Three Point Language

31/01/2025

2025 LANGUAGE LESSONS (ENGLISH/GERMAN)
PRIVATE BOOKINGS NOW OPEN

I teach both English and German for adult and teenage language learners

- All sessions are conducted online via Zoom

Please choose from one of the two booking options below:

1. CONTACT ME DIRECTLY
(Australia-based students only)

Please contact me as soon as possible to reserve your preferred time slot.

Prices for direct bookings (in Australian dollars - private one-on-one sessions, payment via bank transfer)

- $80 per 90-minute session
- $45 per 45-minute session

2. BOOK VIA ITALKI

This booking method is available for students worldwide, and offers more session-length options and package discounts with payment via credit card.

For a full list of lesson types and prices, please visit my italki teacher profile pages

English lessons: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/english
German lessons: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/german

09/01/2025

Send a message to learn more

15/11/2024

Do you want to learn German?

Many students see German grammar as intimidating, but it's actually quite straightforward once you understand the logic of the structures.

Book my 'German Grammar Lesson for English Speakers'!
https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/german

Lesson description:

I teach German grammar through the medium of English, making these lessons ideal for English speakers wanting to improve their understanding of the intricacies of the German language.

This lesson type is suitable for beginners just starting out on their German learning journey, as well as intermediate learners who would like to reinforce and build on their existing knowledge.

In these structured lessons, I introduce you to the most important German grammatical concepts using a comprehensive set of lesson materials that I have created, with a particular focus on topic areas that typically present problems for English speakers. Since I am able to highlight the differences between English and German from the perspective of a fellow English speaker who learned German as an adult, you will gain an invaluable insight into the inner workings of the language, helping to clear up any points of confusion you may have about the logic of German constructions.

The lessons will be fully adapted to your needs, as I can always prepare new customised materials to answer any specific questions you may have about the German language and its grammatical framework. Additionally, the lessons are structured in such a way as to ensure that you will be practising your German speaking, pronunciation, and reading skills at the same time.

I provide all the necessary materials for use within the lessons, but I’m also happy to work with you using your own textbook or other resources if you prefer. Following each lesson, I will send you a PDF copy of the lesson notes for you to review, and I can also recommend further resources for independent study and set homework assignments if you wish.

I also offer some other lesson types focused on specific skills:
- 'Deep Dive into German via Story-Based Texts'
- 'Focus on German Pronunciation'
- 'German Conversation for Beginners'
- 'Language Coaching' (language learning support for self-studiers)

All lessons can be booked through my italki teacher profile page:
https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/german

14/11/2024

Book lessons with me through my italki profile page: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185

-- English lessons --

I specialise in helping adults develop the skills they need to successfully interact with native speakers in English. In my professionally guided communication lessons, I give my students the confidence to express themselves in clear and authentic English.

These lessons are most effective for:

- Adults with an intermediate or advanced level of English who have a good general understanding of English grammar, but need to improve their speaking, pronunciation, listening and comprehension skills to become more confident communicating with native English speakers

- Someone who plans to live in or visit Australia OR is a native German speaker

-- German lessons --

I teach German grammar through the medium of English, using a comprehensive set of lesson materials that I have created, with a focus on topic areas that typically cause the most problems for English speakers. My students find it particularly valuable to be able to gain insights from a fellow English speaker who has learned German as an adult.

These lessons are most effective for:

- English speakers in the beginner or intermediate stages of their German learning journey, especially those who want to improve their understanding of the intricacies of German grammar

** I also offer mathematics lessons on italki in English for high school students **

I'm Michelle, an online english teacher on italki, and can help you improve your english skills according to your goals. Feel free to contact me and book my lessons.

05/10/2024

I'm also now offering small group lessons for German learners!

For more information and to book, please visit my italki teacher profile page: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/german

I'm Michelle, an online english teacher on italki, and can help you improve your english skills according to your goals. Feel free to contact me and book my lessons.

31/08/2024

Recently, I've come to realise something important...

I'm a teacher. I'm not interested in 'developing my business'.

Yes, of course I would love more students and a passive income to ensure a steady cashflow even when I'm not working, but I absolutely love teaching (and I'm really, really good at it) and I hate marketing.

Teaching is my passion.

It's easy to lose sight of that, especially when scrolling through a plethora of posts about how important it is to diversify and 'build a brand'. Some people seem to be able to do it all, and I have spent a lot of time feeling guilty that I haven't yet started making a course, recording a podcast, writing a blog, etc, but that just isn't me.

I connect with my students one-on-one, I get to know them, and I help them (not in prerecorded videos, not via a podcast, and not in blog form). I work a lot, but I spend all of my working hours with my students, and that's more important to me than anything else. I'm poorer than others because of that, but in other ways, I'm richer.

Others can build businesses. I'm a teacher, that's who I am. I teach. And I'm okay with that.

