Level-Appropriate Children's Literature for Bilingual German Primary Education has published five books to date, and looks forward to the release of K​önigin Chovy (Queen Chovy) by Joshua Duha in 2026.

For more information visit the project homepage. For questions, contact Dr. Roswita Dressler and Dr. John H. G. Scott. 

Die Ziegler Kinder und ihre Geburtstagsgeschenke (2025)

• Written by Matthew Mettam and Nikolai Nestorov
• Illustrated by Jia Yi Ren

This open-access German children's book tells the story of three children who search the house for their birthday presents, only to have their parents surprise them by coming home early!

Read the book >>

Hans im Wald! (2025) 

• Written by Joyce Chan and Aurora Clark
• Illustrated by Salma Zein
• Edited by Miriam Siggelkow

Poor little Hans wandered off from a family picnic and got lost in the woods! Once the sun goes down, he has to spend a scary night alone in a cave before his family finds him.

Read the book >>

Die kleinen sommersprossigen Marienkäfer (2025)

• Written by Maggie Byrne
• Illustrated by Rodie De Waal
• Edited by Miriam Siggelkow

Young ladybugs learn to value being unique rather than worry about being different.

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Buttons geht zum Arzt (2025)

• Written and illustrated by Paige White
• Edited by Miriam Siggelkow

Buttons is scared to go to the doctor for the first time, but learns not to be afraid!

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Der Briefträger im Ausserweltraum (2024)

• Written by Annika Burgel, Daniel Thompson and Charlie E. Wilson and Rodie De Waal
• Illustrated by Rodie De Waal
• Edited by Miriam Siggelkow

Oh no! This package is missing its address label! Never fear, this diligent letter carrier will go from planet to planet to make sure the mail is delivered.

Read the book >>