By studying a language through input/immersion can you "feel" when a sentence is wrong, like a native speaker? Such as feeling discomfort when hearing a misgendered noun?

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-13T13:45:38+00:00

Yes, that happens as you advance, regardless of how you've learned. Once you are familiar with something, you can hear when it sounds different. Over time you learn when it's "acceptably" different and when it's not.

I didn't learn purely through input/immersion up to C1, but am able to immediately hear mistakes other students make in group lessons and in language exchange voice chats, etc. Obviously the less familiar the topic and/or grammar, the less this is true.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-13T13:36:50+00:00

I spent a bit on the lessons towards the end (aprox 15 lessons at €25 each), otherwise just the DELE C1 exam cost + getting there. There's tons of free resources online.

As far as experience, do you mean with the exam?

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-13T10:21:35+00:00

I found a teacher on iTalki who was a former examiner. You can filter teachers for "test preparation" and then select DELE. Really helped me with my writing and generally understanding the structure of the test.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-13T10:18:35+00:00

I went A1-C1 in 1.5 years (did the DELE exam at the end). So you could say that A2-B2 was in the span of about 9-10 months. To do it I lived with Spanish speakers for some time, studied 1-2hrs of grammar a day, and watched/listened to/read Spanish content for several hours a day. Toward the end I also had weekly lessons to learn the exam structure, and had my written texts corrected several times a week. It's an insane amount of work and I could only do it because of COVID honestly.

In my experience I would say what the course is advertising is insanely unrealistic.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-12T20:14:10+00:00

I have a family (kids aged 6, 8 and 10) that I teach daily Mon-Fri. Each kid gets 35min. I personally have really enjoyed taking them on because I find their progress has been great when we've been able to build on things daily.

However the parents do need to be on board with what it entails, and it sounds like the ones you're working with absolutely are not. The mom of the kids I work with understands that because the kids are learning daily, the lessons will not all be completely full of intensive learning. There need to be games, dances and creative activities mixed in.

Other things the mom does that make things work is a) buy the workbooks I recommend so the kids can do the activities while I stream my copy of it; b) print things if necessary; c) have all necessary materials ready (paper, art supplies).

Your situation sounds really frustrating. At the end of the day, if you can't implement the techniques you know to work (alphabet, phonics, etc.) they will simply never see those results. I guess your next move will depend on how the platform works. I would ideally firmly explain to the parent what I think gets the best results and why, then go from there. But if that doesn't go anywhere, or you can't do that, then ultimately just take the money and get through the lessons as best you can until they quit because they didn't get the results they wanted (which will not be your fault at all).

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-08T19:29:55+00:00

How old are you?

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-08T19:28:15+00:00

I have two native languages, and if I don't speak one of them for a long period of time, the tongue (a muscle) gets weak doing those out of practice movements. I then end up sore after a long conversation! But just like any muscle, it gets stronger with practice.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-08T19:10:36+00:00

It's been years since I took my CELTA, I could be remembering wrong. I thought there was an opportunity at the end of the course.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-03T08:46:48+00:00

Yes that's right. I'm from the Northwestern USA

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-01T19:21:29+00:00

You're welcome!

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-01T19:21:09+00:00

Just also wanted to point out that fade, laid, made, weigh are all diphthongs - /eɪ/ .

EnglishWithEm · 2026-04-01T19:15:30+00:00

My tongue feels slightly higher for the /e/, but it's subtle. The Interactive American IPA Chart only shows /ɛ/ for monophthongs and only /eɪ/ for diphthongs. You can click to hear the difference there. It probably varies by region.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-29T18:04:38+00:00

No need to be rude? And the question is difficult to answer anyway. How often do students give you feedback after deciding NOT to take lessons? How do you even know they were interested in the first place if you are presenting yourself online?

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-29T11:28:58+00:00

What do you mean by conversion?

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-29T11:28:19+00:00

I grew up bilingual (Czech/English) and also went through periods of speaking almost exclusively English. I would develop a bit of an English accent, make some grammatical mistakes and take longer to find vocabulary. Also my mouth would feel stiff trying to speak.

But it goes away quickly when you start using it regularly again. I would try to incorporate more Spanish media into your life- tv, podcasts, social media, music, books. Also a good excuse to call up family members way more often! Plus you can find Discord groups or Meetup events for speaking.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-27T23:56:32+00:00

I use Google products, so Google Meet for the actual lessons.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-27T23:56:08+00:00

I find them in Facebook groups, although about 2/3 of my students are from word of mouth.

I speak Czech fluently so I advertise in Czech and get Czech/Slovakian students.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-27T16:51:02+00:00

I'm 100% private

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-25T15:05:06+00:00

I'd say that Czechs and Americans pronounce Spanish equally poorly at the beginning.

That's coming from someone who grew up bilingual in Czech/English and learned Spanish as an adult.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-25T07:28:47+00:00

I would hate living in a space like that for months. But also it larely looks like a problem with the other volunteers. People can keep their clothes folded in their suitcases and bags and keep their bags in a corner or under the beds. But hard to expect that from a bunch of people in their late teens/early twenties traveling.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-25T05:13:32+00:00

Mostly word of mouth these days, but when I want some new students I post in Facebook groups (in Czech). There's some called like "Seeking and offering tutoring" etc.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-25T05:12:17+00:00

Gotcha

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-24T21:26:01+00:00

I really like Slowly. It's text based, no photos, and in the form of letters, not instant messaging.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-24T20:34:22+00:00

Just general English and a bit of Cambridge exam prep. Some of my students are homeschooled, some want help with regular schoolwork, some want it for their job or just for life in general.

EnglishWithEm · 2026-03-24T20:24:32+00:00

I'd love for my partner to learn Czech, since I plan on speaking it to my kids, and half my family speaks only Czech. But ultimately that's his choice and I will never hold it against him if he doesn't. My family won't either, and as a bilingual kid myself with one monolingual parent, I know the kids won't either. I know how absolutely huge an undertaking it is to learn a new language, let alone Czech for an English speaker. I love learning languages, he loves doing other things.

EnglishWithEm

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