Overview
We offer one-to-one tutoring in English, French, Arabic, Spanish and German, from beginner to advanced. Each program starts with a placement conversation and short tasks to estimate your level across listening, reading, speaking and writing, referenced to the Common European Framework of Reference (CEFR, A1 to C2). Your plan then targets the gap between where you are and where you need to be.
Goals differ widely, so programs do too. School students may need help with IB Language B or ab initio, A-Level or IGCSE modern languages, AP language and culture courses, or the language components of the French baccalauréat. University students often need academic English or French to follow lectures and write assignments. Professionals may need to present, negotiate or write reports. Each of these needs different vocabulary, text types and practice.
If you're preparing for a specific proficiency test such as IELTS, TOEFL, DELF/DALF, DELE or Goethe-Zertifikat, our test-prep services focus on exam format and strategy. Language tutoring builds the underlying proficiency, and the two can be combined.
Who it’s for and the problems it solves
This is for you if you are…
- School students taking English, French, Arabic, Spanish or German as a subject
- International students who need academic English or French for university study
- Heritage speakers who speak a language at home but want accurate reading and writing, for example Arabic or Spanish
- Professionals who need a language for meetings, presentations and written communication
- Beginners starting a new language for travel, relocation or personal interest
Common problems we help with
- You understand a lot but hesitate or translate in your head when speaking
- Written work contains recurring grammar errors (verb tenses, agreement, articles, cases) that you can't spot yourself
- Your writing is understandable but too informal or too simple for academic or professional use
- Lectures, podcasts or native-speed conversation are hard to follow
- You've plateaued at an intermediate level and don't know what to practice next
- School oral exams or presentations cause anxiety
What’s included — and what isn’t
Included
- Placement session with a CEFR-referenced estimate across the four skills
- A learning plan tied to your goal, such as a school syllabus, university study, a professional context or a future proficiency test
- Conversation practice with structured feedback on fluency, accuracy, pronunciation and range
- Grammar taught in context, prioritized by the errors you actually make
- Vocabulary building by topic and register, with spaced review
- Writing practice with detailed corrective feedback on practice texts (not graded submissions)
- Listening and reading with authentic materials suited to your level: news, lectures, podcasts, articles
- Academic language: summarizing, paraphrasing, hedging, formal connectors and discussion language
- Oral presentation and exam-speaking practice for school courses
- English, French, Arabic (Modern Standard Arabic, with dialect exposure on request), Spanish and German
Not included
- Writing, rewriting or translating essays, assignments or coursework that you will submit
- Preparing scripted answers for you to memorize for assessed orals presented as spontaneous
- Certified or official translation (see our translation services)
- Promising a particular level, certificate or test score within a fixed time
What you receive
- Placement summary
- Estimated CEFR level for each skill with examples from your tasks, and the main priorities for improvement.
- Learning plan
- Goals, topics, grammar priorities and text types for the next block of sessions, reviewed regularly.
- Session notes
- New vocabulary and expressions, corrected sentences from the session and short explanations of grammar points.
- Personal error log
- Your recurring errors with corrections and rules, which becomes a checklist for self-editing.
- Practice tasks
- Speaking prompts, writing tasks, listening and reading exercises between sessions, with feedback at the next session.
How it works
Tell us your goals
Which language, why you're learning it, deadlines (a course, exam or move), and what you find hardest.
Placement
A conversation and short reading, listening and writing tasks give us a CEFR-referenced starting point.
Plan
We agree priorities, such as speaking confidence, academic writing or exam orals, and how much practice time you have.
Regular sessions
A mix of speaking, focused grammar and vocabulary, and feedback on practice tasks, with more target language as your level rises.
Review
Periodic re-assessment with similar tasks to show progress and adjust the plan.
Approach and frameworks
- CEFR descriptors
- Using 'can-do' statements from A1 to C2 to set concrete goals, for example 'can present a clear argument on a familiar academic topic' at B2.
- Communicative practice
- Speaking and writing tasks with a real purpose (explaining, persuading, comparing) rather than isolated drills.
- Focus on form
- Brief, targeted grammar explanations when an error pattern appears, followed by controlled then free practice.
- Corrective feedback
- Recasts and prompts during speaking so fluency isn't disrupted, then a summary of key corrections afterwards.
