The language component provides three to four hours of daily instruction in German grammar and conversation at a level appropriate to each student's proficiency. The language component carries two credits, with courses offered on several levels. Students are integrated in the regular language classes according to what level they placed into after taking the placement exam, and after an oral interview on campus before the summer session begins. Students in the German for Singers Program who placed into level 1, beginning German, will take courses with our regular beginning German students for three hours and will then have an additional hour of special language and culture training in the Singers program.

The successful completion of this course corresponds to the equivalent of second and third semester German. The active use of all major points of basic grammar and vocabulary is stressed in order to bring students to a common working level in the four skills. During the second half, a greater emphasis will be placed on the development of writing skills and reading strategies with appropriate cultural and literary texts. Audio-visual materials supplement the four hours of daily classroom instruction. Extra listening comprehension exercises and videos will be completed outside of the classroom and pronunciation work will be provided in a course meeting several times a week.

Required texts:
- Uta Matecki: Dreimal Deutsch (Klett Verlag); Jack Moeller and Helmut Liedloff: A Concise German Review Grammar (Houghton & Mifflin);
- Robert Spaethling and Eugene Weber (Editors): Literatur Eins? (2nd Edition, Norton)