Gallery • 2 Photos

Used with written permission from Kim Brandt

Junior Kim Brandt, right, and her host sister pose for a picture on a bridge in Frankfurt during Brandt's trip to Germany in the summer of 2015. Brandt plans to study in Germany after high school.

Experts say to truly master a language, one must practice it regularly and experience it in its natural setting; junior Kim Brandt does just this.

Brandt said she attended the Twin Cities German Immersion School before high school, but the everyday interactions with native-speaking family members contribute most to her fluency.

“My mom and her whole side of the family is German,” Brandt said.

Brandt said she takes the highest German class this year, which she also took last year. She said she participated in the trip to Germany last summer and enjoyed it, though it was not her first time in the country.

“Staying with complete strangers for a week was pretty weird but turned out great and I’m still in touch with my host sister,” Brandt said.

German teacher Shari Fox, who has had Brandt in her International Baccalaureate (IB) German class for three years, said Brandt has advanced German-speaking skills.

“She has really good conversational fluency,” Fox said. “She’s really good at attaining the level of fluency of a native speaker.”

While Brandt’s German skills impress, Fox said this doesn’t seem to go to Brandt’s head.

“Kim is really excellent in German and she’s also really modest. She’s not intimidating at all because she’s humble,” Fox said.

Brandt said she sees German and Germany playing major roles in her future as she hopes to continue her studies in Germany.

“I would like to go to college in Germany after high school because it is free and so beautiful over there,” Brandt said.

German, according to Brandt, provides a unique link between her and her relatives who speak it. At the same time, she said she takes pleasure in speaking the language.

“It is fun to speak and I feel more connected with my family when I speak it,” Brandt said.