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Get To Know German Schools in California

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Open House Events and Lantern Parades

Fall is a great time to check out new schools for the next year without pressure. Some German schools in California offer great opportunities for students and parents alike to tour their campus this fall. Taking advantage of traditional seasonal events that are open to the community, or attending an Open House gives you a good idea what a particular school community is like, and let’s you connect to teachers as well as the school’s community at large. You can form a first hand opinion of whether this school is right for you, and can be ahead of the race once the application process starts in January and February .

Some such upcoming events are listed below:

GISSV – German International School of Silicon Valley 

Starting this October, GISSV has several Open House Events scheduled during the 2013/14 school year. Find the one right for you. The school has three different campuses, Mountain View, Berkeley and San Francisco.

Mountain View Campus:

  • Saturday, November 16, 2013 (11am – 1pm)

Berkeley Campus:

  • Saturday, November 2, 2013 (11am – 1pm)
  • Saturday, January 25, 2014 (11am – 1pm)

San Francisco Campus:

  • Saturday, October 26, 2013 (11am – 1pm)
  • Saturday, December 7, 2013 (11am – 1pm)

Furthermore, mark your calendar for December 14th . GISSV has a special treat in store for you. The school organizes a traditional Christmas Market from 11.00am to 9.00pm right on Townhall Square in Mountain View with 10-30 stands for the typical Christkindl-Market Flair.

Albert Einstein Academies in San Diego

Lantern Festival, Saturday November 2nd from 3pm-7pm at AEA

AEA’s 12th Annual Lantern Festival is almost here! Is has become a wonderful tradition for the whole family to enjoy. Join AEA in celebrating a 100-year-old German tradition with food, games, fun activity booths, a vendor market, and entertainment, ending with a traditional lantern walk around the neighborhood.

An even bigger and better festival is planned for this year with more activities for the Middle School students. Great entertainment from the German Cultural Committee, traditional food, the carnival, Martins market, inflatable jumpers, and of coarse our traditional lantern walk. We will be adding special activities for the older kids that include a photo booth and a fabulous video game truck, so that all ages can participate and enjoy this great AEA tradition.

Kinderstube/ BAKS  in Berkeley

Kinderstube has a Lantern Parade on November 9 at 4.00 pm

Come and celebrate the German tradition of St. Martin’s Day with Kinderstube:
See a performance by our children, join us in singing songs and during our annual lantern parade. You can bring your own lantern or buy one from us!
Our preschool fundraiser includes the sale of Glühwein (mulled wine), hot chocolate, grilled sausages, Weckmänner (a German sweet bread), soft pretzels, and German children’s books.   Lanternenfest – Saturday, November 9 at 4pm

GAIS – German American International School in Menlo Park

The German-American International School in Menlo Park has a few dates to offer to get to know their school as well as student body including a St. Martin’s Laternenfest on November 8th!

  • St. Martin Lantern Parade – November 8, 2013                                     On Friday, November 8, 2013 at 6:00 p.m., the traditional lantern parade celebrating the legend of St. Martin will take place at GAIS. Martinstag is all about giving to others and shedding light in the darkness. The event begins with a “Shadow Play” and the lighting of the lanterns, followed by a walk around the neighborhood.
  • Monday, November 11, 8:30am – 3:00pm: Open Classroom Day        On this day, our classrooms are open for the public and anyone interested in our school. Join us for this day and get a glimpse of the daily life, the academic programs, the curriculum and much more at the German-American International School.
  • Monday, November 11, 7:00pm – 9:00pm: Information Evening & Parenting Workshop                                        There will be an Information Evening including a Parenting Workshop conducted by external presenters for prospective parents and families taking place in our library. 
  • Saturday, December 7, 2:00pm – 5:30pm: Holiday Winter Fest 2013                                                                                    Our annual and traditional Holiday Winterfest takes place on Saturday, December 7, 2013, from 2:00pm – 5:30pm on our campus. The Winterfest will feature shops, café, baked goodies, food, hand-made arts and crafts, a visit from Santa, a raffle and much more…  In addition there will be again wonderful musical performances led by our Music Teacher. Join us for this wonderful event!
  • Wednesday, January 8, 7:00pm – 9:00pm: Information Evening & Parenting Workshop                                         There will be an Information Evening including a Parenting Workshop conducted by external presenters for prospective parents and families taking place in our library.
  • Thursday, March 8, 7:00pm – 9:00pm: Information Evening & Parenting WorkshopThere will be an Information Evening including a Parenting Workshop conducted by external presenters for prospective parents and families taking place in our library.

