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In the year of 2016, many beloved celebrities have gone, for example, the singer Prince or Lemmy from Motörhead. But another man died who was something like an icon for many people, not only in Germany. Bud Spencer died on June 27th. But his movies, his bon mots and all
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Ulm, a city in Baden-Württemberg with a population of roughly 120,000, has many worthwhile cultural sights. One of its more unexpected and especially delightful sights is its Museum of Bread Culture on the northern edge of the Old City. In 1955, Willy Eiselen (1896-1981) established the museum and, along with
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Politics influence everything, so it is always good to be informed. But for knowing what you are talking about, you have to have the necessary information about the system you are living in. So let’s try to make a quick overview of the political system of the Federal
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When I recently listened to a Podcast on the history of Pentecostalism in the United States, I couldn’t help but wonder how this global Christian manifestation fares in Germany. I have to admit, that while having a rather vague idea of what Pentecostalism means for the US, I did not
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The brief answer to this would be “because Ashkenazim” – Jewish people who settled in the lands of Germany, Austria, even Poland who kept the predominately Eastern European rites and traditions of Jewish practice. In history, Jewish people settled into the Holy Roman Empire and were even invited to England
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I watched Arrival together with my 15 year old son, whose attention span is even worse than mine. We both were captivated by the wonderfully written story about humans trying to communicate with aliens who visited earth. Throughout the movie the humans try to figure out what the aliens’ intentions
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The Kurpfälzisches Museum, i.e., the Palatinate Museum, in Heidelberg possesses some of the finest examples of archeological artifacts as well as superb examples of paintings, graphic arts, sculptures, and applied arts in the greater Heidelberg area. The museum occupies the Morass Palace, named after its first owner, the attorney Johann
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Berlin is a city full of rich history, culture and diversity. It has witnessed many deep impacts, was severely destroyed during WW II and separated afterwards. But nothing might have influenced the city more like the Berlin Blockade and the Luftbrücke: From June 1948 until May 1949, the Western Part
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A Holiday for Workers as well as Welcoming Spring! The beginning of May has long been celebrated across Europe as the start of summer, with festivities ranging from the street carnival-like atmosphere of Finland to Morris dancing in areas of England. In Germany, May 1st has been a public holiday
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If you plan to study in Germany at the level of the Master’s degree, in some ways it’s easier than trying to apply as an undergraduate at the Bachelor’s level: If you are an English speaker, you’re in luck! There are more programs at the Master’s level that are taught
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So you’ve looked at our previous articles on studying in Germany, and you want to do your Bachelor’s degree at a German institution. But how? We have already covered some of the documents you’ll need, such as getting your passport in order as well as making sure your educational documents
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Do you feel tense whenever you see a young child playing video games and wonder if they even know where strawberries grow? You are not alone. More and more parents find themselves looking for a way to teach core values and environmental awareness to young children. They find a perfect
Google Reviews
Google Rating
4.9
4.9
Ruzanna Harutyunyan
17:13 14 Jan 17
Michael has helped me immensely during my journey of learning. He very quickly identified the weaknesses I have and figured a way to solve them. His approach is tailored to the individual needs of the student, rather than a generic plan on how to stuff the head with information. He helped me organize the information that I already had from various sources, but was unable to put it into practical use.
He gave me the confidence to start speaking the language. With his help, now I like the process of learning. And that is the most important achievement I had!
Sai Kiran
22:03 21 Apr 17
I had the opportunity to work with him over a year ago. Though we were not able to continue working due to my unpredictable job and travel, I found his method and training methodology extremely logical and intuitive. Though smartergerman services are relatively expensive than others in the market, the quality is many times more than worth it. Mr. Michael Schmitz has over 20 years experience in language teaching and summons all his expertise for the student's benefit. Highly Recommended.
Tammy Furey
16:03 20 Feb 17
6 years ago, I thought it would be a jolly good plan to move, from the UK, to Switzerland with a young child. Without a word of German. With a husband who didn’t have a word of German. I really didn’t realise the reality of learning a foreign language in a land that doesn’t actually speak high German.
So after 5 years of struggling with the local language schools and banging my head against the wall, I finally decided that I was going to get serious about language learning. I made it clear: this was make or break. I put my work on hold, purely to focus on German learning.
Michael was a life saver. This is something to understand about working with Michael: you are not simply employing a German Teacher - you are employing a coach. Michael had to undo years of anxiety at failing to actually learn the language, years of misunderstandings, frustrations and generally beating myself up. So much was in the way of being able to look at the German language with a clear head and not in sheer panic!!!
So after telling myself for years that I could never, ever get to B1 standard, I got 84.5% on the exam!!! And here is the crucial thing: Michael has changed my way of learning languages for life. I now have a system in which I can continue to learn German, not as a rush to the next exam (although goals are good!), but as a life long learning process which I enjoy. Yes….actually enjoy learning German - who would have thought that was possible?!!……
Simon K
18:24 26 Jan 17
I found Michael & smarterGerman in September 2016 upon realizing I need to start working on my German fluency to be eligible for a couple of International Business Master's degrees I am considering. My main reasons for having decided to work with Michael were a combination of the flexible scheduling (as I'm in my last year of undergrad) and that he had successfully taught numerous students from zero to B1 in a short period of time. Full disclosure, I've had limited German studies in the past at lower levels (university course in 2011, Goethe A2.3 in spring 2014) while struggling along the way, but no active learning during the past two plus years. Having met roughly a dozen times between the end of September and my exam date in December, I'm happy to say that I passed my B1 Goethe Exam with an overall average of 80.25%! Keep in mind, I had to dedicate time around my lessons to the homework and exam preparations, but it was still the most efficient time I've spent learning German. Given my experience, I can highly recommend working with Michael to all who are serious about achieving results quickly.
John Gillam
17:59 20 Mar 17
I began learning with Michael at the beginning of July 2016 and at the time I had only sat my A2 exam a few months earlier and so my goal was to reach B1 with Michael by October. After a short chat with Michael, he upgraded my goal to B2, which was to be achieved in the same time frame. I didn't believe that it was possible when we first began our work together but after only 11 45 minute long sessions, and one hour per week conversation training with another teacher, I sat and passed my B2 exam - including a 100% pass mark in the oral section. I couldn't have done it without Michael's confidence, motivational skills, and ability to root out mistakes and explain things clearly using my mother tongue. His methods (learning cycle) really are fool proof if you follow them. Aim high and Michael will help you reach your goal as long as you're ready to work with it. Best value for money yet!
Nick Doan
22:15 27 May 17
Michael was very generous with his time and expertise when I approached him. He was quick to offer help and provided immediate, valuable insight.
Laura Avivar
15:38 04 Jun 17
The method that Michael uses for teaching is really the one! I studied German before but never so successful as this one. I really recommend him.
