All about school and childcare

Nursery and kindergarten: the first formative years

Benefits for children:

Kindergarten time is formative for children: many come here into intensive contact with peers for the first time, learn to assert themselves in a group without their parents and further develop their personality and interests. Not least, kindergarten is an optimal preparation for school life. Therefore it is natural for most parents to send their child to kindergarten at the age of three.

Demand for nursery care is growing:

There is an increasing need for care for toddlers as well: in recent years crèche care in Germany has been massively expanded. Here necessity is more in the foreground than the pedagogical aspect. Many parents simply cannot afford to stay at home with a child for three years. Parents often do not make the decision for a crèche or a kindergarten lightly. After all, there are big differences both in pedagogical concept and in size, costs and the care hours offered.

Kita or kindergarten?

The term Kindertagesstätte (Kita) emerged with full-day care offers and originally served to distinguish from conventional kindergartens that offered care until midday. By now the terms Kita and kindergarten are largely used synonymously. Thus there are also children in Kita groups who are picked up at midday, and many institutions that call themselves kindergartens also offer full-day care.

When to start crèche and daycare?

Most children enter crèche at about one year at the end of regular parental leave. Many crèches also take babies at six months or even earlier. Kindergarten age starts at three years; however most Kitas only accept new children at the start of a new school year, when a cohort begins school and places become available. Crèche children usually have no problems settling into the Kita; often crèche and Kita are even combined in a single institution, so the environment is already familiar.

What should I pay attention to when choosing a facility?

You get the best impression if you observe daily life in crèche and Kita. Visit several institutions and pay attention not only to facilities and support programs, but also to the seemingly minor details: what is the noise level? What impression do the children being cared for give? How do the educators interact with each other? Take your child along to these visits, because you'll notice where they feel comfortable straight away.

Alternative forms of childcare

Especially in cities, the range of full-day childcare offers is now fairly well developed. But if there is no place in a crèche or all-day school available, or if parents prefer family-oriented care, there are a number of alternative forms of care. Whether out of pure necessity or for reasons of conviction. To ensure children and parents feel comfortable with the chosen care, you should inform yourselves well, visit as many different institutions as possible and weigh up the advantages and disadvantages. Provided there is mutual trust and a certain cooperation between parents and caregivers, an alternative form of care can indeed be beneficial for a child.

What alternative forms of care are there besides crèche, Kita and all-day school?

Grandparents:

Care by grandparents offers many advantages. On the one hand it is the most cost-effective option; on the other hand children are cared for one-to-one by a familiar person. For older people, however, daily childcare can be a significant burden. At the same time familial closeness can quickly lead to conflicts over parenting.

After-school club:

After-school clubs offer afternoon care after school lessons, but are usually independent from the school and must be paid for by the parents. There is homework supervision and the opportunity for free play as well as other activity offers. The quality of club care varies, as does the pedagogical concept.

Childminder/day-care provider:

Daycare providers are trained by the state and may be subsidized if the parents have a low income. A maximum of five children from newborn to school age may be cared for; the daycare providers decide on the care concept themselves. The biggest advantage is the very family-like care at home, but there are hardly any standards, so the quality of care varies greatly.

Grandparents-for-hire:

Various agencies mediate grandmas-for-hire and grandpas-for-hire to families who do not have their own grandparents or whose grandparents live far away. When and how often the hired grandparents are with the family is agreed individually; however, the concept is not designed as a permanent care solution.

Starting school – the start of the "seriousness of life"?

Starting school is without question one of the most important events in a child's life – many can hardly wait for the first day. Fortunately no schoolchild needs to fear the start of the 'seriousness of life', because primary school concepts today are much better tailored to the needs and learning behaviour of children than a few years ago. Nevertheless parents can do a lot to make the start easier for their child and prepare them for school life.

Preparing for school:

Many kindergartens actively prepare children for starting school, e.g. with preschool programs, language support and road safety education. As parents you can prepare your child by visiting the school together, learning the route to school and generally making sure that your child learns to tackle things independently.

Getting school supplies:

When choosing the school backpack and the pencil case your child should be able to have a say, after all these items will accompany them for several years. For notebooks, pens and other school supplies there are usually specifications for the respective subjects. Normally you will be handed a list at enrollment or at the first parents' evening.

What should go in the school cone?

The school cone is the highlight of starting school, whether homemade or store-bought. It should not be too big or too heavy, and should be brightly and variedly filled. Besides the obligatory sweets, pencils or craft supplies, small toys or first books for independent reading also find a place in the school cone.

Getting through school days without stress

With starting school your child not only begins their education but also a whole new daily routine that they must master largely independently: from the route to school to the curriculum, contact with new classmates, homework and the organisation of school supplies, many challenges await. Of course you can support your child and provide help in school life, but the more tasks they can handle on their own, the more confident they will be in coping with school in the future.

How to tackle challenges in school life together

Prepare your child for the route to school, practice the route together and make sure they know who to turn to if there are problems.
Pack the <Link> together every evening and remove all unnecessary school items.
Agree on fixed homework times so there are no arguments.
If your child cannot do their homework alone, help them, for example, with small prompts to think.
Try to find a system for their school things with your child so they can organise themselves independently.

Waldorf schools & Co. – what do alternative school concepts offer?

The standard school concept does not convince all parents. Although conventional schools also differ in their pedagogical approaches, many parents want different learning and development focuses for their children. Alternative school concepts such as Waldorf or Montessori pedagogy address exactly this. They support children not only according to the curriculum, but place strong emphasis on creative, practical and social development. Critics often argue that academic education is neglected as a result. It is also indisputable that not every alternative school concept is suitable for every child. We have summarised the most important approaches for you:

Waldorf schoolsaim for holistic education by promoting creative, intellectual, artistic, practical and social skills. There are over 230 privately run Waldorf schools in Germany, where children after 12 years of schooling obtain a Waldorf school qualification that is equivalent to the Realschulabschluss (intermediate school leaving certificate).

Montessori schoolsassume that every child has an inner urge to learn and learns from their own motivation. At around 400 primary and secondary schools nationwide children achieve various qualifications from the Hauptschule leaving certificate up to the Abitur (university entrance qualification). Montessori schools are partly privately and partly state-run.

Jenaplan schoolsview the school as an educational and living space in which students learn responsibly in the four forms of education: work, conversation, play and celebration. Nationwide there are about 40 schools that offer qualifications up to the Abitur.

Freinet schoolsare mostly primary schools and are not widespread in Germany. At the roughly 20 institutions, students influence the lessons and learn largely independently with the support of teachers. In Freinet secondary schools a Hauptschule leaving certificate is generally possible.