The verb always comes second
CEFR A1 · part 1
edumaterial's parts within the level. The European framework does not subdivide them.
Reading German aloud: ei, ie, z, v, w, chReading any German word aloud, knowing which letters sound different from how they are…Every noun takes a capital letterCapitalising every noun, and using those capitals when reading to find what a long…der, die or das: the gender of nounsChoosing der, die or das, and spotting the endings that give the gender away without…sein and haben: where they part company with EnglishConjugating sein and haben in the present, and knowing which one each sentence needs.The present tense: six endings and the vowel that changesConjugating any regular verb in the present, and spotting the verbs that change their…Asking questions in German: no auxiliary, and the seven W-wordsMaking both kinds of question: the yes/no one by inverting, and the one that starts with…The rule, in three lines
In a statement the conjugated verb always takes the SECOND slot. Only one thing fits in front of it: the subject, or a complement. If you put the complement first, the subject moves behind the verb. Heute gehe ich ins Kino.
The usual slip. Starting with «today» or «tomorrow» and leaving the subject in front of the verb, as English does. Out comes «Heute ich gehe», with two elements before the verb. There can only be one.
Why it catches you out. English is rigid subject-verb, so «Today I go» comes out word for word. But you know inversion already: «Never have I seen», «Only then did he understand», and every question you ask. German does that whenever anything but the subject opens the sentence.