The Elternabend, the parents’ evening, has a rhythm set by law. In Baden-Württemberg, the school law says: Die Klassenpflegschaft tritt mindestens einmal im Schulhalbjahr zusammen. The class’s parents and teachers meet at least once each school half-year. The meeting must also take place if a quarter of the parents, the class teacher or the head teacher asks for it. Hesse sets the same minimum of once each half-year, and there a fifth of the parents can ask for a meeting.
Sunday at Noon
Every Sunday around noon, six journalists from different countries discussed politics with Werner Höfer in the Internationaler Frühschoppen, the international morning drink. The program began on radio in 1952 and moved to television in 1953. Until 1970 it started at 11:30. When it was moved to 12:00, viewers protested, above all women. The series reached 1,874 broadcasts. It ended suddenly in 1987. It had emerged that in 1943 Höfer had written approvingly of the execution of the pianist Karlrobert Kreiten, and he was forced out. Just one week later, an almost identical program, the Presseclub, started in the same slot.
Monday at Five
In 1982, people began to meet every Monday at 5 p.m. in the Nikolaikirche in Leipzig for a Friedensgebet, a prayer for peace, as a protest against the arms race of the Cold War. Different groups prepared it each week. In 1989 the prayers became the starting point of the Monday demonstrations. On 9 October 1989, more than 70,000 people demonstrated peacefully in Leipzig against the East German regime. The prayer for peace still takes place every Monday, except during the summer break. Pünktlich um 17 Uhr beginnt es auch heute noch. It still begins punctually at 5 p.m.
A Week Cancelled
In April 2025, the newly elected Bundestag was due to sit in the week of 8 April. The CDU, CSU and SPD were negotiating a coalition, and they used their majority in the preliminary Council of Elders to cancel the sitting week. All opposition groups protested. The news service beck-aktuell noted that it rarely happens that the very mixed opposition agrees. The AfD’s chief whip, Bernd Baumann, called the decision unverantwortlich, irresponsible.
The Sitting Week
The Bundestag works in Sitzungswochen, sitting weeks, at least 20 a year. The Council of Elders sets their dates early, for the following year. The agendas, by contrast, are agreed shortly before each week. Every sitting week has the same shape. On Tuesday afternoon the parliamentary groups meet. On Wednesday the committees meet. Plenary sessions run all day on Thursday and until the afternoon on Friday. The second chamber, the Bundesrat, keeps its own rhythm. It meets in public session every three weeks, on a Friday, except during the summer break.
Wednesday Morning
The federal cabinet meets every Wednesday in the Chancellery, with the chancellor in the chair. The Bundestag builds its week around this. In sitting weeks, members question the government on Wednesday afternoon, after the cabinet meeting, and the session opens with reports on topics from that morning. On 3 August 2016, Chancellor Angela Merkel was on vacation. The Wednesday cabinet met anyway, with Vice Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel in the chair. Fewer ministers than usual sat at the table, and the meeting lasted about three quarters of an hour.
Jour Fixe
der Jour fixe — from French, a fixed day. Duden defines it as a meeting of a fixed group of people that takes place regularly, often on a set weekday. Its spelling note gives unser Jour fixe jeden Dienstagabend, our jour fixe every Tuesday evening. Its usage example is die Mitglieder haben sich schon über zu viele Jours fixes beschwert, the members have already complained about too many jours fixes.
turnusmäßig — as the rotation says. Duden defines der Turnus as a recurrence or order fixed in advance.