Tivoli Rainbow Garden Preschool in Los Angeles

The Open House event with two different tours is schedule for October 30.

There will be two tours offered that day: 3:30-4:40pm and 4:30-5:30pm. Should you be interested in attending, please send an email to TivoliRainbowGarden@gmail.com so the school can plan accordingly. The German preschool has room for 13 children yearly within the age group of 2.5-5 and offers half day and full day programs. For more info please visit the website.

Die Rasselbande Preschool in San Diego

Holiday Bazaar – Lantern Walk on November 8th                                                            The school offers general Tours of the campus anytime even Saturdays, which can be scheduled at any time through the school office.

Kinderhaus Preschool in San Francisco

KinderHaus International Preschool in the Mission District of San Francisco hosts a Lantern Fest in San Francisco on November 15th. Please join families of the school at 5pm to go for a traditional lantern walk starting in Dolores Park and ending at the KinderHaus. There will be hot cider, wine & beer as well as a potluck with ‘Brezeln’ and sausages right after the walk. Suggested donation per family is $10. Handmade lanterns will be for sale in case you don’t have your own. For more information visit the website.

Magnet School Benjamin Franklin in Glendale

The school offers language immersion in German, as well as 3 other european languages. You can tour the school anytime with an appointment. Please go to the schools web page Franklinmagnetschool.com and find the link to sign up for a tour, or contact Ana Jones: Ajones@gusd.net  (818) 243-1809. To stay informed about their various community events please sign up for the weekly news-blast.

Ute’s Kinderschule in Irvine

Join children and their parents for a lantern parade on November 11th at 6pm in Irvine. For more information and RSVP please email: UtesKinderschule@gmail.com

Laternenfest

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German Schools in California – Plan Ahead for School Year 2013/14

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German Schools in CALifornia – Send in your Application 

As the new year kicks off many schools are starting their application processes or are already in the midst of it. Language Immersion Schools are very sought after these days and its advisable to send in your application as soon as possible, or at least get your name on the waiting list.  If you have in mind for your child to attend a German language immersion school make sure you find out if there is a separate application procedure for native speakers.

At some immersion schools native speakers might have a slight advantage and a better chance to get a space since the school needs to have a certain percentage of  native speakers to offer a well-functioning language immersion program.

Apart from January’s application season many schools host also open houses for parents and students to check out their program and to see if it’s the right choice for them.

A Language Magnet School in Glendale

It’s nice to see that some parent groups are really active out there and engaged to keep German language programs going. One of these schools that can call itself lucky to have such an engaged parent volunteer body is the Franklin Magnet School in Glendale.

Franklin Magnet School – The International Foreign Language Academy of25 Glendale is offering several language immersion programs, German is one of them. Before the holidays the school had the honor of  German Deputy Consul General Stefan Biedermann visiting the students and presenting them with a check of nearly $6000 to support the German language program.

Anyone who is interested in applying to Franklin Magnet School’s immersion program is advised to send in applications immediately. The cut off date is January 25 at 4:30pm.

IF YOUR CHILD SPEAKS GERMAN, SCHEDULE A TIME FOR THE EXAM! WHERE: GUSD Magnet Office at 223 N. Jackson St., Glendale, CA 91206, PH:(818) 241-3111 ext 649.

