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Forgive me, as this might be a silly question. I know of a church that ( I think with in the last 10 years) has had German sermons and classes to learn German. I think has since stopped both, but I’m wondering is there any Amish / Mennonites that offer German classes / lessons ( to non members, I’m not entirely sure but the situation I’m thinking of might have been members / friends of the church only).

In my area the best bet for German classes are the ones put on by the German society in Cleveland:
https://germanschoolcle.org/classes/

You could also ask someone who is a bit more "intellectual" in Amish circles (the easiest way to find such a person is that their business, storefront etc will have books for sale - the bigger the book section, the better) and ask them. They might even be willing to instruct you themselves.

Bigfoot wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 1:58 pm Forgive me, as this might be a silly question. I know of a church that ( I think with in the last 10 years) has had German sermons and classes to learn German. I think has since stopped both, but I’m wondering is there any Amish / Mennonites that offer German classes / lessons ( to non members, I’m not entirely sure but the situation I’m thinking of might have been members / friends of the church only).

Do you want to speak Deitsch with Amish people or speak German with Germans or read modern or older German texts?

If you want to learn modern German, Language Transfer German (https://www.languagetransfer.org/german) is one good place to start, or Duolingo German if you don't mind all the noise and interrupts. There are German language meetups in many places.

i’m surprised German is not readily offered in public schools (it used to be, Latin, too).
Esp with current emphasis on STEM.

In my old days public school, in middle school, Spanish, French, German, Latin were offered.
Conversational Spanish began in 4th grade. Lots of art classes. Graphics. Home Ec, Shop, at least one semester required of each.
Cursive writing, i think one semester in elementary school.

i just learned Trigonometry isn’t a separate class now.

STEM education refers to an educational approach that integrates Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics. It emphasizes a holistic method of learning that encourages problem-solving and critical thinking skills necessary for success in the modern workforce. The term was introduced by the U.S. National Science Foundation in 2001 and has evolved to include the arts, leading to the broader concept of STEAM education.

i guess everyone’s too busy for all that now.

German is kind of pointless to learn since it is quite rare to run into a German speaker who can't communicate in English.

JohnH wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 4:04 pm German is kind of pointless to learn since it is quite rare to run into a German speaker who can't communicate in English.

Last time I was in Germany, I went with my wife, who does not speak German. And I found out just how many of the people I knew well cannot communicate well in English. I spent a week translating back and forth.

If you meet educated Germans in the United States, they generally do speak really good English. But if you travel in rural areas or have friends with less formal education, they may not. When I lived in Germany, a lot of my friends were East Germans without college degrees.

I imagine younger Germans who are more online are also likely to speak good English, but I don't know.

Bootstrap wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 2:44 pm
Do you want to speak Deitsch with Amish people or speak German with Germans or read modern or older German texts?

Good point probably generally modern German, but there are certain older texts that might be interesting to read.

Bootstrap wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 2:44 pm
If you want to learn modern German, Language Transfer German (https://www.languagetransfer.org/german) is one good place to start, or Duolingo German if you don't mind all the noise and interrupts. There are German language meetups in many places.

Thanks for the suggestions.

Bigfoot wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 5:19 pm

Bootstrap wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 2:44 pm
Do you want to speak Deitsch with Amish people or speak German with Germans or read modern or older German texts?

Good point probably generally modern German, but there are certain older texts that might be interesting to read.

Pennsylvania Dutch is a German dialect that was primarily oral and not written down until 20 or 30 years ago. If you want to read older German texts,it would really help to learn the Fraktur alphabet, which is hard for modern German readers to read.

Szdfan wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 6:02 pm

Bigfoot wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 5:19 pm

Bootstrap wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 2:44 pm
Do you want to speak Deitsch with Amish people or speak German with Germans or read modern or older German texts?

Good point probably generally modern German, but there are certain older texts that might be interesting to read.

Pennsylvania Dutch is a German dialect that was primarily oral and not written down until 20 or 30 years ago. If you want to read older German texts,it would really help to learn the Fraktur alphabet, which is hard for modern German readers to read.

Ok thanks.

Bootstrap wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 4:47 pm

JohnH wrote: ↑Tue Nov 04, 2025 4:04 pm German is kind of pointless to learn since it is quite rare to run into a German speaker who can't communicate in English.

Last time I was in Germany, I went with my wife, who does not speak German. And I found out just how many of the people I knew well cannot communicate well in English. I spent a week translating back and forth.

If you meet educated Germans in the United States, they generally do speak really good English. But if you travel in rural areas or have friends with less formal education, they may not. When I lived in Germany, a lot of my friends were East Germans without college degrees.

I imagine younger Germans who are more online are also likely to speak good English, but I don't know.

i expect this is correct.
In 2007-8, my sil was interviewing for work in Montreal, international company, he had no French.
He was assured, “No problem! We all speak English, work in English, meet in English!” - Off they went, with their firstborn.

This was not correct. Everything was in French. ugh. It was rough for him.
My daughter had French in HS, the baby got along fine. My daughter found a plus, saying she believed being in a basically French world, probably helped their young marriage. That is, he wasn’t so tempted to run off with his buddies as he probably would have been in the U.S. (unexpected marriage counsel there). He happened to play ice hockey, that helped him in Montreal!

We don’t think he was intentionally deceived!
It’s not at all unusual for personal perceptions to vary widely. Even within one common language!
i’m sure they all knew English! They didn’t realize how little they used it.

2 years in Montreal - then, Dallas! i was impressed he made it for 2 years. i expect it did help their fledgling marriage.
focus, focus!