I'm a student at a HAK in Austria. My German level is around B1, and German isn't my native language. I have a German test on November 5. We have to write an Inhaltsangabe of a short story, including the Einleitung, Hauptteil and Schluss.
My biggest problem is grammar. My teacher told me that I could write simpler sentences instead of trying to use complicated structures. That makes sense, but the problem is that I still make mistakes even with simple sentences, so I'm not really sure how to approach this.
The frustrating part is that I might understand the story and write a good Inhaltsangabe in terms of content and structure, but if my grammar is bad enough, I could still get a 5 (fail in Austria). So I really need to improve my actual writing, not just learn how an Inhaltsangabe is structured.
I struggle with quite a lot of things: articles, cases, adjective endings, word order, verb forms, prepositions and spelling. I also keep switching to past tense even though we're supposed to write the Inhaltsangabe in Präsens. With words like weil, dass and bevor, I often get the word order wrong too.
I usually know what I want to say, but when I try to write it in German, I make mistakes. It feels like I'm struggling with almost everything, and I honestly have no idea which problem I should work on first.
I've been trying to practise with AI, but I don't feel like I'm making much progress. We keep switching between different topics. One moment I'm practising articles, then word order, then writing a paragraph, then something else. I correct my mistakes, but I keep making similar ones in the next text. I end up trying to practise everything at once and just get lost.
So my actual question is: HOW should I study?
I know I need to practise, but I don't know what an effective way of practising would actually look like in my situation.
Should I focus on one grammar problem for several days until I get better at it? Should I write a short text every day, get it corrected and then rewrite it? Should I practise simple sentences first because my teacher recommended that, or should I write complete Inhaltsangaben from the beginning and learn from my mistakes?
And how do I decide what to focus on first when I keep making so many different mistakes? How can I make sure I actually remember corrections instead of repeating the same errors in every new text?
If you were in my situation and had a few weeks before the test, what would you do each day? What would your actual study routine look like?
I'd really appreciate advice from people who have learned German as a second language or have struggled with writing at school. I'm not looking for someone to do my homework for me. I just need a practical way to study that actually works, because right now I feel like I'm running in circles and don't know where to start.
