building confidence and competence in
English as a Second Language
Naturally
About
The experience of being American and living outside the U.S.A. for two years, improving my second language (Spanish) and teaching English as a Second Language, taught me not only the importance of resilience but also how to learn better.
In Panama I experienced the impact of accent, and knew that my neutral accent could be helpful to non-native learners.
In Mexico, where I’ve been for nine months, I’ve enjoyed the benefits of learning Spanish while doing things I love – textiles, music and exercise! I thought how great it could be to share this method with language learners.
I took theater classes in person before leaving the U.S.A., and online while traveling, and I really got the benefits of a supportive teacher. I developed a commitment to being encouraging, being supportive of taking risks and seeing that “making mistakes” is an essential aspect of development.
Adolfo S., Project Manager
“The difference was noticed immediately!”
Brigid is a great teacher! I speak English fluently, but I had an accent and my speech just didn’t sound natural.
She has helped me (and continues to help me) reduce it and increase my understandability.
The difference was noticed immediately!
I totally recommend her!
Denisse R., Elementary Teacher
“Brig is a very dynamic English teacher!”
Our sessions are beneficial as well as enjoyable!
You can feel confident when you talk to her!
Ahmet A., Engineer
“She always encourages me and helps me improve….”
Improving my pronunciation, speaking confidently in a foreign language and reducing my accent were few of my goals when I started working with her.
In just a couple of months I notice that I’m already getting closer and closer to my goals. I have been inspired to define new goals to make continuous improvement possible.
She always encourages me and helps me improve my knowledge and ability to speak in English.
SESSION
OVERVIEW
The intent of all sessions is to support each student’s needs and preferences, and to create an environment where learning, increased confidence and courage occur naturally.
Type: All sessions are online, one-on-one and last 50 minutes.
Platform: Skype, Zoom or your choice
Price: 50 min. session $25 USD
Two sessions or more per week are $22 ea session
Prepaid
Trial session: $2 for 25 min.
Conversation
Conversation without any pressure: all the time you need to think and formulate comments and questions.
We can discover topics as we go or you may bring them!
Playing with Words
The creative approach used to learn and practice your English will do more than enrich your ability to speak. These activities may seem fun because they use a different part of your brain, improving "soft skills."
Wellness and Fitness
We can talk about your experiences with these subjects, and if needed, I have tons of experience in these areas.....
Pronunciation
Pronunciation in a second language is exactly like building muscles: without regular workouts, your performance is going to suffer.
It's also essential to train intonation, stress and duration of sounds.
It's also essential to train intonation, stress and
Music
The richness of music provides an abundance of opportunities to talk about: what music you like, songs you like, reading, understanding and practicing speaking the lyrics, emotive words, history....
Test Preparation
Taking the IELTS or TEOFL or maybe the SAT? Practicing with a native speaker with extensive formal education in the U.S.A. will be invaluable.
Session Details
Conversation
Conversation sessions are perfect if you’d like to practice talking like you would naturally, in your everyday life. Sometimes conversations can be especially helpful in identifying areas needing improvement.
For practicing the vocabulary and the thinking on your feet skills you’ll need in every day life, conversation sessions are very beneficial, especially with a native speaker. We can talk about whatever you like or whatever comes up.
Pronunciation
Your pronunciation is the single most important factor that determines if you are understood or not.
These sessions will be led by a highly trained native speaker with a neutral accent to help you learn how to improve your pronunciation.
Because English is not a phonetic language, learning and practicing pronunciation should be an integral part of your language learning process as early in the process as possible.
Playing with Words
Innovative activities activate your brain in fun and different ways (while learning and practicing English). Using various techniques, including those developed in Google’s Search Inside Yourself program, these activities can train you mental resilience and build your confidence.
These sessions provide students the same or more benefit as well as develop more confidence and mental resilience.
You will find these sessions to be beneficial in many ways.
Studying Songs & Music
What aspects of music do you most enjoy? Using something you love, like music, as content, language learning becomes integrated with the subject at hand. Lyrics, song history, musical instruments (whatever you choose) can effectively be used to learn and practice your second language.
This style of learning is referred to as Content and Language Integrated Learning (CLIL). It’s regarded as an effective, even accelerated, method of developing language skills.
Topics could include whatever interests you: genres, bands, the history and culture of certain kinds of music, what lyrics mean, etc.
Wellbeing & Wellness
Have you tried, or are interested in trying, a new health and wellness practice?
Building your conversation practice in this area could have long term benefits, even beyond your second language.
I’m a long time meditator, exerciser and am currently pursuing certification in Pilates. I’ve trained with Google’s Search Inside Yourself Mindful program and have some activities from that program we can use, as we build your ESL skill set.
Test Preparation
There’s so much to do to prepare for your IELTS, TOEFL or SAT. What would help you most? After a short conversation with you I can help you select an area to focus on for improvement.
I have a number of tools we can use, we can review your material, or we can, of course, practice reading comprehension and comprehensive answers.
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Contact Us
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