German kindergartners learn English

Since September, a group of 25 German kindergarten children have benefited from a new English teaching project initiated by the state of Rheinland-Pfalz, the city of Kaiserslautern and the KMC.

Every day, 2- to 6-year-old children of the municipal kindergarten in Dansenberg, called Villa Winzig, learn English. Kindergarten teacher Christine Dodd, a British native, teaches them the foreign language in a playful way.

“I mainly talk English to the kids and with the help of items and images I point to, they understand,” Mrs. Dodd said. “When they talk to me in German, I repeat what they said in English. This seems to work.”

Mrs. Dodd was hired by the state to work this new program in the KMC, and Gregor Schulte of the Ministry of the Interior, and the project initiator for the state of Rheinland-Pfalz is responsible for military matters.

“I just had the idea to get a program started away from military to social matters – preferably something children can benefit from,” Mr. Schulte said. The state of Rheinland-Pfalz supports the idea for German children to learn the language of their American neighbors in their own surroundings in the KMC.

“Nowadays students cannot get started in a job without knowing any English, and kindergarten children pick up a foreign language a lot easier,” Mr. Schulte said.

The University of Kaiserslautern provides the academic supervision of the project.

“Scientists think that children being raised with two languages have the ability to think better logically,” said Elisabeth Lindemer, head of the kindergarten. “By the end of this three-year project we might be able to show that this is true.”

The agreement was originally signed by the KMC in June to support the German-American education program, and Brig. Gen. Mark Dillon, 86th Airlift Wing and KMC commander, continues to support the bilingual project.

“We have a wonderful relationship with the Kaiserslautern community and the state of Rheinland-Pfalz, and this project is another good example of fostering German-American friendship,” General Dillon said. “We look forward to the continued success of this program.”

Mrs. Lindemer and Mrs. Dodd already talked to representatives of the Vogelweh and Ramstein child care centers about expanding the opportunities.

“We all are interested in giving the children the opportunity to meet each other and do fun things together such as hikes or fests,” Mrs. Lindemer said. “We want to alleviate the kids’ timidity in speaking a foreign language.”

From the very beginning, parents liked the idea of teaching another language to their children.

“They see how relaxed the kids handle a second language and want to get involved,” Mrs. Dodd said. “One American mother with a child in our group came out on Independence Day to explain the flag and history of the American flag. The kids loved it.”

Mr. Schulte is hoping that more contacts between American and German children and their parents can get established.

“We want Germans to get to know the American culture and way of life and vice versa and thus create life-long friendships,” he said.

Those with ideas for common projects or interested in getting involved should call Mr. Schulte at 06131-163238 or e-mail Gregor.Schulte@ism.rlp.de.