Many people would like to know how long it takes to learn a level. We say that it usually takes 12 sessions (equivalent to 24 lessons of 45 minutes each) for grammar and then the same number again for vocabulary. If you add in experience, it usually doesn’t work right away, so you can assume 24-48 lessons. In reality, however, a lot depends on how much time and concentration you can put into it. In the checklist below, you can see what the grammatical content is for each sub-level from A1.1 to B2.2 according to the CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference).
| Level | Grammatik | Grammar (English) |
| A1.1 | Artikel im Nominativ: der/die/das; ein/kein | Articles in nominative: the (der/die/das); a/no (ein/kein) |
| A1.1 | Aussagesatz V2; Ja/Nein-Frage (V1); W‑Frage (W + V2) | Simple sentences with verb in 2nd position; yes/no questions (verb first); wh-questions (question word + verb 2nd) |
| A1.1 | Negation: nicht vs. kein (Grundlagen) | Negation: not vs. no (basics) |
| A1.1 | Personalpronomen (Nominativ) | Personal pronouns in nominative case (I, you, he, she…) |
| A1.1 | Pluralbildung (Grundmuster) | Making plural forms (basic patterns) |
| A1.1 | Possessivartikel (mein/dein) im Nominativ | Possessive articles (my/your) in nominative |
| A1.1 | Präsens: regelmäßige Verben; sein, haben, heißen | Present tense: regular verbs; verbs to be, to have, to be called |
| A1.1 | Subjekt–Verb‑Kongruenz | Subject-verb agreement |
| A1.1 | Trennbare Verben (Grundprinzip) | Separable verbs (basic rule) |
| A1.1 | Zahlen, Uhrzeiten, Datum (Formate; am/um) | Numbers, telling the time, dates (formats) |
| A1.2 | Adjektive prädikativ (ist + Adj.) | Adjectives used with ‘to be’ (the house is big) |
| A1.2 | Akkusativ: Artikel/Pronomen | Accusative case: articles and pronouns |
| A1.2 | Imperativ (du/ihr/Sie – einfach) | Imperative: giving commands (informal you / you all / formal you) |
| A1.2 | Modalverben: können, möchten, wollen (Grundgebrauch) | Modal verbs: can, would like, want (basic use) |
| A1.2 | Negation: Stellung von nicht (vor Adj./Adv., am Satzende) | Negation: position of ‘not’ (before adjective/adverb or at sentence end) |
| A1.2 | Perfekt (Einführung): ge‑…‑t; haben/sein (Hauptsatz) | Perfect tense (introduction): ge-…-t; with have/are (in main clause) |
| A1.2 | Personalpronomen Akkusativ | Personal pronouns in accusative (me, you, him…) |
| A1.2 | Trennbar vs. untrennbar (Ausbau) | Separable vs. non-separable verbs (further practice) |
| A2.1 | Dativ: Artikel/Pronomen; typische Dativverben | Dative case: articles/pronouns; typical verbs with dative |
| A2.1 | Komparation: Komparativ/Superlativ | Comparison: comparative and superlative forms |
| A2.1 | Nebensätze mit weil; denn (Koordination) | Subordinate clauses with ‘because’; coordination with ‘denn’ |
| A2.1 | Perfekt (Ausbau): unregelmäßige Partizipien; trennbare Präfixe | Perfect tense: irregular past participles; separable prefixes |
| A2.1 | Präpositionen (lokal): bei/mit/nach/zu/aus/von + Dativ | Prepositions of place: with dative (at, with, after, to, from) |
| A2.1 | Präpositionen (temporal): seit/ab/vor | Prepositions of time: since, from, ago |
| A2.1 | Satzklammer (Modal/Perfekt) sicher anwenden | Sentence bracket: using modal verbs/perfect tense correctly |
| A2.1 | da‑/wo‑Komposita (Einführung) | da-/wo- words (therefore, wherewith, etc.) |
| A2.2 | Adjektivdeklination (Nom./Akk.) – Grundmuster | Adjective endings in nominative/accusative (basic patterns) |
| A2.2 | Genitiv (Namen); von + Dativ als Alternative | Genitive case (possession); alternative with ‘von’ + dative |
| A2.2 | Konjunktiv II: hätte, wäre, würde/könnte (Höflichkeit/Wunsch) | Subjunctive II: would have/be, would like, could (polite requests/wishes) |
