The Iceberg of German Fluency, Part 1: Conquering A1

Welcome to the first lesson in my brand-new series, “The Iceberg of German Fluency.” If you've ever wondered what it takes to go from a complete beginner in German to mastering the language at an expert level, you're in the right place. In this series, we’ll explore the six levels of German learning, from A1 to C2, and uncover what you need to know at each stage and, more importantly, what you need to be able to DO with the language to truly master German.

Think of German fluency as an iceberg. The A1 and A2 levels are what most learners encounter at the surface. They’re where you build a foundation—basic grammar, simple vocabulary, and your first steps in speaking and understanding German.

But as with any iceberg, what’s beneath the surface is much deeper, more complex, and far less explored. B1 to C2 levels represent the true depths of the language—nuanced grammar, cultural idioms, and advanced expressions that many learners never reach. But it all starts with today’s lesson well above the surface in the A1 level.

What's in this post? 

Just like I will be doing in every lesson in this series, I will include 4 components that you need to understand at this level. 

1. I’ll start with a quick overview of what the A1 level is and what you can expect to achieve at this stage.
2. Then we will dissect the official CEFR description of the A1 level, so you know exactly how your skills will be measured so you can take the shortcut to conquering the A1 proficiency exam, no matter which version you take.
3. Next I will show you a list of grammar topics you’ll need to master at this level. I have lessons on this channel for almost every topic at this level, so I have included a ton of links in the description, if you want to start that learning journey. 
4. Finally, I will show you the conversational and communicative topics you’ll need to focus on before you take the A1 exam. 

By the end of this lesson, you’ll have a clear road map of what it takes to consider yourself an A1 German beginner or to pass an A1 exam. Also, don’t forget to click the links in this article for additional resources to practice what I introduce here.

How many hours does it take to learn A1 German?

Let’s start with the general overview. At the A1 level, learners can communicate at the most basic level about themselves and their immediate surroundings. This only requires a vocabulary of about 500 words in German and most learners can reach the A1 level after only 40-50 hours of study. I don’t recommend staying up for that long trying to get it done all at once, so this usually translates to about 1-3 months of German learning. 

What are the 4 parts of the A1 German exam? 

The Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR) is a set of standards that describes language proficiency and can be used to measure any language. This is the system upon which most language exams are based. While this is obviously meant for European language learners based on the name, it is so incredibly well done that many people around the world (including myself) use this as a way to measure what learners need to know and how they measure up on the road to fluency. 

While most German exams are split into 4 parts (listening, reading, writing and speaking), each CEFR level is broken into 5 parts: listening, reading, spoken interaction, spoken production and writing. For this part of the lesson I’ll read the official description from the CEFR and then add more info, if I think it will help you better understand. 

Listening

I can recognize familiar words and very basic phrases concerning myself, my family and immediate concrete surroundings when people speak slowly and clearly.

Pretty straight forward. If you just started learning German within the past few months, you will need people to speak slowly and clearly and you are only going to understand the most familiar words and basic phrases about yourself, your family and your immediate concrete surroundings. 

Reading

I can understand familiar names, words and very simple sentences, for example on notices and posters or in catalogs.

You aren’t reading any big novels at this level, although the book Nachbar Nr. 5 by Angelika Bohn is a good one to try, if you think you are up to the challenge. You should be able to get the general idea from a poster that shows the name of someone and some basics about an upcoming event, for example. 

Spoken Interaction

I can interact in a simple way provided the other person is prepared to repeat or rephrase things at a slower rate of speech and help me formulate what I'm trying to say. I can ask and answer simple questions in areas of immediate need or on very familiar topics.

Again, the person to whom you are speaking has to speak slowly and clearly and about topics with which you are familiar. This is the same as the listening one, but requires you to be able to speak on those topics too and respond properly to the prompt you are given. We’ll get into more concrete examples of this towards the end of the post when we get into topics you need to be familiar with. 

Spoken Production

I can use simple phrases and sentences to describe where I live and people I know.

Not quite caveman, but you certainly aren’t giving a speech in front of the UN General Assembly at this level. Ich bin Levi. Ich spreche Deutsch. Ich bin Deutschlehrer. - I am Levi. I speak German. I’m a teacher. 

Writing

I can write a short, simple postcard, for example sending holiday greetings. I can fill in forms with personal details, for example entering my name, nationality and address on a hotel registration form.

This is one of the most overlooked aspects at this level. It specifically says you should be able to write a simple postcard. Hallo, Mama! Liebe Grüße aus Hamburg. Ich bin gerade in Deutschland. Das Wetter hier ist schön. Ich komme bald wieder nach Hause. Bis dann. dein Levi. - Hi, mom! Greetings from Hamburg. I’m in Germany right now. The weather is nice here. I am coming home again soon. See you then. 

You can also fill out pretty much the top half of your customs form when you land in Germany. 

What are the skills you need at the A1 level of German?

For this portion of the lesson I am going to simply list the topics, as there are quite a few and giving any real description of them would require this post to be forever long and I don’t have that kind of time on my hands. That said, there are links within this post on pretty much every topic on this list. So, if you want more info on any of these topics, click those links. 

