My daughter and I are stuck. We have the theme Reizwort and Reizwortgeschichten. Other mums stuck too.

We will ask the teacher but can anyone help explain what these words are?

Any help appreciated

You get given some words and have to use them to make a story.

For example:

Jeremy Corbyn......... goat .......... arrested.......... forced ........... marry......... happily ever after

Your daughter should have been given a list of words ("Reizwörter") which she needs to use in a story she writes ("Reizwortgeschichte"). The words will usually be nouns.

Here is an explaination and an example in German
http://wortwuchs.net/reizwortgeschichte/

A word that gets you upset when someone mentions it IMHO like Cheney, Temperatursturz or VAT ...

Reizwörter on EF - search, moderator

OP, sorry to say so bluntly, but this is a really simple case of "search and ye shall find" (as previous posters have hinted).

Have you discovered PONS Online Dictionary yet? It will become your new indispensable best friend at homework time. The app for mobile phones and tablets is excellent, too.

Yes I did search EF & several dictionaries and it came up with the word "emotion" which didn't really make it clearer. Thanks everyone for the replies

Google translate has a fairly good stab at it https://translate.google.com/?hl=en&...ortgeschichten

I like
http://www.linguee.com/
because it gives examples of text in which the words occur including a translation.
http://www.linguee.com/english-germa...query=Reizwort

Learn to use google, it really couldn't get any simpler. "Reizwort auf englisch" in this case, for example.

See here

In OP's defense, the meaning of 'Reizwort' in 'Reizwortgeschichten' is a little different from the results you get when you simply google an English translation.

The list of words in her daughter's homework were most likely not emotive terms. They were probably just a list of nouns e.g. 'mountain', 'danger', 'avalanche', 'sunset', 'friendship', and she had to come up with a story using these words.

Quite honestly I wouldn't call those words 'Reizwörter' at all. They are just words. Mind you, I didn't go to school here and I would be very interested to know what it really was all about.

I would call a list of words given as basis for a story 'Stichwörter'

That is exactly why OP was confused. The Reizwörter in this case are stimulants - they are supposed to stimulate creative writing.

Indeed.

With that said: I think Stichwörter is a helvetism, correct german is Stichworte (pedantic perhaps, but this is the language corner).

First time in 67 years that I hear the term "Reizwort" in such a context. Must be one of those weird terms pedagogic egg-heads like to use to confuse normal people.
It's not a helvetism. If the "-wort" is a single word, the plural is "Reizwörter." If it is a phrase, as in "Du sprichst ein grosses Wort gelassen aus," the plural is "Reizworte."

Or so I think.

Thank goodness for that. A kindred spirit. It got me worried.

We didn't have 'Creative Writing' at school either. We wrote 'Compositions'

The link Carlasmom gave explains this 'newfangled usage' but the Site is called 'Wortwuchs' = Word growth. Word growth. Now I ask you. 'Wortwuchs'. About on a par with 'Wildwuchs' which includes such things as stinging nettles and dandelions. All the things you don't want in your garden and cannot get rid of.
Hey teachers, leave those words alone.

Just had to correct your quote back to Mr Waters' original.

This sounds like one hell of a story, although I'd REALLY feel sorry for the Labour Party if Corbyn was forced into a shotgun wedding with a goat.

I'd feel sorry for the goat.