| A2.2 | Nebensätze mit dass/wenn | Subordinate clauses with ‘that’ / ‘if/when’ |
| A2.2 | Präpositionen (temporal/lokal) – Ausbau | Prepositions of time/place (extended use) |
| A2.2 | Reflexivverben (Akk./Dat.) | Reflexive verbs (with me, yourself, etc.) |
| A2.2 | Wechselpräpositionen: Ort = Dativ; Richtung = Akk. (Überblick) | Two-way prepositions: location = dative; direction = accusative (overview) |
| B1.1 | Adjektivdeklination im Dativ (Ausbau) | Adjective endings in dative (further practice) |
| B1.1 | Infinitiv mit zu (einfach) | Infinitive with ‘to’ (basic use) |
| B1.1 | Konnektoren: obwohl ↔ trotzdem; weil/da ↔ deshalb/deswegen | Connectors: although ↔ nevertheless; because ↔ therefore |
| B1.1 | Passiv Präsens (Vorgangspassiv: werden + Partizip II) | Passive voice in present tense (is being done) |
| B1.1 | Präteritum: sein, haben, Modalverben; starke/schwache Verben | Simple past: to be, to have, modal verbs; regular/irregular verbs |
| B1.1 | Relativsätze (Nom./Akk./Dat.) | Relative clauses (who/which in nominative/accusative/dative) |
| B1.2 | Adjektivdeklination komplett (stark/schwach/gemischt – Überblick) | All adjective endings (strong, weak, mixed – overview) |
| B1.2 | Futur I (Absicht/Vermutung) | Future tense I: intention, assumption |
| B1.2 | Konjunktiv II systematisch; wenn‑Sätze Typ II | Subjunctive II systematically; if-clauses (unreal situations) |
| B1.2 | Nebensätze: damit; um … zu; falls; temporal (bevor, nachdem, während, seitdem); indem | Subordinate clauses: so that; in order to; if; time clauses (before, after, while, since); by doing |
| B1.2 | Passiv + Modalverben; Zustandspassiv (sein + Partizip II) | Passive with modal verbs; state passive (is done) |
| B1.2 | Wechselpräpositionen vertieft: Ort (Dat.) vs. Richtung (Akk.) | Two-way prepositions in depth: location vs. direction |
| B1.2 | Wortbildung: Nomen‑Verb‑Verbindungen; Präfixe/Suffixe (Basis) | Word formation: noun-verb combinations; prefixes/suffixes |
| B2.1 | Adjektivdeklination (B2‑Feinheiten, attributiv) | Adjective endings (advanced, before a noun) |
| B2.1 | Nomen‑Verb‑Verbindungen (Ausbau) | Noun-verb combinations (extended) |
| B2.1 | N‑Deklination | N-declension (weak masculine nouns) |
| B2.1 | Passiv (Vorgang/Zustand) und Alternativen (man‑Form, ‑bar, lassen) | Passive voice and alternatives (one-form, -able, let) |
| B2.1 | Tekamolo (Satzgliedfolge) | Word order: Time-Manner-Place (then Object) |
| B2.1 | Verben mit Präpositionen; Präpositionaladverbien (da(r)‑/wo‑) | Verbs with prepositions; da-/wo- words (therewith, whereby) |
| B2.1 | Zweiteilige Konnektoren (sowohl … als auch; nicht nur …, sondern auch; weder … noch usw.) | Two-part connectors (both…and; not only…but also; neither…nor etc.) |
| B2.1 | es‑Verwendung (Subjekt-/Platzhalter‑es) | Use of ‘es’ (it) as subject or placeholder |
| B2.2 | Genitiv (erweitert; komplexe Präpositionen mit Genitiv) | Genitive case (advanced; complex prepositions with genitive) |
| B2.2 | Konditionale Nebensätze: Verkürzungen (Möchten Sie …, …) | Conditional clauses: shortened forms (Would you like…, …) |
| B2.2 | Nominalisierung/Nominalstil | Nominalisation (turning verbs into nouns, formal style) |
| B2.2 | Relativsätze (erweitert; Präposition + Relativ; was/wo‑Konstruktionen im Gebrauch) | Relative clauses (advanced; with prepositions; ‘what/where’ constructions) |
| B2.2 | dass‑Satz vs. Infinitiv mit zu (Ersetzung) | That-clause vs. infinitive with ‘to’ (replacement) |
And what about vocabulary?
There is already so much available on the internet. We recommend the vocabulary lists from the Goethe Institute:
A1 Vocabulary List from Goethe Institute
A2 Vocabulary List from Goethe Institute
B1 Vocabulary List from Goethe Institute
B2 Vocabulary List from Goethe Institute
We accept no liability for external links!