German education at school, how did you manage?

[Anonymous]

Although it would be weird you could go to Bacj to School Night at the high schools (don’t do this at the ESs) and just go to hear the spiels of the German teachers and a few other classes. Not disruptive and it’s open already for the parents coming in for BTSN.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Hi, I know this post is from 2023, but I am also asking for similar advice but my situation is a bit different. My husband is German but I am American. So we did not expose the kids to German until ages 9/10. They currently have a German tutor but we are looking to move to NOVA and found that really only Fairfax County has German AP or IB courses.

We are narrowing our search down to these very same schools that were mentioned in the original post. I was wondering now that some time has passed if anyone has more experience with the programs.

I was told to meet with the teachers and tour the schools which I plan on doing, but if there is any additional tips or schools out there that we overlooked, please let me know.

We are considering Orange Hunt, Irving Middle, West Springfield and Robinson Secondary School.

Thanks in advance.

OHES has a German vibe with varying events based in German traditions and signs in German. You hear teachers speaking in German in the halls as well. It’s not like being in Germany but it’s more exposure than you will get anywhere else. You can have a tour- just call ahead and find a time that works. There’s a couple houses for sale in walking distance right now.

[Anonymous]

Like a few other DC- area families, we made a massive, long-term investment of time and money on this goal.

Beginning in kindergarten, every Saturday morning during the school year, we paid for both children to attend the Saturday language school at the German School in Potomac, MD.

It meant giving up so many weekend activities, trips, a chance to rest, etc. along with Sunday school at church, it also meant the kids were in school for 7 days per week. Those are the downsides.

The upsides were (IMO) worth it.

- both kids scored a “3” on the FCPS World Language Exam in middle school, on the first try. A score of 3 is recognized by FCPS as the equivalent of 3 years of public foreign language instruction. Meaning: both kids could have opted-out of all HS language instruction and taken other courses. One child opted to pursue a 3rd language through the AP level.

- both kids have passed the DSD-1; our older child already passed the DSD-2. Along with citizenship, passage of the DSD-2 means they can directly enter a Germany university (which would cost us nothing). Good ROI (if they opt for uni in Germany).

[Anonymous]

Meant to add: there are kids from VA, md and dc

[Anonymous]

PP, on the off chance this is helpful, I have kids at Robinson (MS and HS) taking other languages but both have multiple friends taking German who love it. I’ve honestly been kind of surprised/confused by its popularity. HS kid has friends at both RSS and WSHS who did German immersion at OH, though only one of them has a German parent, fwiw.

[Anonymous]

Not sure of the details - there is a "German Base" or Liasson Office in Reston, VA. I took German at Herndon HS and I would be in movie theaters and could follow the teens behind me speaking in German. The Sterling DMV had a number of Germans getting their Driver's License - I could understand them a bit as well.

You might want to reach out to the office and just see where the Base people live? Herndon Germans blend easily since their English is very fluent.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not sure of the details - there is a "German Base" or Liasson Office in Reston, VA. I took German at Herndon HS and I would be in movie theaters and could follow the teens behind me speaking in German. The Sterling DMV had a number of Germans getting their Driver's License - I could understand them a bit as well.

You might want to reach out to the office and just see where the Base people live? Herndon Germans blend easily since their English is very fluent.

Herndon and Reston mainly with some of the higher ranking officers living in McLean. I’m German and hear it a lot at the Lidl in McLean, haha. We sent our sons to the German School in Potomac up until high school.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Not sure of the details - there is a "German Base" or Liasson Office in Reston, VA. I took German at Herndon HS and I would be in movie theaters and could follow the teens behind me speaking in German. The Sterling DMV had a number of Germans getting their Driver's License - I could understand them a bit as well.

You might want to reach out to the office and just see where the Base people live? Herndon Germans blend easily since their English is very fluent.

Reston is home to the Verband der Bundeswehr. There is also a sizable Luftwaffe presence @ Dulles. These are in addition to the consulate downtown. Plus there is the Goethe Institut.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I talked to the Realator about this and you are likely right, I won’t be able to meet the teachers before we enroll. But I hope I can at least tour the school before we make our decision. Thanks for your input.

It's highly unlikely you can tour the school either. These schools are massive - OHES has around 900 kids. It would be disruptive to give that many tours, so schools don't give any. If you want that kind of experience, you need to look at private schools, not public. Or maybe at a much smaller public district elsewhere in the country.

You can probably talk to someone in the Immersion office about that program. I'd start there.

Fwiw, OHES is a very run-of-the-mill FCPS school, except that the principal really leans into the German and military kids identity. Some people we know like the immersion program, some didn't. It's definitely a school within the school situation, with most people I've talked to seeing it as a way to access a better peer group (or at least more dedicated parental peers). The program tends to narrow considerably by the upper grades, in part because OHES is one of the few schools that still doesn't offer local full time advanced placement.

This. Pros: involved parents- many families with at least SAHM, sometimes two SAHP due to early military retirement; great school for community if you are military connected or active duty; a few great teachers particularly in upper grades and specials. Lovely, active PTA. Cons: not great for academics. no AAP IV, level 3 pullout is very sub par compared to programs across the county; high teacher turnover and some others who are passing time to hit 30; principal is very uninvolved and disconnected, seems to be checking the box for a paycheck. If your kid is not military they will undoubtedly feel like second class citizens at some point - something like 60-70 percent of school is military connected and celebrating the military is a big part of the school’s identity and target culture. One big complaint of native German speaking family in the program- German “special” is required, even of fluent German speaking students. This means spending one hour a week doing very basic German work, essentially a waste of time. My kids dreaded this “special”.

Maybe a pro, maybe a con: due to the high number of military families, OHES does not have to deal with many of the socioeconomic challenges in other public schools. Perhaps this is what PP meant by people attending for peer group. But, also much less diversity.

If OHES is your base school and you want German, okay, but personally wouldn’t seek it out.

[Anonymous]

I would just live near the German School of Potomac and send them there.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would just live near the German School of Potomac and send them there.

This

[Anonymous]

We are a family that made this decision in 2024. We basically wound up looking in both areas for houses and liked one that happened to be right by Orange Hunt. We could have gone either way, although we slightly preferred Orange Hunt. So far, we are happy with Orange Hunt, although in the early grades at least, the language level is pretty mild.

A few additional considerations:
- The German International School (GIS) classes often get very small by the time kids get to high school - around 20 kids a grade. Many families move back to Germany or kids drop out to participate in high school activities.
- House prices in Potomac or even further out are at minimum $400K+ more than around Orange Hunt. If you then add tuition for 2-3 kids, it is quite a bit of difference.
- The weekend GIS program does not allow you to drop your kids off, instead there is a shuttle pickup.
- Most Orange Hunt Immersion classes have a good number with a parent who speaks German at home; however, many do not and the instruction level reflects this. Most kids with a German parent comprehend German, but only reluctantly speak it.
- At Orange Hunt, if your kid does well in school and testing, you will have to debate staying in the program or sending them to Sangster.

[Anonymous]

Robinson is as described previously. There are two German teachers (both amazing) and they do try to follow their group once they start IB. There are very few AP options at Robinson-AB and BC calculus, Comp Gov, and statistics.

[Anonymous]

Consider living instead in Potomac and paying for the German School that is there. In this situation, a public/state school is not better -- due to language - and the prospective desire to sit the Abitur.