For more information on the school and the application process see the following links:
Main GUSD Magnet Page: gusdelementarymagnet.org
Direct link to the application page: gusdmagnetandflag.com
Applications MUST be RECEIVED by the Glendale Unified School District (GUSD)  by January 25 at 4:30 p.m. !

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California’s Southland

Orange County International Academy  (OCI Academy) in Ladera Ranch has been introduced in our previous article on German Schools in CA. The school opened its doors not too long ago, and because of the high demand in its various immersion programs established a popular German immersion program in South County for grades Pre-K to K.

On January 7th  and 12th, 2013 from 10pm-1pm  OCI Academy’s Open House invites parents and students to check out the school and its academic program. Parents can meet the teachers, find out more about the curriculum and tour the school.  For questions please call the school at (949)-545-7487

The Albert Einstein Academies in San Diego had announced that the lottery process for applying to their school’s K – 8 grade has already started. The application deadline for K-5 is Feb 28, 2013 but for grades 6-8 it is already Jan 31, 2013. More information about the application procedure can be found at www.aeacs.org . Middle school has its new separate website at http://aeacms.org

Northern California Schools

GISSV – German International School of Silicon Valley offering a bilingual education from Preschool to University opened up a new campus in November 2012. The historic Hillside School of Berkeley became the school’s 3rd campus in the San Francisco Area. GISSV, which is accredited by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges” (WASC), offers the German International Abitur (DIAP), and the CA High School Diploma, which qualifies students for acceptance into European and American universities.

noname“The GISSV Berkeley campus, currently housing a mixed-age Kindergarten and grades 1 through 5, to be extended through grade 8 over time, is honored to make its permanent East Bay home in Berkeley.” The Grand Opening  Ceremonies were quite impressive with theGISSV Orchestra, performing “Music for the Royal Fireworks” by George Frideric Handel.

The Following Open House Dates for GISSV are offered:
Berkeley Campus, Preschool and Grades K-6
Upcoming Open House:
January 12, 2013 – 11am to 1pm
San Francisco Campus, Grades K-3
Group School Tours:
Every Tuesday from 9:30am to 10:30am during our enrollment season. Please contact admissions@gissv.org to register (registration required).
Upcoming tour dates for 2012/2013:
January 8 / January 15
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The German American International Schools (GAIS), another German immersion School in Silicon Valley which offers preschool through 8th grade,  has an information night on all sections of the school on January 8th at 8pm . The deadline to apply to the German American International School is already on Jan 14, 2013 (for new students only). To read their latest news, check out their online magazine .   

 
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It’s Time for School – German Preschools in California

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As my older son is preparing to going back to university and all of us are getting ready for our last trip this summer to drop him off in northern California, I realize another summer has come to an end!   It’s ‘Back to School‘ for so many children in California! While my eight year old still has a few weeks left to enjoy the beaches before his new school year starts, many California school districts are starting their new school year already this week.

For many students a new year just means moving up to a higher grade, but for some of the youngest ones it means starting a completely new stage of life as they prepare for their first day of elementary school!

This made us take a look at some of the German preschools & Kindergarten available in California.

Last year we had introduced BAKS, the Bay Area Kinderstube with an interview of its director Sybille Cohen. It is a full immersion German language preschool that started out as a parent initiative in 1994 and became a private preschool in 1997. BAKS is a very charming pre-school in a quiet neighborhood in Albany right next to Berkeley. It is the perfect place to send your little ones to slowly ease them into a new way of life – the life of a student. The school feels like a home away from home with an inviting playground and yard where the children grow plants and have a lot of space to run around. At BAKS children enjoy a lot of different activities while ‘living the German language’ through reading, singing, doing arts, nature explorations and also cooking and baking together with the teachers. Since last year the children are even offered martial art lessons and yoga. BAKS is for children 2.5  to 5 years old. Many children who have started at BAKS continue their German school education at the Berkeley campus of the GISSV (German International Schools of Silicon Valley).

