We suddenly have been handed the opportunity to move to Germany for 3 years. We want to have our children (ages 6, 8 and 10) attend a German public school. Any advise for giving them a headstart on learning the German language before we go? By the way, I used to speak German fairly well but am currently very rusty.
All I can say is....sooooo jealous! I love germany. What a great opportunity! Have a great time!! Blessings to you and your family!
It's a big move from the States to Germany. I'm a Brit who used to live in Germany, near to Nurnberg, but now lives in Georgia, USA.
Anyway, I found this web site where for a very small price you can download songs, etc. for your car, or ipod, that are children friendly.
Here's the link:
http://genkienglish.net/learntospeakgerman/hallowiegehts.htm
Also, as I am so bad at learning new languages, my husband and I used to play games that would help (his German was much better than mine).
There's a children's game called Guess Who - http://www.amazon.com/Hasbro-4800-Guess-Board-Game/dp/B00...
We would do the game in German. For example, we would ask about eye colour, hair colour, glasses, etc. all in German.
Also, I used to put labels around my house to learn different words for cup, window, TV, etc.
I'm sure once they've moved they'll pick it up faster than you think.
All the best and enjoy the Christmas markets and Stollen!
I hear Rosetta Stone is wonderful for language immersion. If you're in the Twin Cities, there is a kiosk at MOA on the first floor west side. It is spendy, but again, from friends I know who have used it - it was great!
Congratulations on the opportunity! I hope your children can see the awesomeness of this!
What a great opportunity! Go with Rosetta Stone. It's the most trusted and natural learning. I believe the military uses it when they need someone to learn a language quickly. Good luck!
Try a book from Usborne - First 1000 Words in German is geared toward kids, and they will have fun as they learn! There is a website, too, where you can hear the pronunciations of the words. This is also available in French, Spanish, Mandarin, Latin and more -
Good luck!
T. Larsen
a good "German" resource in MN is http://www.gai-mn.org/ or in WI http://www.goethehousewis.com/?q=node/6
Wow what an awesome opportunity. I spent 4 months in Germany, and never actually took any type of german class. I found that just being immersed in the culture I began to pick it up and found myself speaking in German sometimes which was weird at the time but very convenient. So just being there and then whatever you can give them to learn will be a good combination.
They'll be fluent in no time. Good luck to you and your family!