1. Nouns and Articles
1. Gender of nouns: masculine, feminine, neuter (der, die, das)
2. Singular vs plural forms of nouns
3. Definite and indefinite articles: der/die/das vs. ein/eine/ein
4. Negation with kein and its declensions.
2. Cases – Nominative and Accusative
1. Nominative case for subjects: Der Hund läuft. - The dog is running.
2. Accusative case for direct objects: Ich sehe den Hund. - I see the dog.
3. Declension of articles in nominative and accusative: der > den, ein > einen (masculine).
3. Verbs
1. Verb conjugation in the present tense for regular verbs: machen, lernen, spielen.
2. Common irregular verbs in the present tense: sein, haben
3. Modal verbs: können, müssen, wollen, dürfen, sollen, mögen.
4. Separable verbs: aufstehen, mitkommen, einkaufen.
5. Basic usage of reflexive verbs: sich waschen, sich freuen.
4. Sentence Structure
1. Basic word order in main clauses: Subject + Verb + Object = Ich lerne Deutsch. - I am learning German.
2. Word order with modal verbs: Ich möchte Deutsch lernen. - I would like to learn German.
3. Yes/no questions: Kommst du aus Deutschland? - Are you from Germany? 
4. W-questions (question words): Wer, was, wo, wann, warum, wie - who, what, where, when, why, how
5. Negation with nicht: placement in a sentence.
5. Pronouns
1. Personal pronouns in the nominative: ich, du, er, sie, es, wir, ihr, sie, Sie
2. Personal pronouns in the accusative: mich, dich, ihn, sie, es, uns, euch, sie, Sie
3. Possessive pronouns in the nominative: mein, dein, sein, ihr, sein, unser, euer, ihr, Ihr.
4. Declension of “dieser”: dieser, diese, dieses, diesen.
6. Adjectives
1. Predicate Adjectives & Adverbs: Das Haus ist groß. - The house is large. 
2. Basic Adjective Endings with Definite Articles: der große Hund - the large dog
3. Basic Comparative and Superlative Forms of Adjectives/Adverbs: groß, größer, am größten - big, bigger, the biggest
7. Prepositions
1. Basic Accusative Prepositions: durch, für, gegen, ohne, um - through, for, against, without, around
2. Basic Dative Prepositions: aus, bei, mit, nach, seit, von, zu - out of, at, with, after, since, from, to
3. Basic Two-way Prepositions with Accusative/Dative: in, an, auf, hinter, über, unter, vor, neben, zwischen. - in, on, on, behind, under, before, next to, between
8. Conjunctions
1. Coordinating Conjunctions: und, oder, aber, denn - and, or, but, because
2. Subordinating Conjunctions (simple usage): weil, dass - because, that

Keep in mind with all of these topics, this is the A1 level. You are just scratching the surface of these topics. You aren’t learning all four cases in the German language. You aren’t learning every aspect about those two cases either. Not all of the prepositions, just some of them. Not all of the details and minutiae that goes into those prepositions. Just the surface level “I can use these words in these very constrained circumstances.” 

Speaking and Listening Topics You Need to Master at the A1 Level of German

Grammar is nice and all, but if you can’t communicate with the language, what are you even doing? At the A1 level, you need just the very basics. That includes the following topics. 

1. Numbers and Time
1. Cardinal numbers: eins, zwei, drei… - 1, 2, 3...
2. Ordinal numbers: der erste, der zweite, der dritte… - 1st, 2nd, 3rd...
3. Telling time: Wie spät ist es? Es ist 14 Uhr. - What time is it? It is 2 pm. 
4. Days of the week, months, and seasons.
5. Expressions of time with prepositions: am Montag, im Januar, um 10 Uhr. - on Monday, in January, at 10 o’clock
2. Introducing yourself: name, age, residence, origin, nationality, occupation
3. Family: immediate members, traits about them, etc.
4. Talking about hobbies: Ich spiele gern Fußball. - I like to play soccer. 
5. Expressing likes and dislikes: Ich mag…, Ich hasse…. - I like…, I hate…
6. Daily routine: what do you do when you get up, at work, at home, etc.
7. Shopping: groceries, clothing, etc. 
8. Dining: ordering, likes, dislikes, etc. 
9. Traveling: getting directions, transportation, tickets, etc. 
10. Weather: describe it and seasons 
11. Home: household items and activities 
12. Health: how you feel, asking for help

Again, you are stretching the surface of these topics. No one is asking you to learn the German word for ascot at this level. Come to think of it, I’m not sure I know the word for ascot in German. When we say you need to be able to talk about shopping for clothes, we mean the basics: shirt, pants, socks, shoes, etc. 

How to Gauge Your German Progress

I like to tell my students when they first get to my German class that they are now like one year old German children. This is about the age when children start speaking their native language. They start with some basic words: mama, dada, teddy. Then they gradually build vocabulary for the things that are most immediate to them. Words for food, drink, and eat. They learn to count. 

By the time you are done with the A1 level, you will have aged up to about a 2-3 year old. I have a three-year old in my house right now. I can’t understand what he is saying sometimes. Based on how much he listens when I tell him something, I don’t think he understands me that much either. That will be true of your German skills at this level, too. 

You are NOT a Baby

People say that children learn languages faster or more easily than adults, but those people are stupid. You aren’t a small child (based on the demographics of my viewers). You are a fully functioning person who has already learned at least English (if not, this post must have been very bewildering to you). Learning a second language should go faster than your first language. 

That doesn’t mean you won’t need to be patient with yourself. It will be difficult at times, but unlike my 3 year old, you have the executive functioning skills to persevere through adversity. You will not fall on the ground and flail around when a German speaker doesn’t understand that you wanted more cookies. You will figure it out just like the millions of German learners before you. 

The best part is that you don’t have to do it alone. The internet is a glorious place full of free resources like the lessons you will find on this channel and others like it as well as courses, books, seminars, communities and conversation groups. 

Click here to download my full list of resources I would use, if I had to learn German again from scratch. All you have to do is enter your name and email address and I will send it right over. 

If you are ready to start learning German today, click here to join my Deutschlerner Club.