Cafetalk 講師專欄

How an Alphabet Reform Shaped Modern Turkish

When people start learning Turkish, they are often surprised by how phonetic it is. What you see is...

It is Time For Tea!

Did you know that 'it is teatime' , can mean different things, depending on where you live in the U...

【一週兩次・讀台灣】徐若熙加盟軟銀鷹 喊話挑戰大聯盟

【一週兩次・讀台灣】 教科書を飛び出し、台湾の「今」を知り、生きた台湾華語をマスターしませんか？ 毎週2回、最新の台湾ニュースを題材に、台湾特有の文化、時代を映す言い回し、そして興味深い社会現象を...

Confidence: The Unstudied Rule of English

There is a persistent illusion among many learners of English that confidence must wait for correct...

Not Cold, Just Considerate: Japan’s Silent Rules for Language Learners

Japan can feel incredibly welcoming—and sometimes strangely hard to read.   You didn’t do anything ...

The Director of Your Own Life

Pull up a chair, grab a coffee, and let’s get real for a minute. After the whirlwind of filming my...

Daily English Upgrade #011: Business Skill — Clarifying in meetings (“So you mean…?”)

In meetings, clarity beats “perfect English.” Clarify: So you mean (that)…? Do you mean (that)…? Co...

Short BBC documentary videos with subtitles - 短いBBCのドキュメンタリービデオ

https://www.bbc.com/reel/ BBC Reel is a collection of short documentary videos from the BBC about v...

French the language of love

  I've always loved languages, and French is a favorite. I decided to become a French tutor during ...

☆ Grammar Challenge ☆ January Grammar Clinic Quiz ☆

It’s already February, which means the January Grammar clinic has closed.  I’d like to thank everyo...

給中級學習者的口說進化課：寫作

  學了兩、三年的中文，你是否常煩惱： 雖然日常交流沒問題，但一遇到複雜的話題，就只能用簡單的詞彙和斷斷續續的短句？ 其實，想要突破口說的瓶頸，其中一個祕訣就在於「寫作」。 寫作並非只是為了把字寫漂...

What Teaching English Taught Me

 Why Did I Became a Teacher? Motivation / Career / Learning The simple answer is...   I became ...

Filming March 6th to 14th in the UK: Working on "Little Bits of Me

Hello from the set! The energy here is incredible. As I mentioned in my previous "Cafe talk" posts,...

Daily English Upgrade #010: JP Trap Fix — “Discuss about” → “Discuss”

Quick fix: √ discuss + topicX discuss about + topic Correct examples: Let’s discuss the plan. We di...

10 Grammar Conflicts That Can Cause Confusion

Misunderstandings often happen as a result of a breakdown in communication: what the speaker said v...

【一週兩次・讀台灣】詐騙包裹手法翻新 專家提醒留意賣家名稱與包裹外觀

【一週兩次・讀台灣】 教科書を飛び出し、台湾の「今」を知り、生きた台湾華語をマスターしませんか？ 毎週2回、最新の台湾ニュースを題材に、台湾特有の文化、時代を映す言い回し、そして興味深い社会現象を...

When and why did you decide to become a teacher?

Rather than simply becoming an instructor, my wish to teach on CafeTalk stemmed from a desire to pr...

SHOWREEL

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the cafe! I’m still pinching myself. As many of you know, I’ve...

Daily English Upgrade #009: Micro-Pattern — “What I mean is…”

Great when you want to clarify (and sound calm). Pattern: What I mean is + (clarification). Example...

My Top 5 English Corrections (From a Guy Who Once Complimented Someone’s “Fur”)

  Before we begin, I have a confession to make. A few years ago when one of my wife's friends visit...

Speak Better English: Embarrassing Stories #001

Speak Better English: Embarrassing Stories #001 Work / Communication / New beginnings “Please t...

The dimension of my spot in the land of resurrection

The Crowd's Collective-yet-individual Consciousness in the Land of Resurrection How the collective...

English Idioms Challenge - Week 2

Hey all! This is the second weekly English learning challenge: to try & use this idiom in your ...

More winter weather words

Photo: Snow piled high on a car on my street Once again I’m sipping on tea and looking out my wind...

The Art of the Brave Word: Finding Your Voice Across Worlds

Have you ever felt like Bilbo Baggins stepping out of the Shire for the first time? That tiny flutt...

How I Became a Teacher (Almost by Accident)

At junior high school in the UK, I studied one of the few computer courses available at the time. T...

THE SILENT SECRET: Winning "Best Thriller Screenplay" in Los Angeles!

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the cafe! I’m still pinching myself as I write this. As many of...

When and why did I decide to become a teacher?

I decided to become a teacher when I realized how much fulfillment I found in helping others learn ...

Daily English Upgrade #008: Say It Better — “Maybe” (natural softening phrases)

“Maybe” is fine — but these give you better control. Soft “maybe”: Maybe. It depends. More natural:...

Sweet Traditions of Finnish Winter and Spring

In Finland, winter and early spring are long and cold, but they are made warmer by traditional swee...