German International School of Silicon Valley

Most of the families at the school have at least one German-​speaking parent. This isn’t true for our family, so we were a little nervous, but the past few years have worked out beautifully. We have three kids enrolled at the school, and each of them has had a wonderful experience.
Some of the unique things we appreciate include: the amazing teachers, the small class sizes, the parent community, and the German curriculum. The setting in the Presidio is also really special. Their PE activities, for example, include jogging in the forest and sports at the YMCA across the street.
This San Francisco campus is still relatively new, so I would encourage families to visit and see for themselves if they would be excited to be a part of a new and growing school. Each year we are welcoming a new teacher and acquiring or reconfiguring classroom space. That said, the school benefits from the structure and stability of being part of the GISSV, with its long history in Mountain View and the experience of opening the Berkeley campus about 8 years ago.

The school is wonderful. We moved to the city recently and were lucky enough to get a place at the German International School. The setting is perfect and the teaching is excellent. Our son is in Kinder where he gets to learn through playing and exploring. He has 2 teachers, one who only speaks in German to the kids and one who only speaks in English to the kids. This has meant that he very quickly became able to speak German. Now he can switch seamlessly between the two languages.
The kids get to do amazing things such as go to the beach or woods in the Presidio, paint, draw dress up. It looks like they are having too much fun but underlying this fun and play is learning.
Most importantly the children are all happy and confident.
I cannot recommend this school highly enough. In fact it has been a big decider in us wanting to stay in San Francisco.

We couldn’t be happier with our decision to send our child to German International School after learning of its new campus during our search last Spring. To our surprise, plans for this new location were not well known at all, especially to folks eager to find a bilingual school for their children. GISSV SF is currently accepting applications for both kindergarten and first grade… and we doubt this will be a well kept secret for long :)
For parents searching for a great school for their child, GISSV San Francisco has wonderful caring teachers, small student-​teacher ratios, and a classroom situated in one of the best locations and quaintest settings in the city. It is a full immersion program, which is far different from infusion: the students will become fluent in German.
GISSV is an established school, formed in early 2000 with the first location in Mountain View, CA. From the website: «The GISSV has almost 400 enrolled students with graduates who qualify for both European and American Universities. Primary languages spoken at home by GISSV students include English, German, Spanish, Italian, Arabic, Korean, and Chinese. The school offers an academically rigorous, bilingual program with quality instructors and small class sizes and is unique in that it is one of only five recognized German foreign schools in the United States and the only one offering a High School Diploma on the West Coast. »

This bilingual German/​English school just got started in San Francisco, with a Kindergarten class in Fall 2011. Next year, there will be Kindergarten and 1^st grade. The school program is accredited both by California and the German government.
The children have varying levels of German and English ability. The teachers do a great job with this diverse crowd, and it is amazing to see how quickly the kids’ language skills improve. I also like the math program – it’s fun and sensible. The setting is gorgeous and gives the kids lots of opportunities to explore the great outdoors in the Presidio.