WHY GERMAN?
German is spoken by over 100 million people worldwide, primarily in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, and is the most spoken language in the European Union.
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LEARNING GERMAN
Learning German is an exciting and rewarding experience, but it can also be challenging. No doubt, learning a new language takes time, patience, and a willingness. Studies also revealed that German is considered a rather difficult language to learn as a second language. This is not least due to the complex grammar, the system of noun genders and cases.
But with your positive mindset, the right resources, study habits, and support, as well as surrounding yourself with as much German as possible - from books and music to movies and conversations with native speakers - anyone can improve their German skills and achieve their language goals.
Designing a complex German sentence is like creating a piece of art, plus you can invent your own compound words and incorporate them into your beautiful sentence.
HOW LONG WILL IT TAKE?
The amount of time it takes to learn German will depend on several factors.
1. Your Learning Goal
The level of proficiency in German that you aim to achieve will significantly impact how long it takes to learn the language. For example, if you only want to learn basic German to communicate while traveling, you want to be able to order food and ask for directions in German, it may take only a few months. However, if you aim to reach a high level of fluency and want to be able to read, write, and speak German proficiently, it may take several years of consistent effort and practice.
2. The Amount of German Immersion
The amount of immersion in German that you can get will affect the speed at which you learn the language. Immersion can greatly accelerate your learning, as it allows you to practice German in real-life situations and become familiar with the language's nuances and cultural context.
Someone who lives in a German-speaking country or has frequent opportunities to practice speaking and listening to German, will start to learn more naturally through context and repetition without translating back and forth between languages.
For those who don’t live in Germany, there are really good online resources, too. You can check out my MATERIAL & LINKS section to get ideas.
3. Co-relating German Words
Your ability to correlate German words is also crucial. This involves being able to associate German words with their English equivalents or with pictures and situations. If you can find associations between German words and their English equivalents, such as "Haus" with "house", you may find it easier to remember new vocabulary words.
4. Understanding the German Grammar
Grammar is the backbone of any language, and learning German grammar structures is crucial for fluency. If you focus on mastering German grammar structures, such as the German sentence structure, verb conjugations and the German cases, you may progress more quickly toward fluency than if you only focus on vocabulary acquisition.
IN NUMBERS
The Goethe Institut provides a guideline for how many hours of instruction are typically required to reach different levels of proficiency in German. According to their estimates, achieving a B1 level requires completing between 350 and 650 45-minute units of teaching, depending on the learner's previous knowledge and learning needs.
For those aiming for the highest level, which is considered to be C2 with extremely advanced language skills, the Goethe Institut recommends completing at least 1,000 45-minute units of instruction.
It's worth noting that these estimates are just guidelines, and the actual time it takes to achieve proficiency in German will vary depending on the learner's individual circumstances and learning style.
Johann W. Goethe
Frankfurt, Germany
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TEACHING STYLE
Everyone has their unique learning style, pace, and goals. That's why I believe in offering individualised lessons that are tailored to your specific needs and preferences.
Whether you're a beginner or an advanced learner, I will help you achieve your goals and become a confident German speaker. The personalised approach to teaching includes a wide range of methods and materials designed to motivate and engage you while learning. I will work with you to identify the best materials and methods for your learning style and adapt them to your previous knowledge and preferences.
I want to make sure that you enjoy learning and have fun while improving your German language skills.
For me, teaching starts with heart and passion. When we see each individual as a valuable and unique person with their own strengths, we can unlock the inner potential within them. I aim to create an environment of mutual appreciation and understanding, always encouraging communication as a team. I understand that learning is a continuous process, and I am always grateful to learn more myself.
So why not take the first step and start your personalised German lessons with me today?
