The reading section of an A1 exam uses the German you would actually meet on arrival: a short email from a friend, a notice on a door, a small ad, a timetable. The task is nearly always match-and-decide — does this notice answer this person's need, richtig oder falsch.
That means you do not need to understand every word, and trying to is what runs the clock down. Work like this:
- Read the QUESTION first and decide what fact you are hunting: a time, a price, a place, a
- yes/no.
- Scan the text for that kind of information. Numbers and names jump out of German text easily
- because nouns are capitalised — use that, it is a real advantage the language gives you.
- Decide, mark, move.
Learn the vocabulary of notices, because it repeats everywhere: geöffnet / geschlossen (open / closed), Eingang / Ausgang (entrance / exit), kostenlos (free of charge), Anmeldung (registration), Termin (appointment), ab / bis (from / until), täglich (daily), außer (except), Achtung (attention). "Geschlossen außer Mittwoch" is a whole exam question in two words.
One trap worth naming: kein and nicht both mean "not", and a notice that says "kein Zutritt" (no entry) or "nicht möglich" flips the answer completely. When a text looks like it matches, check for a negative before you commit.