BAKS has grown very popular over the last few years and it is advisable to put your name on the waiting list early on.

Across the Bay one can find three German immersion pre-schools

One is KinderHaus right in San Francisco. Similar to BAKS it is a smaller preschool but is run as a parent co-op. KinderHaus, a German international preschool, started out in 2005 and is located in the heart of the Mission District. The school follows the Piaget’s approach to childhood eduction. “This developmentally appropriate program is based on children’s intellectual, social, and physical needs and designed to encourage child-initiated learning activities within a supportive environment.” (Kinderhaus) . To learn more about KinderHaus visit them at their next Open House on Saturday October 15th from 10:00am – 12:00pm.

The other two preschools are part of the two international schools, which are both located in Silicon Valley. One in Mountain View , the other in Menlo Park.

The German International School of Silicon Valley (GISSV) has campuses in 3 different locations. Bilingual preschool programs are offered at both, the Mountain View and the Berkeley campuses, but only the main campus in Mountain View features the programs preschool through High School (GISSV is the only school offering a High School Diploma as well as the German Abitur on the West Coast). “The language concept of the GISSV Kindergarten and Preschool is based on the Principle of the Dual Immersion Method… [This ] offers the children an effortless, natural language acquisition in both languages.” (GISSV website)

The German American International School in Menlo Park offers a preschool and the grades 1 through 8. While GISSV’s focus lays on a dual immersion program, GAIS concentrates on a German language immersion program . The school is a certified IB (International Baccalaureate)  school offering the “Primary Years IB programme” from preschool on. “The content of our academic curriculum from preschool trough grade 8 compares to the California, German, and Swiss standards.” (GAIS website)

Preschools in Los Angeles County 

Going south we find two preschools with German language immersion programs.  Tivoli Rainbow Garden Preschool is a small quaint preschool with a very central location in L.A. The school has a daily program for up to 12 children in a mixed age group from 2 1/2 years old to Kindergarten age. Kigala Preschool in Santa Monica on the other hand is a much bigger preschool in comparison offering children not only German language immersion but also Spanish immersion programs. Parents can enroll their potty trained toddlers in morning, afternoon, and also full day sessions.

German Preschools beyond Los Angeles

As we move more south along the coast it seems German schools have become more scarce. Orange County for example has no dedicated German language immersion preschools or elementary schools despite a quite extensive local German community. The closest one with some German infused education is Anneliese School with its three campuses in Laguna Beach. Here children are exposed to a variety of languages from preschool on and receive formalized instruction in both, German and Spanish, from Kindergarten through sixth grade.

A fairly new school in Orange County that we just have learned about is OCI Academy (Orange County International Academy) in Ladera Ranch, which offers language immersion programs for children ages 2-9 in six different languages including German.

San Diego as our last destination on our search for German preschools has one full German language immersion preschool called Die Rasselbande. Founded in 2003 with only 12 children the school has grown into serving over 80 students to date. There are five preschool classes grouped by age and one mixed age class to choose from. The school follows a play-based program that nurtures the whole child. The language during school operation (9am-2pm) is exclusively German. Many children who went through the program of ‘Die Rasselbande’ continue their German school education at the Albert Einstein Academies, a German immersion elementary school (K-8) that CaliforniaGermans had portrayed in July.

‘Schultüten’ – Following a German tradition

A Geman tradition is to celebrate your child’s first day of elementary school with a ‘Schultüte’ . This day marks the transition from playful preschool days into the structured life of elementary school education and beyond.

CaliforniaGermans wants to celebrate this special day with you and teamed up with KinderCone, the first company to introduce this German tradition to America through a line of custom designed Schultüten called KinderCones.

Check out CaliforniaGermans Facebook page to find out how you can win one of three KinderCone First Grade Editions sponsored by KinderCone.

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