"Japanese: I first gained interest in Japanese through anime, and am encouraged that many young learners are the same! I lived in Japan for 4 years, including studying at a Japanese language school full-time for 2 years. I passed the N2 level of the JLPT, but more importantly to me, have communicated with friends and Japanese teachers primarily/exclusively in Japanese. Compared to the average native Japanese speaker, I am more conscious of the differences between English and Japanese, and thus better understand common difficulties and can explain them. I am familiar with Japanese textbook series such as Genki, Japanese from Zero, and Minna no Nihongo.

ESL: I taught English for 1 year in Beijing, China and 4 years in Tokyo, Japan. While in China I did teacher training to help native Chinese use English in their classrooms, as well as teach Elementary students. In Japan, I taught at a conversation school for 3 years (2 years part-time), mostly helping adults with business or travel English. I also did TOEFL, TOEIC, and IELTS teaching. For my last year in Japan, I worked as an ALT at an Elementary school. I have a TEFL certificate.

AP English: In High School, I excelled in my AP English classes, consistently received a score of 7 or above on my practice essays, got 5s on both the AP Lang and AP Lit tests, and got above 700 on each test section in the SAT. I noticed common patterns for questions and helped my friends with tips.

Overall, as a language teacher I find it satisfying to witness my students' growth! I think many appreciate that I can relate to them more culturally and understand the reasons for their common grammatical mistakes, while correcting them gently. I tailor lessons to individuals and am flexible in my approach. Through my varied language experience, I better understand how to clearly communicate, and how to help others do the same.

Please feel free to ask me questions!" less...