Welcome
Resources for Teachers
German teachers in the USA help foster the future of German-American understanding. The German Embassy and its partners in the German consulates, Goethe-Institute, AATG, and ZfA, among others, assist the German-as-a-foreign-language community with diverse initiatives.
From AATG to ZfA, we help you teach DaF!
For educators teaching Deutsch als Fremdsprache (DaF, German as a foreign language) in the USA, a robust support network of myriad professional development opportunities, advocacy assistance, student and teacher exchange programs, innovative engagement concepts, and informational offerings is there to help.
Teaching German
The Goethe-Institut is the world's leading provider of professional development for German teachers – in the USA, in Germany or via distance learning. The GI offers more than 1,000 professional development courses for German teachers all over the world and online; provides teaching and learning materials, as well as interesting ideas for your lessons; organizes cultural events and competitions to help you motivate your students and make learning German more fun; offers professional development scholarships, counseling services, and advocacy resources; und noch viel mehr! Find out about the Goethe-Institut’s diverse offerings today!
Goethe-Institut USA: Teaching German
Goethe-Institut/AATG Advocacy Toolkit
American Association of Teachers of German
With members in all 50 states and nearly 20 countries, the American Association of Teachers of German is the only individual membership organization in the United States dedicated to the teaching of the language, literature and culture of the German-speaking countries. The AATG has 60 local chapters which support a variety of local projects with activities focused on public relations, professional development, and teacher and student immersion. Members represent elementary, middle-junior high school, high school, college/university, community colleges, and heritage language school teachers. Founded in 1926, AATG believes that bringing the language, literature, and cultures of the German speaking world to all Americans is a vital humanistic endeavor, which serves an essential national interest.
American Association of Teachers of German
German American Partnership Program
GAPP, Inc. is dedicated to the initiation and development of student exchange programs between the United States and Germany, inspiring intercultural understanding, promoting German language instruction and motivating personal friendships. GAPP is one of very few exchange programs based on long-term, sustainable partnerships which are not only between students, but between teachers, administrators, schools, and communities. GAPP is the largest and most successful bilateral student exchange program of the US with any other country. GAPP is supported by the German Foreign Office as well as The U.S. State Department.
German American Partnership Program
In their free time, your students listen to music, watch movies, play sports. Why not work with teaching materials that focus on German music, film and soccer? Step into German provides you with a great variety of videos, podcasts and worksheets that you can use in class without much preparation time and that are bound to capture your students’ attention.
The Transatlantic Outreach Program (TOP)
In the spirit of “breaking down walls of the mind” and promoting “classrooms that span continents,” the public / private partnership Transatlantic Outreach Program aims to promote education about modern Germany, to encourage cross-cultural dialogue between North American and German classrooms, and to provide the opportunity for social studies educators, STEM educators, and decision makers to experience Germany in person.
Modeled after the successful “Rent an American” program started in Tübingen in 2007, German for Hire brings students from Germany enrolled at an American university to the classrooms of American high school students curious about modern-day Germany in these metropolitan areas: San Francisco, Sacramento, Los Angeles, Chicago, Boston, New York, and Washington, DC.
Subscribe to Germany in Class!
With bi-monthly updates on German language news and free lesson plans, Germany in Class is a great classroom resource. We keep German and social studies teachers as well as study abroad advisors informed about study abroad opportunities, scholarships and contests.