Recently, I've come to realise something important... I'm a teacher. I'm not interested in 'developing my business'. Yes, of course I would love more…

23/05/2024

Language learners often make the mistake of using direct translations of common phrases in their own language to try to more naturally express themselves in a new language, but that hardly ever works! Instead, you need to find out how the concept/feeling is actually expressed by speakers of the other language, even if the literal meaning seems unusual.

For example:

In English, we would tend to say 'Yes, that makes sense', but the most natural German equivalent would be 'Ja, das ist doch logisch' ('yes, that is quite logical'), which sounds strange to English speakers, but is perfectly normal in German.

In German, a way to call someone a coward is 'Handschuh-schneeballwerfer' ('a person who is wearing gloves to throw snowballs'). Translating this directly into English would be sure to prompt some pretty confused looks!

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My 'English Communication Training' lessons are all about helping learners to express themselves in a way that will make sense to other English speakers, so that their thoughts, feelings, opinions and ideas don't get 'lost in translation'.

I'm Michelle, an online english teacher on italki, and can help you improve your english skills according to your goals. Feel free to contact me and book my lessons.

27/04/2024

Did you know that I teach English on italki?

Here's the link to my teaching profile: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185/english

I specialise in helping my students to develop the skills needed to speak and understand conversational English, with a particular focus on the type of English spoken in Australia.

I offer a few different lesson types, but the most popular by far are my 'Conversational English' lessons (at last count, I've taught over 2000 of them!).

These lessons are perfect for intermediate and advanced adult English learners who would like to improve their comprehension and speaking skills to increase their confidence when participating in conversations in English, become more comfortable communicating with native speakers, and gain a deeper understanding of the variety of English spoken in Australia.

The majority of the lesson time is devoted to informal conversation practice, during which we discuss a range of different topics. I usually send my students articles to read prior to each lesson in order to give us a focal point for our discussions, but they are also able to choose their own topics if they prefer.

Throughout the lessons, I correct grammatical errors and pronunciation mistakes, give vocabulary suggestions to help my students' English sound more authentic, and answer any questions that come up about Australia and Australian English. At the end of each lesson, I give feedback on my students' current English skill level, as well as personalised resource recommendations for further independent study.

If you know of anyone wanting to improve their English, please share this post!

I'm Michelle, an online english teacher on italki, and can help you improve your english skills according to your goals. Feel free to contact me and book my lessons.

22/03/2024

So many of my students are so surprised by how difficult it is to understand people once they arrive in Australia - preparing for a move to Australia by exclusively studying either American or British English is definitely not enough!

I specialise in helping people to be able to speak and understand general conversational English, with a particular focus on the English variety used in Australia.

You can book lessons with me via italki: https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185

From job opportunities to making friends: new research has highlighted the benefits of English language proficiency for skilled migrants.

04/03/2024

Do you fit the description of my ideal student below?

If yes, visit my italki teacher profile to book a lesson today!
https://www.italki.com/teacher/7637185

20/11/2023

I'm Michelle, an online english teacher on italki, and can help you improve your english skills according to your goals. Feel free to contact me and book my lessons.

27/06/2023

It can be difficult to see the light at the end of the tunnel…

Learning a language to a very high level is an extremely long-term undertaking for most people. That means that it can be challenging to truly appreciate how much progress you have made if you don’t take time to reflect.

Here are two anecdotes that demonstrate my progress in German over the years:

1.
In 2015, I was on a train platform in Germany. The train was delayed, and an elderly woman came up to me and started speaking to me in German. I didn’t really understand what she was saying (I presumed she was complaining about the delay), but I just nodded along as if I did. At one point, she stopped and asked, ‘Verstehen Sie mich?’ [Do you understand me?]. Even though that question was pretty much the only thing I understood, I said ‘Ja’ [Yes], because I was too embarrassed to admit I was only pretending to understand! She continued talking to me until the train finally arrived, and I spent the whole time worried that she would eventually realise I had no idea what she was saying.

2.
In 2022, I was on a busy train in Germany and overheard a group of people sitting nearby chatting. One of them was an English speaker, but the others were from Germany (I knew this because they had introduced themselves to each other at the beginning of the conversation). It wasn’t until about ten minutes into the conversation, when the English speaker said something like ‘Oh, I don’t know how to say that in German’, and then explained what he meant in English, that I realised that they had all been talking in German the entire time. I had assumed that they were speaking English, because I could understand everything with absolutely no effort, but the whole conversation was actually in German! It was a surreal experience, which made me truly appreciate just how far my German comprehension had come.

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The next time you start to feel frustrated at your (perceived) lack of progress in a language, think about what you CAN do now in the language, instead of focusing on what you can’t.

Take the time to reflect on how far you have come – you’ll probably surprise yourself!

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Photo from my travels: Eiertunnel, Bad Kleinen, Germany