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My name is Laura Hauser, also known as Lil. I have a passion for teaching and have been teaching for many years. In Frankfurt, Germany, I earned my degree as a professional teacher after years of study and teaching in several schools. I started teaching in traditional classrooms, working with children and teenagers teaching German, Art, Theater, Biology, and Cosmic Education in various schools, including a Montessori school that provided me with many wonderful and precious experiences. The Montessori school system appealed to me because I strongly believe that teaching begins with connecting with the student and understanding their unique needs and strengths. It is essential for creating a positive and effective learning environment. Montessori's approach to education allowed me to work with each student at their own pace, encourage them to take ownership of their learning, and achieve their full potential.
ABOUT ME
However, in 2018, I moved to online teaching, offering German classes to foreigners. I am thrilled about this teaching method because I have the opportunity to meet interesting people from all over the world, and it gives me the freedom to travel to different countries. Since then, I have lived in Singapore, Ireland, the US, Mexico, and Australia.
I'm very interested in getting to know you and learning about your background and experiences. So I’m looking forward to meeting you! Let's get to know each other and start your German language journey together!
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"Laura is a truly excellent teacher - extremely fun and friendly as well as thorough in ensuring you understand the concepts correctly. I learn so much from her with each lesson and I am so happy that I found her. I cannot recommend her enough!!"
- Alisa, student from the USA
"Having German lessons with Laura is a delight! She has an instinctively brilliant feel for German and can explain anything you need to know about the language in a trice. (Yip! Look that one up, everybody!) Her explanations of alternative uses of certain German expressions are both illuminating and enlightening! Herrvoragende Unterrichtsstunde!!!"
- Nick, student from England
"Awesome class, awesome teacher !!! I had a great time and we spoke a lot in German even though it had been awhile since I had talked in German. She was very patient and helped me a lot :)"
- Marion, student from France
"She was very well prepared, very professional and helpful. I like the way she organized the lesson, in order to have a convenient structure. Highly recommended ;)"
- Sebastian, student from Chile
“Eine tolle neue Deutschstunde. Es ist so schön, mit Laura zu reden und sie gibt immer so nützliche Kommentare, die sie in unser Google-Dokument schreibt. Dieses Dokument ist Wunderbar strukturiert, mit Korrekturen und Vokabellisten. Sie hat auch eine Menge zusätzliches Material hinzugefügt, das für mein Deutschlernen sehr nützlich ist, z.B. Regeln für den deutschen Satzbau, Regeln für Artikel, ... Ich hatte als Hausaufgabe für heute einen Text über Weihnachtstraditionen geschrieben und sie hat ihn während der Stunde für mich korrigiert. Ich freue mich sehr auf unsere nächste Stunde!”
- Øivind, student from Norway
"Laura is the best teacher! All lessons have been incredibly fun and funny with her. I'm learning heaps! Thanks Laura :)"
- James, student from New Zealand
"I had another incredible lesson with Laura! We had a wonderful discussion about Goethe’s Faust. With each lesson I have with Laura I gain more confidence in speaking German. She is a gifted teacher!"
- Neil, student from the USA
"I was taken aback as I saw Laura tirelessly transcribing my sentences and adding all the necessary corrections to each. She persisted to the very end of our lesson. I found it flattering that she would go to such lengths to reformulate my sentences with sound grammar, collocations and word usage. I'm grateful I bumped into her in my endeavour to learn German."
- Sam, student from Canada
"Ausgezeichnete Lektion! Laura ist eine engagierte Lehrerin! Jede Lektion wurde sehr gut vorbereitet und nahtlos geliefert. Wir haben heute einige Übungen zu trennbaren Verben und Wortreihenfolge gemacht. Ich habe viel gelernt! Danke schön, Laura!"
- Rebecca, student from China
"Laura ha sido una profesora muy atenta y muy perfeccionista. He aprendido mucho con ella. Me ha corregido en muchas cosas que yo mismo reconozco que fallo y espero tener mas clases con ella."
- Antonio, student from Spain
"Super fun lesson, she is also attentive, great at noting and correcting the phrases in a shared document and providing better alternatives, so you can revise afterwards. Laura ist sehr nett und sie lässt dich frei ausdrücken."
- Francisco, student from Brazil
"Brilliant first lesson, immensely organised and well-structured to introduce the four cases. I look forward to having more classes in the future."
