Here are many German words for foreign parents that you won’t learn in German beginner-level classes (A1-A2)! As a foreign parent in Germany, you’ll need to know these words soon after moving to Germany.
We’ve been learning German since before we moved here in February of 2021 from the USA. But we’ve noticed that many of the words we’ve needed as parents of four kids, we didn’t learn in our A1 and A2 (beginner) level courses! So here are the German words for parents we learned through immersion.
German Words for Foreign Parents
In the video, we mention more than a dozen words. Here in this post, I’ll highlight a few of them for you so you can get a good idea of what you need to know as a foreign parent in Germany.
German Words for School
1 – the pencil case or pencil case
This is a next-level German pencil case! It holds nearly all of a child’s school supplies, from scissors to rulers, markers, colored pencils, erasers, sharpeners, and more.
2 – the daycare center, the crèche, and the kindergarten
Kita and crèche are daycares in Germany. Kindergarten is for children ages 3-6 and is more similar to preschool in the USA. Read more about Kindergarten in Germany here.
3 – the preschool and the preschool child
Preschool is the last year of German kindergarten and is similar to American kindergarten. It is the year before a child attends elementary school and starts the first grade.
German Words for Illness
1 – cold, cough, runny nose
The cold, the cough, and to sniff.
2 – the sick note
The notification of illness. When your child is sick, you must notify the school BEFORE school starts with a “sick note.”
3 – the pediatrician, the dentist
The pediatrician and the dentist (both male). The female versions are the pediatrician, the dentist.
German Words for Money
1 – pocket money
Literally translated, this means pocket money. Many Germans use it to refer to a child’s allowance money.
2 – child benefit
This refers to the monthly child allowance that the German government provides for each and every child. Parents receive about $219 a month per child! Learn more about that here.
German Words for Outdoor Activities and Playtime
1 – Be careful! Danger! Slow!
While you’re out riding with your kids, you may hear this from other adults or need to use one of these worlds yourself! They mean, Watch Out! Danger! and Slow down!
2 – the children’s bike trailer
This is one of our favorite German words and gadgets! It’s a wagon that holds a child (and groceries). You attach it to a bicycle and pull it around town.
3 – the playground
The playground – something every parent needs to keep their sanity!
4 – the sunscreen
This is sun cream, or sunscreen, as we say in the US. Kindergartens and schools might ask for you to provide this.
5 – the swimming pool
Nearly every district and even many villages have their own public swimming pool in Germany. And they can really be incredible!
6 – A scoop of ice cream, please!
“One scoop of ice cream, please!” Kids need to know this phrase if they want to go to their local ice cream shop in town. Make sure to bring along some “pocket money.”
German Words for Foreign Parents – Holidays and Outdoor Clothing
Then we also have a whole set of words just for German holidays, which can be quite different from American ones. And for outdoor clothing, which we learned the hard way right at the beginning, Germans are serious about outdoor clothing for their kids! See the video to learn these words.