2021/2022 - Weekday Kinderschule

Registration for Pre-K (full and half day), Kindergarten, and 1st Grade

Sept. 1, 2021 - June 15, 2022 (see calendar)

Preschool (3yr-5yr): The preschool program is a play- and project-based program where students have time for open play with their classfriends along with structured projects that incorporate different themes of the seasons. Using a German immersion approach, the children will work on several seasonal or cultural projects during the year and each project will last about 4-6 weeks. The themes are going to be a selection of the following: community, fairy tales, construction (building), culture and traditions, relationships - Who am I, traffic education, food, and life cycles.  All projects will cover science, reading, mathematical concepts, music, art, and crafts, and will be taught in German only. The teachers and children will work on the projects every day and while our teachers have prepared activities beforehand, we are open to incorporate our students' interest and ideas. All Pre-K students who require a nap will have a possibility to sleep during the day.

Kinderschule also nurtures physical well-being, through frequent trips to the playground or walks in the neighborhood (weather permitting) and physical education in the DANK Haus.

Kindergarten - 1st (5yr-7yr): Our K - 1st program is a full-day dual-language program that follows a similar structure to the preschool. However, students will also have English Language Arts and some Mathematics in English following the Illinois State Standards (WIDA and Common Core) as we are a registered non-public school with the Illinois State Board. Our goal is to  ensure that our students acquire the foundations in English reading and writing to successfully participate in an American first grade program. Some mathematical concepts, such as comparing shapes, and object-numbers correspondence, will be taught in German, while other concepts must be taught in English such as counting to 100 by ones and tens. Except for English Language Arts and Mathematics, the students have Social Studies, Science, and PE, yet while we follow the Illinois State Standards, we are teaching these concepts in the German language. After finishing the weekday preschool and kindergarten, we offer a German Saturday school to maintain our students' German.  

Kinderschule also nurtures physical well-being, through frequent trips to the playground or walks in the neighborhood (weather permitting) and physical education in the DANK Haus.

Cost are billed monthly, due on the 1st of the month September through June. Please contact us for alternative payment schedules, we want to work with you to find a solution.

Sibling Discount $250/year for each additional child ($162.50 for half-day students).

The registration includes a $200 non-refundable application fee which will be deducted from the first month's invoice.

Please contact us at kinderschule@dankhaus.com if you would like to schedule a tour or trial class, or if you have any questions or concerns. 

Once registrations are complete, we will reach out to our new class with additional registration information and medical forms.  Please note that priority will be given to current Kinderschule students and siblings, waitlist families, and full-day applicants over half-day applicants.

At our Haus we strive to be respectful and inclusive, and while the German language structure has a rigid binary structure, we are aware of the implications of these norms, and aspire to teach our children a more inclusive way of using these structures. And although there are limitations to what the language allows grammatically, please let us know directly if you have a preferred noun and/or pronoun you and/or your child would like to be addressed with.

*** Payment must be received within 15 minutes of registration to avoid cancelling your enrollment. Please contact us with any questions. ***