Educational Trip To Berlin For International Schools

From 100m height you can see a spectacular view of Berlin. The fastest Elevator in Europe takes you up in 20 seconds to the 24th floor and the multimedia open air exhibition about the history of the Potsdamer Platz is included in your price.

Take your students on a 700 year journey of Berlin’s murky history, as their full cast of entertaining theatrical actors bring to life gripping stories of the capital’s most infamous characters and events, from medieval times to the 1900’s.

Two millennia of German Jewish history are on display, in two buildings – one of which is a new addition by architect Daniel Libeskind. German Jewish culture is overshadowed by the Holocaust –  an event that evokes the enormous emotions and themes. Students can see at The Jewish Museum how Jews in Germany have responded to their history through their art.

Checkpoint Charlie, the most well-known of the border crossings between East and West, is now one of Berlin’s most popular tourist attractions. At the Checkpoint Charlie Museum unique artefacts including many of the contraptions used by those who tried to cross illegally, and works inspired by the division, will vividly bring the past to life for your students.

East Berliners breached the Wall on 9 November 1989, and between February and June of 1990, 118 artists created unique works of art on its longest-remaining section. This open-air gallery serves as a memorial for freedom. One of the best-known works, by Russian artist Dmitri Vrubel, depicts Brezhnev and Honnecker (the former East German leader) kissing.

This interactive, walk-through exhibition is perfect for groups studying European history as it focuses on an 800-year journey through Germany’s capital city. Guided tours include a visit to an original nuclear bomb shelter housed under the exhibition.

Top off your trip of Germany’s capital with time exploring the shops of Ku’damm and picking up your last-minute souvenirs. This grand avenue is dotted with shops from high-street brands to fashion designers and can be seen in the work of many artists who capture the rows of trees that line this boulevard.

The Berlin Wall Memorial is an open-aired exhibition documenting the impact of a divided city while paying tribute to the victims of Communist tyranny and those who risked their lives for freedom in the Western Block. The Documentation Centre (scheduled to re-open November 9th 2014) provides students with an historical overview of events in the build up to the construction of the Berlin Wall until the present day.

Image by Ansgar Koreng, via Wikimedia Commons

Located in the Prenzlauer Berg region of Berlin, the museum depicts everyday life in the GDR. From typical everyday products to examples of fashion, industrial design and artistic symbolism of objects to represent the GDR political system, students are provided with a unique insight into the perception of life within the GDR.

By © Stephan Klonk/Stiftung Haus der Geschichte CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Documenting the history of Berlin’s most famous border crossing, the Black Box at Checkpoint Charlie also highlights the symbolic significance of the Wall in the division between Germany and the rest of Europe. Through the use of photographs and media stations, students will be able to interpret events, emotions and public reaction to life inside East Germany.

The hugely impressive 360 degrees artistic interpretation of life within divided Germany gives students the chance to reflect on the daily routine of children and adults through the eyes of an artist who grew up in the well-known Kreuzberg area of West Berlin. This alternative view from ‘X-Berg’, which was home to many immigrants, portrays the various elements of life that remain in the memory of the artist, Asisi.

Photo by asisi F&E GmbH CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Germany’s dynamic history is placed in a European context in the exhibition German History in Pictures and Documents, set in Berlin’s baroque Zeughaus, or former Arsenal. Temporary special exhibitions are housed in the modern exhibition hall, designed by IM Pei. This spacious new building has a glass and steel foyer, with a striking helical staircase. ©️Thomas Bruns