FAQ
Questions, tips & insights
It is likely that most visitors of the Boost Your Dutch website do not speak Dutch yet. In our approach, we have an international perspective and our aim is 100% understanding. Therefore, we chose to write this website in English with a few “Dutch touches” to give you a taste of the Dutch language and to show you that it is possible to speak a little Dutch immediately from the beginning onwards.
During lessons, we will speak Dutch as much as possible and use English as support language. We start with some basic words and sentences in Dutch and over time the proportion of Dutch expands naturally, e.g. texts will be increasingly in Dutch, helping you to get used to reading Dutch in a comfortable manner.
Also, grammar explained in English in the first course, will be repeated in Dutch during the second course, etc.
In the last course of the Boost Your Dutch programme (Nederlands 5) we review the Boost-Your-Dutch-Grammar- Document, which is completely in Dutch, and we are confident that you will be able to read and understand all 165 pages yourself!
Dutch Lessons
If you have an idea of your language level (starter = A0, A1, A2, B1, B2), please compare it to our course levels for an initial check:
| Entry level | Target level | |
| Nederlands 1 (NL1) | A0 | A1 |
| Nederlands 2 (NL2) | A1 | A2- |
| Nederlands 3 (NL3) | A2- | A2 |
| Nederlands 4 (NL4) | A2 | B1- |
| Nederlands 5 (NL5) | B1- | B1 |
| B1-Training | B1-, B1 | B1 |
| Advanced Training | B1 | B1+ |
| Online Conversation | A2 | A2+ |
| Speak better in 8 weeks | A2, B1 | A2+, B1+ |
| In-person Conversation | A2, B1, B2 | A2+, B1+, B2+ |
| Custom-made Lessons | A0, A1, A2, B1 | t.b.d. |
Some skills are easier to learn than other skills, e.g. speaking is generally more difficult than reading. If you are in the process of learning Dutch, your language level is likely to vary among the different language skills (listening, speaking, writing and reading). Therefore, please regard these general language levels as an indication.
For more details on our courses, please visit the Courses pages on this website.
If you have any questions about your language level or the suitability of our courses, let us know. We also offer a free online appointment (e.g. Skype) to discuss your questions and personal training needs in more detail.
Contact us by phone/WhatsApp/e-mail, we are happy to help you
Contact us by phone/WhatsApp/e-mail and tell us a little about yourself and the course(s) you are interested in. We will answer your questions and propose possible options for you.
We also offer a free online appointment (e.g. Skype) to discuss your personal training needs, get acquainted and answer any further questions you may have.
After finding a suitable course and selecting an available time slot, we will send you an e-mail with the course details and the request to confirm your participation.
Dutch courses are started throughout the year and can be scheduled Monday-Thursday, depending upon your availability and free time slots at Boost Your Dutch.
Regular time slots for lessons are:
10.00-12.00 | 13.00-15.00 | 16.00-18.00 | 19.00-21.00 |
Note: for evening classes (19.00-21.00), the minimum is 2 participants.
Contact us by phone/WhatsApp/e-mail to discuss a suitable time slot to start with your lessons.
Of course, it is important that you are participating in a Dutch course at the right level, but it is also important that you are proficient in English, as the English language is used as a support language.
Dutch lessons are exempt from VAT (BTW), i.e. the VAT rate = 0%. The price you see on the website is the price you pay for your course.
Course fees should be paid per person, unless otherwise agreed. You transfer the total amount on your invoice by bank transfer. All information required for your payment will be on the invoice.
Would you like to participate in a particular course, but you have not yet received an invoice? Let us know and we will send you the invoice a.s.a.p. Do not forget to provide your full name and address details, as they are both legally required for preparing the invoice.
Please note that your fee must be paid at least 3 working days before the start of your course.
Boost Your Dutch is located at: Van Weerden Poelmanlaan 7, 1185HA Amstelveen.
The training location is within walking distance from:
- Amstelveen Stadshart (town centre)
- Central bus station Amstelveen
- Tramline 5, stop: Binnenhof
- Tramline 25, stop: Ouderkerkerlaan
- Closest bus stop: Hueseplein, buses 347, 348, 357 & 358 (2 minute walk)
- Paid car parking is available at a reduced rate for clients.
Boost Your Dutch is a complete language programme, which consists of five Dutch courses bringing you from beginner to intermediate level.
Boost Your Dutch Course features
- Courses generally consist of 8 lessons of 2 hours.
- Lessons combine native insights and ‘learn by doing’.
- Custom-made materials are included. No books required.
- Easy access to online audio, vocabulary and exercise tools.
- Lessons are in-person: individually, in pairs or in small groups.
For more details of each course, visit the Boost Your Dutch Courses page on this website.
The 5 courses of the Boost Your Dutch programme include custom-made materials. No books required.
There are also no books required for the following courses:
- Custom-made Lessons
- Online Conversation
- Speak better in 8 weeks
You need to buy a book for the following courses:
- B1-Training, book: Vooruit! Voorbereiding op het Staatsexamen NT2 I by Annet Berntsen
- Advanced Training, book: 77 puntjes op de i by Emily Palmer
- In-person Conversation, book: Spreken met beeld by Emily Palmer
Learning Dutch vocabulary takes time. Many people think that Dutch grammar is the most difficult part of learning Dutch, but learning enough words to have meaningful conversations in Dutch can be challenging for some students. The secret to success is to keep learning new Dutch vocabulary inside and outside the classroom.
