Cafetalk Tutor's Column

Juhannus: The Finnish Midsummer Celebration

Juhannus, the Finnish Midsummer celebration, is a magical time when the sun barely sets and nature ...

每日一詞：原諒 / Word of the Day: "原諒(yuán liàng) "

Word of the Day: Forgive "原諒" (yuán liàng) is a Chinese verb that means to forgive or pardon. It i...

Longest day of the year

Hello! I am a Japanese language teacher, Muu..Today, June 21 2024, is the summer solstice. It is th...

「想要」跟「想」的差別 / The Difference between"想要" (xiǎng yào) and "想" (xiǎng)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wsila9kjmRQIn Mandarin, "想要" (xiǎng yào) and "想" (xiǎng) sometimes ...

Canadian sweets: Nanaimo bars

Dating back to 1953, the Nanaimo bar is a Canadian dessert that is named after the city of Nanaimo ...

Expanding Vocabulary Through Contextual Learning

A robust vocabulary is crucial for achieving a high band score in “Lexical Resource”  in the IELTS ...

English Grammar Quiz!

Dear Cafetalk Community,How are you? I heard it's warming up in Japan and it's already hot! I hope ...

Summer Special

I Have had a crazy year, but now school has finished hopefully things will be calmer.Come join me f...

Sticky toffee pudding - a British dessert

Sticky toffee pudding is my favourite British dessert, and one of my all time favourite British foo...

Nostalgic Delights: Classic British Sweets from the 1970s

Nostalgic Delights: Classic British Sweets from the 1970s The sweet shops of the UK in the 1970s we...

Ukrainian sweets

Ukrainian sweets   Sweets are not only a source of pleasure for the taste, but are also considered ...

Achieving Grammatical Range and Accuracy in IELTS - Complex Sentence Structures

One of the key factors in achieving a high band score in the IELTS Writing and Speaking tests is th...

CAN WE USE 'AGO' WITH PRESENT PERFECT?

My students often ask me when I teach them present perfect that they have been told that they canno...

「雷」的用法介紹 / Introduction to the Use of "Spoiler"

  「雷」的用法介紹 在日常語言中，「雷」這個詞常被用來形容意外地遇到令人失望或低於預期的人或事，就好像踩到地雷一樣。這種情況在看電影、電視劇或者閱讀書籍時尤為常見。 例如，你可能會說：「...

Favorite book to read on the summer solstice（MOOMIN ）／夏至の日に読みたい本

I have loved Moomin novels since I was a child. There are 9 books in total. Since Moominvalley is l...

The Perfect Beach Read: "Bechamp or Pasteur" by Ethel Hume

Summer is here, and with it comes the age-old tradition of choosing the perfect beach read. While m...

IELTS CRITERIA 4 - Pronunciation Mastery: Intonation, Stress, and Rhythm

Achieving a high band score in the IELTS Speaking test goes beyond having a good vocabulary and gra...

At The Airport Quizz

Good afternoon all. How many times have you gone to Indonesia? If you often visit Indonesia or have...

每日一詞：無聊 / Word of the Day"無聊(Wúliáo)" / 每日一語：「無聊」

每日一詞：無聊   「無聊」是中文裡常見且多用途的字詞。它是一個狀態動詞（即形容詞），可以用來形容人或事物。因為是一個狀態動詞，所以常用的副詞，如「非常」、「很」、「有點」、「那麼」等等修飾程度的副...

Mastering English Through Visual Engagement

Discover the power of visual engagement in our specialized classes: Picture Description Practice an...

Jane Austen mysteries

This series of books by Stephanie Barron (they are all good, but the latest one is sad because it i...

Phrasal Verb - to take off

Image: Mohamed Hassan, pxhere   Phrasal verb:  to take off  [intransitive verb - no object]   1) To...

Absorbing reading – Riddle of the Sands

This exciting spy novel by Erskine Childers can be read anywhere – but it is especially suited to t...

Hydrangeas are in bloom!

Hello! I am a Japanese tutor, Muu.As I wrote in my last column, June is the rainy season called "Ts...

Self-introduction v.2.0

When you look at tutorials for 自己紹介（じこしょうかい; self-introductions) in Japanese, you might see somethi...

Detective books - fun to travel with to the beach or on any holiday!

I love to take a book with me when I go travelling, however, often I find it difficult to concentra...

Celebrating 700 lessons on Cafetalk

I am celebrating the milestone of teaching 700 lessons online for several reasons. Firstly, this ac...

「嗎」和 「呢」的差別 / 「嗎」と「呢」の違い / The Difference between 「嗎」and「呢」

「嗎」和 「呢」是華語中最常用、也最主要的兩個表達疑問的助詞，在華語中的使用有明顯的區別，它們主要用於不同類型的句子，具有不同的語氣功能。   這兩者之間最大的特徵與差別是：「嗎」的疑問句主要詢問的...

Why You Are Not Succeeding in English

Learning a new language is a challenging journey, and English, with its nuances and complexities, c...

Rainy season is coming (梅雨がやってくる)

Hello! I am a Japanese language tutor, Muu.. It's been cloudy and rainy in my city so far. June is...