German · A1 · Milestone
A1 Graduation Chest in German
Celebrate your A1 progress with familiar German phrases for family life. Review requests, everyday needs, shared activities, permission, travel and a simple question about the past. Use informal du forms when speaking to one child.
What you'll learn
- Make a polite request and name something you need.
- Suggest reading together and say what you enjoy.
- Say where something is and give permission.
- Talk about transport and a date.
- Ask a simple question using the past tense of sein.
German phrases for a1 graduation chest
Zieh bitte deine Schuhe an.
Put on your shoes, please.
Anziehen means 'to put on'. In this request, it splits into Zieh … an.
Ich brauche einen Apfel.
I need an apple.
Apfel is masculine. Use einen because the apple is the direct object of brauche.
Lass uns zusammen lesen.
Let's read together.
Lass uns … is a friendly way to suggest doing something together.
Deine Brotdose ist in deiner Tasche.
Your lunchbox is in your bag.
In deiner Tasche answers 'where?' and uses the dative case.
Ich spiele gern mit dir.
I like playing with you.
A verb plus gern expresses enjoyment. Mit dir means 'with you'.
Du darfst einen Euro ausgeben.
You may spend one euro.
Darfst gives permission. Ausgeben means 'to spend' money and goes at the end.
Wir fahren am ersten Juni mit dem Bus.
We go by bus on the first of June.
Am ersten Juni means 'on the first of June'. Mit dem Bus means 'by bus'.
War dein Zahn locker?
Was your tooth loose?
War is the simple past of sein ('to be'). It comes first in this yes/no question.
Hear these phrases and practise them
Tildi plays every phrase out loud, tests you in five-minute lessons and builds them into bedtime stories from your own picture books.
Try it free for 7 daysKey words
der Schuh; die Schuhe
shoe; shoes
Learn the plural too: children often hear Schuhe when getting ready to go out.
der Apfel; die Äpfel
apple; apples
The plural adds an umlaut: a becomes ä.
zusammen
together
Useful for shared activities such as reading or playing.
die Brotdose
lunchbox
A common word for a box used to carry sandwiches or snacks.
die Tasche
bag
A general word for a bag.
gern
gladly; with enjoyment
Ich spiele gern means 'I like playing'. Gerne is also correct.
ausgeben
to spend
Use it for spending money, not for spending time.
der Zahn; die Zähne
tooth; teeth
Ein lockerer Zahn is a loose tooth.
Friendly requests and suggestions
Use the informal imperative for a request to one child. Bitte makes it polite. Use Lass uns plus an infinitive to suggest a shared activity.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Request with a separable verb | Zieh + object + an. | Zieh bitte deine Schuhe an. |
| Shared suggestion | Lass uns + activity in the infinitive. | Lass uns zusammen lesen. |
Direct objects: einen
A direct object uses the accusative case. With masculine nouns such as Apfel and Euro, ein becomes einen.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Something needed | Ich brauche + accusative object. | Ich brauche einen Apfel. |
| Money spent | einen Euro ausgeben | Du darfst einen Euro ausgeben. |
Location and mit: dative forms
In uses the dative when it describes where something is. Mit always takes the dative. These forms are useful to learn as short chunks.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Location | in deiner Tasche | Deine Brotdose ist in deiner Tasche. |
| Company | mit dir | Ich spiele gern mit dir. |
| Transport | mit dem Bus | Wir fahren mit dem Bus. |
Permission with dürfen
Dürfen means 'may' or 'to be allowed to'. With du, use darfst. The main verb stays in the infinitive at the end.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Giving permission | Du darfst + other information + infinitive. | Du darfst einen Euro ausgeben. |
Dates with am
Use am with an ordinal number to say 'on' a date. The spoken form am ersten Juni can be written am 1. Juni. A present-tense sentence can describe a planned future trip.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Date | am ersten Juni / am 1. Juni | Wir fahren am ersten Juni mit dem Bus. |
Past questions with war
War means 'was' with ich and singular subjects such as dein Zahn. In a yes/no question, put war before the subject.
| Use | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Past statement | Subject + war + description. | Dein Zahn war locker. |
| Past question | War + subject + description? | War dein Zahn locker? |
More examples
Ich lese gern mit dir.
I like reading with you.
Use gern with lese to talk about enjoying reading.
Du darfst einen Apfel essen.
You may eat an apple.
Darfst gives permission; essen stays at the end.
War deine Brotdose in deiner Tasche?
Was your lunchbox in your bag?
Combine war for the past with in deiner Tasche for location.