DeutschGerman Saturday Schools

A number of German Saturday Schools operate in the UK, the majority in and around London, where the first school was established in the late 1980s. We offer supplementary education in German for children who are growing up bilingually in the UK. Usually one parent comes from a German-speaking background.

As we do not actually teach German as a foreign language, but hold our lessons in German, children need to have a certain level of understanding and speaking German when they start out. Nearly all our teachers are native German speakers.

Children usually start in the Saturday School’s Kindergarten classes at the age of 3. All the schools offer provision through Primary age, and some schools offer GCSE- and A-level preparation. Lessons usually run for two to three hours on Saturday mornings, with the school dates following the local British school terms; please check the individual schools for details.

Our main principals are:

  • Our overall goal is to improve children’s fluency and confidence in using the German language.

  • We want to familiarise the children with a wider use of the German language – in this context it is particularly important that the children (and parents) meet other children and families in the same situation, especially when they become older and the English school life gets ever more absorbing.

  • We try to develop an awareness and understanding of German culture and traditions among the children, while considering that they are living and growing up in the UK.

  • Usually at the age of six, when most of the children have started to read and write in English and when they would be starting school in Germany, we also start teaching the children to read and write in German.

  • We operate as voluntary organisations which are usually run by the children’s parents and rely on their input

Our ethos is that children should enjoy coming to the voluntary, extra-curricular Saturday School. We aim to create a positive classroom experience, with a big emphasis on celebrating German festivals and traditions.

Our schools are non-profit voluntary organisations and depend on the parents' support in numerous different roles. The schools need to pay their teachers as well as the premises they are renting. As each school is independent, schools differ slightly in their exact form of organisation. School fees also vary, depending on location and size of the school.


VDSS - Association of German Saturday Schools


 

Locations

In and around London:
>> Central London (Bayswater)
>> Croydon
>> Ealing
>> Hendon
>> Islington
>> Richmond
>> Tonbridge
>> Woking/Guildford

Outside London:
>> Birmingham
>> Bournemouth
>> Bristol
>> Cambridge
>> Edinburgh
>> Leicester
>> Manchester
>> Oxford
>> Southampton


If you have any questions concerning this site, please contact: info@germansaturdayschools.co.uk