- Omair, student from Pakistan
"Super friendly and welcoming, Laura knows how engage a student of any age. She uses professional materials and structures her lessons incredibly well. Will be definitely booking more lessons with her, and highly recommend!"
- Julia, student from the USA
“That was really brilliant, Laura!!! I love the way you let me ramble on, but then come back with such brilliant corrections in the lesson document!!! I found the simple past verbs particularly useful, and, when I tell the story again quickly, in the next class, I'll try to use all the verbs you wrote for me!!! It'll be a good exercise in memory to see if I've really learnt them or not!!! We've still got the elephant picture to talk about in the next lesson, too!!! Just for good measure, I've inserted a quote about "Chaos Theory" in to your document and I've given you a link to Colonel Hathy's March from Jungle Book in the "Meaning of Life Section!!!!"”
- Nick, student from England
"Another fantastic lesson with Laura! She's so much fun, the time just flies. She also is super attentive and is a fantastic listener even while writing down and taking notes on my mistakes...really impressive."
- Paul, student from the USA
"Laura was lovely as a teacher! She gave me an extensive document which has all the information I need to take away in-between lessons. She was also happy to translate any sentence I wished so that I can use it in everyday conversation."
- Lyra, student from the Philippines
"Although it was my first time with Laura, she already gave me tons of things to learn! She wrote down almost everything i spoke wrongly and the correction (unfortunately not all the teachers do this). I find it very helpful. Thanks!"
- Yujin, student from South Korea
"I did a trial lesson with Laura and clearly she knows what she is doing and has everything ready to go before the class. Very professional I enjoyed having a lesson with her that I am already booking my next lesson. Highly recommend!"
- Michelle, student from the USA
"Laura goes above and beyond during her lessons with transcriptions and grammar feedback. The conversations are always fun, interesting, and easy going. I would recommend booking a lesson with her right away :)"
- Galen, student from the USA
"I had a great lesson with Laura! She was patient, supportive and able to answer all my questions. Highly recommend her."
- Ani, student from Afghanistan
“Laura is really good in teaching German, she was friendly and very patient with me even when i was making mistakes and she didn't hesitate to stop me and correct me, which is everything i need to improve my German skills. She gave me some homework to help me with my Grammar, I cannot ask for a better German teacher. Thanks Laura.”
- Sanjay, student from India
"Excellent teacher. Despite I never having contact with the german language before, she was very patient. I will take classes again."
- Kamila, student from Brazil
"Laura is a professional and friendly teacher, and her lessons are effective, enjoyable, and student-centered. Her positive teaching style, detailed feedback, and great resources are really helping me improve my German!"
- Kevin, student from the USA
"I had another awesome lesson with Laura! I read a poem, and we had an excellent discussion about it. Laura amazes me by how much she can teach me in a lesson!"
- Neil, student from the USA
"Was very good , it was very beneficial for me and I like the way of teaching which it is exactly what I was looking for."
- Mehrzad, student from Iran
"I am very happy with my first lesson with Laura. She is an excellent teacher, very supportive and knowledgeable. Danke schön!!"
- Karolina from Poland
"Laura is an excellent teacher - she is thorough with explanations and kind, making learning a breeze. Everything is customizable to your particular needs, interests, and learning style. Highly, highly recommend!"
- Alisa, student from the USA
"Another great lesson. I appreciate her detail and patience. She expresses the most effective and efficient way to say something- something I need to improve on. I highly recommend her teaching. Thanks Laura."
- Andy, student from the USA
"She is a very good teacher. Have learned and practiced a lot in one hour lesson. Thank you Laura!"
- Cindy, student from Singapore
"I have no words. Just the loveliest chat/lesson ☺️ Thank you!"
- Renatka, student from Slovakia
"Laura is a very nice and friendly person, her method of teaching is easy to understand, She put herself on the student side, therefore, she understood which lesson she needs to teach and improve the student knowledge, especially with German languages. Very recommended teacher!"
- Yudrah, student from Indonesia
