At Kindergarten LA your child will easily learn the German language by being immersed in the German culture through a playful classroom experience, as well as optional outside family events (Faschingsparty, Nikolaus, Laternenfest, etc). KindergartenLA believes in the tried and true method of "Learning a Living Language" through immersion. Immersion simply means total exposure to the language, music and culture of the German Society for the time your child is with us.
The groups are predominantly conducted in German. All teachers and assistant teachers understand and speak both German and English fluently. The focus of the program is "learning through fun" to retain each child’s original joy of learning. There will be a great balance between structured projects and free play with "sachbegegunung" or learning about nature and your environment (recycling), language enrichment, sense training, handling of quantities, numbers, forms, rhythmic-musical education, movement. In return, children have the opportunity to become better listeners, more flexible in their thinking and be more open to other languages and cultures.
The KindergartenLA Team:
Elke Schweigert Miller (Coordinator and Founder)
Elke was born and raised in Munich, Germany. She came to Los Angeles in 1989 to study International Sales and Marketing. She was recruited as the Liaison for International Offices by a business in Marina Del Rey and was a key player in starting up a contracting corporation where she currently acts as the Director of Finance. She lives with her two little girls, who are both bi-lingual, and attend German School (GASA), and her husband Philip, a writer, editor and producer for a children’s TV series, in Venice Beach. Elke is very active in the German Community and has founded a German Community network group, Deutsche Gemeinde LA or “German Community LA” and she has organized events for families, children and women, as a member of the German-American Club of Santa Monica. She is the founder/president of KindergartenLA as well as the founder/president of Goethe International Charter School Initiative (see details under news and links).
Silke DeLouise (Instructor for 2 to 5 year old children)
Silke was born and raised in Germany and has a Diploma and Certificate as a Federal State Approved Kindergarten Teacher. She has lived in Los Angeles for 16 years and has worked for more than 10 years in a private preschool in Venice. Silke has completed the Basic Core Program in Early Childhood Education and studied extensively at the advanced core level at UCLA Extension for Child Development. Silke and her husband have three children, all bi-lingual.
Doreen Desse (Assistant/Volunteer for 2 to 5 year old children)
Doreen was born and raised in Germany and has a Diploma and Certificate as a Federal State Approved Kindergarten Teacher. Shee lives with her husband and son in Santa Monica.
Additional Teachers were hired and added to this page soon!
Anne Erbe-Kloo (Program Consultant)
Anne is a German native who has livied in Los Angeles for the past 20 years. She is the director of the California Kids Development Center, a Pre through Elementary school with 130 enrolled students. She has both a Bachelor and Master degree in Early Childhood Education, with 27 years of teaching and administrative experience. She lives with her husand and two sons.
Location:
We are proud to be able to share the wonderful environment of the YWCA Santa Monica/Westside facility. The YWCA is a premier organization for women and girls and their mission is to empower women, to work to eliminate racism and be a source of strength and a voice for women. The YWCA facility is a safe and nurturing environment for family values and children's growth and currently offers other great family oriented programs that we can recommend, including other German Language Programs conducted by Ilka Sternberger, our afternoon instructor. 