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Don't worry, it eventually becomes easy to say. All you need to know is WHEN to use the cases and what the articles change to for each case. I also thought it difficult at first, but now it's gotten easier. You just need to know the phrases that go with 'em. Examples:

Nominative case: Used with sentences revolving around the direct object (what's performing the action).
Noun & gender: der Mann
"Der Mann ist dort." (The man is there.)
*The nominative case's definite articles are generally what'll be listed next to the noun when you learn it.

Accusative case: Used with sentences in regards to the indirect object (what's being done to the object).
Noun & gender: der Lehrer
"Wir sehen den Lehrer." (We see the teacher.)

Dative case: Still looking into this one, but it has to do with the whole notion of "to whom" and "for whom"... I think.
Noun & gender: das Mädchen
"Er gibt es dem Mädchen." (He gives it to the girl.)

Genitive case: Used with possession.
Noun & gender: die Frau
"Das ist die Handtasche der Frau." (That is the woman's purse.)
*I think this is also used with prepositions but again, this one I'm still looking into.

This chart should help:

_______Masc._______Fem.________Neut._______Plural
Nom.___der__________die___________das_________die
Acc.___den__________die___________das_________die
Dat.___dem__________der__________dem_________den
Gen.___des__________der__________des__________der

Oh no, I do understand the principle, and I know I could memorize those and do that right, but it seemed odd to me how people would actually talk like that all the time.
*Sigh* Oh, Latin influences.

Especially the Germanic languages in particular. Old English had 5 cases: the four mentioned above and the "instrumental" case. They all probably came from the unwritten Proto-Germanic language.

Nur um es vollständig zu machen, es gibt Fragen mit denen man rausfinden kann um welchen Fall es sich handelt. Ich benutze einfach mal Hawk's Beispiele um die Fragen und deren Sinn zu veranschaulichen.

Nominativ: Wer oder was? (Who?)

"Der Mann ist dort." (The man is there.)
Wer ist dort? -Der Mann. ----> Nominativ

Genitiv: Wessen? (Whose)

"Das ist die Handtasche der Frau." (That is the woman's purse.)
Wessen Handtasche ist das? -(Die Handtasche) der Frau. ----> Genitiv

Dativ: Wem oder was? (Whom?)

"Er gibt es dem Mädchen." (He gives it to the girl.)
Wem oder was gibt er es? -Dem Mädchen. ----> Dativ

Akkusativ: Wen oder was? (Who or whom? [not exactely about the whom, can anybody explain the difference between 'who' and 'whom' to me? My dictionary said that 'wen' would be translated either 'who' or 'whom'])

"Wir sehen den Lehrer." (We see the teacher.)
Wen oder was sehen wir? -Den Lehrer. ----> Akkusativ

Ich habe es in dieser Reihenfolge geschrieben, weil man üblicherweise den Nominativ als den 1. Fall bezeichnet, den Genitiv als den 2. Fall, den Dativ als den 3. Fall und den Akkusativ als den 4. Fall.

Declension would have to be the hardest part of having English as a native language, when learning other European languages anyway.

The best way to get around it is practice, practice practice.

Declension also changes with prepositions, which is what we're doing now.

No? Prepositions, such as 'an, auf, hinter, ueber, unter, nebem, zwischen, vor, in". They can be used in either the Dative or Accusative case.

Maybe I wasn't talking about declension.

Hallo! Ich moechte mich vorstellen. Ich heisse Engel, und ich bin sechzehn Jahre alt. Ich wohne in den U.S.A. und ich will eine Deutschlehrerin sein. ^^

Hallo noch einmal, Engel! Wie geht es Ihnen? Oder darf ich Sie als 'du‘ anreden? In welchem Fall: wie geht es dir?