7 self-study methods for learning German for free - learning opportunities for children and adults

§ Is it possible to learn German on your own, yourself?

The most preferable way to study the German language is to attend the German language courses, as this would provide an opportunity to communicate, study grammar systematically, and ask the teacher a question any time, if something is unclear. Besides, you would hear the sound of the German speech, and when you make mistakes, you would be corrected, and this, too, is an inherent part of the learning process. However, sometimes the opportunity, time, and money for attendance of such courses are not available, while to learn the German language is necessary – for instance, in order to move to Germany for permanent residence. On this page, we shall highlight many opportunities, available today owing to the Internet, in order to study the German language yourself and for free.

Before discussing the possibility of the German language independent study, here are some tips to help you in the learning process:

• In learning a foreign language, it is important to be interested and set the goals that have to be attained;
• Study not the German language as such, but the German culture as well as this will give you motivation for learning and will help to reach a better command of the German language;
• Stand by guns, even if everything goes on not so well and efficiently as you would like it to be. Do not measure yourself up against the others;
• It is better to have your independent lessons short but regular rather than long but seldom;
• Study comprehensively – listen, read, speak, and learn words;
• Train yourself and have practice. Speak German whenever you have such an opportunity, in groups, do not be afraid of making mistakes;
• Select for yourself appropriate guidebooks, dictionaries, or online courses, which will help you to learn systematically.

§ Where to start learning German

As for today, you don’t need to “reinvent the wheel" in order to learn the German language, as for many years of the work done by many institutes and language schools in Germany the efficient regulations and modes of the German language learning have already been developed and set. The given institutions have already released their experience to the public in the form of guidebooks, textbooks, online courses, and computer software. All that is required of you is interest, perseverance and hard work.

So, before you start learning the German language, it would make sense to familiarize yourself thoroughly with the currently existing opportunities for systematic learning and to select what you like most and what would really be helpful to learn the German language regularly, systematically and comprehensively. On this page, we shall discuss the following options:

• Learning German from traditional textbooks;
• Online courses and lessons;
• Computer and smartphone software;
• Groups in social networks;
• Learning with a tutor.

Apart from the well-selected auxiliary means for learning the German language, it is necessary to think how you could regularly listen to the German speech, read texts in German, build up your vocabulary and train yourself in. Further on here, we shall highlight the available opportunities.

§ Suitable German textbooks and dictionaries in Germany

As our website is meant for those, who live and work in Germany or are just interested in knowing more about this country, we shall tell here, which guidebooks for learning are being used in this country both personally and at courses for group learning. Most of the guidebooks can be purchased on e-commerce websites and auctions, such as eBay or Amazon, as well in Internet bookstores. Besides online bookshops, are as well available in Germany, and over there you can acquire textbooks of the German and English languages in English, although they offer a limited choice.

What German textbooks are used in Germany

In the table below you will find the popular guidebooks for learning, most of which have been approved to be used at free-of-charge state-funded integration courses in Germany.

Read more about the German language proficiency levels on a separate page of our website.

Publishers specializing in the production of textbooks and dictionaries of the German language in Germany

It is impossible to draw a list of all existing textbooks of the German language; besides, there are multiple specialized textbooks, such as for adults, for children, for professional purposes, for beginners and for profound learning, etc. On the publishers’ web-pages you can find detailed lists of guidebooks being offered for sale, and even a convenient service for selection of textbooks, dictionaries and other guidebooks. Below you will find a list of links to the popular publishers of textbooks on the German language in Germany:

• Klett
• Schubert
• Cornelsen
• Hueber
• Hempen
• Langenscheidt
• Pons
• Books on demand
• Mari Aradgoli

Some dictionaries of the German language used in Germany

It is impossible to imagine learning the German language without a good dictionary. Such dictionary is helpful not only for understanding the words meaning and spelling, but also for building up the learner’s vocabulary. The online or smartphone dictionaries also provide an opportunity to know the correct pronunciation of words and offer multiple examples. The list of popular dictionaries, where the first 3 are available both in the printed-book form and in the online version, is offered below.