Building Dutch vocabulary during the Boost Your Dutch programme:
Boost Your Dutch | New words | Total vocabulary |
Nederlands 1 (NL1) | 675 | 675 |
Nederlands 2 (NL2) | 525 | 1200 |
Nederlands 3 (NL3) | 250 | 1450 |
Nederlands 4 (NL4) | 550 | 2000 |
Nederlands 5 (NL5) | 500 | 2500 |
The Dutch courses (NL1-NL5) in the Boost Your Dutch programme do not specifically train for these exams, as the focus of these courses is to use the Dutch language in practice. During lessons, you are using Dutch actively and you learn how to construct Dutch sentences yourself.
Having said so, these courses lay an excellent foundation and with some training on typical exam questions, our students have successfully taken exams on A2, B1 and B2 level.
If you want help preparing for one of the official Dutch exams, please look at our options for Flexible Lessons for example, the B1-Training will prepare you for the Dutch “Staatsexamen I”.
If you want to train a specific skill for one of the exams, Custom-made Lessons might also be an effective solution
In CEFR (Common European Framework of Reference for Languages) 6 language levels are distinguished.
The first 3 CEFR-levels are:
- A1 = Breakthrough or beginner
- A2 = Waystage or elementary
- B1 = Threshold or intermediate.
Some skills are easier to learn than other skills, e.g. speaking is generally more difficult than reading. For each skill, you can see in which Boost Your Dutch course this skill is trained, for example: A1 Listening = NL1 and NL2.
Quizlet is an online vocabulary tool, which is used at Boost Your Dutch to learn Dutch vocabulary. This tool can be used on your computer, but also as an app on your mobile phone or tablet.
Tips & Insights
Boost Your Dutch is going to be present on Instagram shortly and we would like to know, which types of posts you are personally interested in. Are they:
- Dutch language tips
- short stories in Dutch
- quick exercises
- fun challenges/polls
- information on (new) courses
- any other ideas?
We want to help you practice your Dutch, as it can be challenging to do so, when you live/work in an international setting.
Take small steps and use Dutch, whenever you have the opportunity. A few Dutch lines or a quick exercise now-and-then, will help you integrate Dutch more easily into your daily life, which is a key success factor for learning Dutch as an international.
Let us know, what would help you. We look forward to your feedback!
As you probably already experienced, the weather in the Netherlands can be very changeable. Therefore, do as the locals do and check one of these weather apps, before you get onto your bike:
The Dutch word for please has an informal form and a formal form:
- alsjeblieft = the informal form of please
- alstublieft = the formal form of please
In Dutch, the singular pronoun “you” has 2 forms: the informal form “je” and the formal form “u”.
These 2 different forms are also used in the Dutch words for please:
- Informal: je => alsjeblieft.
- Example: Kan je me helpen alsjeblieft? Can you help me please?
- Formal: u => alstublieft.
- Example: Kan u me helpen alstublieft? Can you help me please?
Speak like a Dutch native, use alsjeblieft informally and alstublieft only with u.
To acquire basic Dutch vocabulary quickly, download our free Easy to learn Dutch Vocabulary List and start learning those words first.
Starting with Dutch words, which are similar to English words, will make it easier to remember them and also help you to get used to learning words again. Many of us haven’t had to learn words in another language since secondary school, so you might need to get used to doing this again.
Did you use this tip? Let us know, how it went. We value your feedback.
Building up your Dutch vocabulary takes time and effort. Your learning process will be much quicker if you not only record new words during class, but also in other places regardless of where you are. “Eavesdropping” on public transport is a great way to learn new words 🙂
Try to learn a few new words each day and record them in a small notebook or on your mobile phone:
5 words/day = 35 words/week = 150 words/month = 1000 words/0.5 year
10 words/day = 70 words/week = 300 words/month = 2000 words/0.5 year
Required number of words at each language level:
A1 = 1000 words, A2 = 2000 words, B1 = 5000 words, B2 = 10.000 words
It may come as a surprise, but English, Dutch and German are related languages. Related languages share the same origin, making it easier to learn one language if you already speak the other.
Consequently, internationals who already have a good command of English and/or German may benefit from pointing out similar (grammar) rules and vocabulary between Dutch and English or German in order to accelerate their learning process.
The better you understand these languages, the more similarities you are likely to detect. For instance, quite a few Dutch and English words share a common root, which makes them easily recognizable for (new) language learners.
Here are some examples:
| better | book | heart | he is | house |
| beter | boek | hart | hij is | huis |
| man | seven | shadow | sister | water |
| man | zeven | schaduw | zuster | water |
Did you realise you already speak “een beetje Nederlands” (a little Dutch)?
English word | Dutch word | Comments | |
1 | boss | baas | Same meaning |
2 | coleslaw | koolsla | Literal translation: “cabbage salad” |
3 | cookie | koekje | Dutch biscuit, sometimes also pronounced as “koekie” |
4 | cruise | kruisen | Meaning of this Dutch verb is to cross |
5 | landscape | landschap | Same meaning |
6 | rucksack | rugzak | Literal translation: “back bag” also known as back pack |
7 | skate | schaats | Same meaning |
8 | to spook | spook | Dutch meaning: ghost, English meaning: to frighten somebody |
9 | waffle | wafel | Same meaning |
10 | Yankee | Jan-Kees | A combination of two Dutch boys’ names: Jan and Kees |