- Spaced vocabulary review
- Flashcard systems and retrieval practice for high-value vocabulary, including academic word lists for English.
- Shadowing and pronunciation work
- Imitating authentic audio to improve rhythm, stress and intonation, with attention to sounds that are difficult for speakers of your first language.
Language-specific focus areas
Every language has its own difficulties, and they depend on your first language too. These are areas we commonly work on.
- English: articles, tense and aspect, prepositions, academic register and hedging, word stress and pronunciation
- French: gender and agreement, passé composé versus imparfait, subjunctive, pronoun order, liaison and formal written style for dissertations and commentaires
- Arabic: script and pronunciation for beginners, root-and-pattern morphology, verb forms, case endings in Modern Standard Arabic, and the relationship between MSA and spoken dialects
- Spanish: ser versus estar, preterite versus imperfect, subjunctive triggers, and regional variation between Spain and Latin America
- German: cases and adjective endings, word order in subordinate clauses, separable verbs and noun genders
Languages for school courses
School language courses assess specific tasks: IB Language B individual oral and written tasks, A-Level and IGCSE speaking and writing papers, AP language and culture exams, and the language components of national curricula. We practice those task types with new prompts, give feedback on your spoken and written practice, and build the vocabulary for the course themes. Note that IB Language B and ab initio have new guides with first teaching in 2027, so we check which guide your cohort is following.
Language for studying and working
Studying in a second language is not the same as conversing in one. Academic English and French require reading dense texts quickly, taking notes from lectures, participating in seminars and writing with formal structure and cautious claims. We use materials from your field where possible. If you already have a draft that needs language editing, our English-language editing for non-native writers is a separate service; tutoring is about building your own ability.
What the work can look like
Illustrative example — fictional data
Sample placement summary: academic French
A fictional English-speaking graduate student was preparing to begin a master's program taught in French. The summary is invented to illustrate the format.
Estimated levels
Reading B2, listening B1+, speaking B1, writing B1+. Strong passive vocabulary from academic reading in English cognates; spoken fluency limited by hesitation and avoidance of the subjunctive.
Priorities
1) Lecture listening and note-taking; 2) seminar discussion language (agreeing, nuancing, disagreeing politely); 3) formal written structure for the French dissertation style (introduction with problématique, two- or three-part plan).
First six sessions
Weekly listening practice with recorded lectures in the student's field, discussion role-plays, and one short practice text per week with corrective feedback and an error log.
Illustrative example with an invented student. Levels are estimates for planning, not official certification.
What you’ll need to provide
- Your goal and timeframe
- Any syllabus, course book or exam specification you're following
- Examples of your recent writing, if available (feedback is given on practice texts, not graded submissions)
- A quiet space with a microphone and camera for speaking practice
You don’t need everything ready to ask for a quote — tell us what you have and we’ll say what’s missing.
What affects price and turnaround
Price depends on
- Language and level
- Specialized focus (academic, professional or exam-course content)
- Session length and frequency
- Amount of written feedback on practice tasks between sessions
Turnaround depends on
- Tutor availability for your language, dialect preference and time zone
- Your deadline, such as a course start or oral exam date
- Frequency of sessions you can commit to
Every project is quoted individually. How we price our work.
Questions people ask before starting
Is the CEFR level you give me official?
No. Our placement is an estimate to plan tutoring. Official levels come from recognized exams such as DELF/DALF for French, DELE for Spanish, Goethe-Zertifikat for German, or accepted English tests. We can help you prepare for those through our test-prep services.
Which Arabic do you teach?
Mainly Modern Standard Arabic, the written and formal spoken standard. On request, we can include exposure to a spoken dialect, such as Moroccan Darija, Egyptian or Levantine, depending on tutor availability. Tell us your purpose so we can recommend the balance.
Can you correct my essay before I hand it in?
We don't correct graded work before submission, because it would no longer reflect your own language ability. We give detailed feedback on practice texts on similar topics, so you learn to find and fix your own errors. If your course allows proofreading, check its rules first.
Can sessions be entirely in the target language?
Yes, from about intermediate level. Beginners usually benefit from some explanation in a shared language. We increase target-language use as your level grows.
How quickly will I improve?
Progress depends on your starting level, how often you practice between sessions and how much exposure you get outside lessons. Moving up a full CEFR level generally takes many hours of guided learning plus independent practice. We'll give you an honest view after the placement.