• Langenscheidt
• Duden
• Pons
• Leo online
• dict.cc online

To select suitable book-form dictionaries, refer to the list of German language publishers above on the page to view their offers. Pay attention to the German-German dictionaries, as in them German words are explained in German in a simple way, which is very helpful in learning the language. Teachers in Germany recommend the use of such explanatory dictionaries.

Teachers in Germany recommend using German-German, dictionaries, in which the meanings of German words are explained in plain German.

§ Free online German courses and lessons

Like the book-form textbooks, designed for systematic learning of the German language at some courses or on your own, various language schools in Germany have their online courses or lessons of the German language. Such courses are either free or in order to use them the learners have to pay a small subscription fee, which gets reduced depending on the number of months in the subscription. The given courses include online exercises for learning words and grammar, reading comprehension and listening comprehension exercises, video materials, etc. To take some of such courses, you would need to get registered, while the rest are available without registration. To select textbooks or video-lessons is a matter of personal preference.

Here is the table of online lessons and courses being popular in Germany:

List of free online German lessons and courses

§ Free apps applications for smartphone- and cellphone-based learning of the German language

Like free/ free-of-charge online lessons and courses, multiple applications for cellphones and smartphones have been developed, which are helpful in learning the German language. Some of those are full-fledged teaching software, like courses of the German language, or educational games, while others provide support in some specific sphere – for example, dictionaries, buildup of the learner’s vocabulary, exercises for memorizing words, or training grammar rules. Description of a number of software being useful in learning German can be found in the list below:

§ Learning in social networks

While addressing the chances for free learning of German language, we cannot but consider the opportunities being offered by means of channels and groups in social networks. Some of those, formed by various language schools or German language teachers, contain voluminous material for the language learning and training. Some groups were formed for communication in German, and there you can practice verbal communication and intercourse in correspondence even with native speakers. Below is the list of popular channels and groups for learning German.

Youtube channels for learning German

• Deutsch lernen mit der DW
  Learning German with Deutsche Welle: different levels, everyday situations
• Goethe-Institut
  Learning German with the Goethe Institute
• Deutsch für Euch
  German language from beginner to advanced level
• StartLingua
  Beginner level of German, audiobooks
• Sprachschule
  German audio course
• Alltagsdeutsch
  Teaching social, ordinary German

Groups on Facebook, Telegram and other German learning communities

• Deutsch für dich - the Goethe Institute community: forum, chats, and communication
• Deutsch Online - German language school (Facebook)
• German language @nemand (Telegram)
• Stylish German @stylishgerman (Telegram)

§ Learning German with a coach, private tutor

Private tutors and coaches of German offer their lessons by personal presence or remotely via video communication/video calls, for instance, using Skype or other communications tools. Such offers, of course, are not free/ free-of-charge, however, you can find rather inexpensive offers placed by experienced teachers. For example, teachers from Poland, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Belarus and other countries charge their lessons by phone and Skype at a price of 5 to 10 euros per 1 lesson. For offers from tutors in Germany, click on: Tutors of German in Germany.

§ Paid online courses of the German language

Apart from free courses and lessons of the German language, there are also paid online platforms that offer learning many languages over the Internet. Such platforms, in addition to standard exercises to study grammar and build up the vocabulary, also provide the practice of speaking with teachers, as well as taking tests and obtaining a certificate upon the courses completion.

§ Regularly read texts in German, listen to the German speech, and speak German

As discussed above on the page, the grammar and spelling of the German language can be studied and trained using textbooks, online courses, and to replenish the vocabulary - using applications to smartphones or cards. However, to successfully master the German language, you also need to listen to it, read in it and train your spoken German. This can be done in your free time, for example, when somewhere on the go or attending to some daily matters, which do not require your attention or concentration.

For your reference, we offer you the following list of free, free-of-charge multimedia sources of the German speech, such as audiobooks as well as German TV- and radio channels, which can be used for effective learning of the German language:

• Channel One of the German TV (Das Erste, ARD)
• ARD media-library: movies, radio, and news
• Tagesschau – news of Germany
• ZDF – Programs, movies, series, and news
• Euronews
• NDR television, radio, and media-library
• MDR television, radio, and media-library
• Bible publications for reading and listening
• Audio files for listening
• Online audiobooks of various genres