Hello, and nice to meet you…
I’m Jake, and thanks for coming to my site. I’ve been teaching ESL and a few other subjects for over twenty years now, and I’m proud to say I’ve taught children and adults from over one hundred different countries.
I speak some Spanish (poorly) and some Japanese (also poorly). Luckily for me, one does not need to be a master of many languages in order to effectively teach English.
During my summers, I enjoy teaching English to amazing teenagers from all over the world while showing them the sights of America.
Throughout the years, my students and I have come together in a variety of settings, but my goal has always been the same: to use the limited amount of time we have together to give them the English skills they’ll likely need the most in the future. Hopefully, I can do the same for you!
On a side note, I am here to meet some great people and help them learn English, not to get rich. That is why I try to keep my prices lower than most others on the web. Even so, if for some reason you need some help and can’t pay me in full at the moment, let me know the situation and we might be able to work something out.
My credentials:
coaching Services
What I can promise you:
Targeted lessons
I understand that you are learning English for a reason. This reason will be reflected in your lessons. Do you need vocabulary and conversation practice to help you with your job? Or maybe you’d just like to be able to go to the grocery store or the post office without any issues.
Whatever the goal is, let’s work on it together. I will take the time to get to know you first, before crafting your plan to success. If you’re local, I’ll even be glad to be your tour guide and show you around town. I enjoy your company!
Work around your schedule
You decide when and how often you want to meet. As well as how much homework you want me to give you. Would you like a test? I can do that too.
Help with school or work assignment/ citizenship test
Though I will most certainly not write anything for you, I’ll be glad to help you with developing, editing or proofreading a work. Also, if you (or your children) need some kind of help with a citizenship test, or just want to learn more about American history or geography, I am an experienced Social Studies teacher as well, so I will be glad to help you with that!
What no one can promise you:
Accent reduction
You have probably seen advertisements for these “accent reduction” classes all over the web lately. They are nonsense- don’t waste your money.
Make no mistake, if you are pronouncing words wrongly, I will help you with that. But the truth is, there is absolutely nothing wrong with having an accent; it does not mean there is anything wrong with your pronunciation. We all have accents- mine just happens to be American. Generally, your accent will naturally decrease over time, but the truth is, most people I know consider it kind of cool to have a bit of a foreign accent!
TOEFL miracles
You may have also seen these so-called “TOEFL Prep” or even “IELTS Prep” classes all over the web lately. They are also nonsense- don’t waste your money.
As someone who has proctored these tests many times, I can tell you that they are designed to be assessments of overall English ability. You can’t “trick” your way into a good score. You would be much better off working with a coach to figure out your specific weaknesses and targeting them.
If you really want to prepare for an upcoming TOEFL, the best way is to just go to the ETS website and take one of their free practice tests.
Question: Do you offer any targeted workshops?
Sometimes. Anything I do offer will be clearly announced below. Hopefully, as our numbers grow, I will be able to offer them more frequently. For now, you can always check out my friend and fellow English teacher Julie’s website. She has been doing this a little longer than I have, so her site has a few more options than mine. She is a great ESL teacher and one of the few on the internet that I can fully recommend without any hesitation.
“Thanks for visiting!”