“Guten Tag” was the phrase of the day here Saturday as more than 100 high school students studying German poured onto the TCU campus.Dallas/Fort Worth area high school students spent the day with about 40 TCU German minors, who served as hosts, speaking only German and learning all about the culture at “Deutscher Samstag” or “German Saturday,” said Jeffrey Todd, associate professor of German.

The event was sponsored by the North Texas chapter of the American Association of Teachers of German; it rotates annually to different universities. This is the first year TCU has hosted the event, said Scott Williams, associate professor of German.

After getting off the bus at 8:30 a.m., the high school visitors received “passports” and attended numerous seminars. They had a typical German meal on the veranda of the University Recreation Center and participated in a German language competition where the best performers won prizes, Williams said.

Heiko Schlesiger, assistant professor of German studies, said participants were given the opportunity to take part in different German activities, including Easter egg painting and traditional folk songs and dances.

So far, Todd said, he has received positive feedback from all the high school students who attended.

“We are enthusiastic and want to build up the German department any way we can, and hosting events like this is just one way to get the students involved and immersed in the language,” Williams said.