Cafetalk Tutor's Column

**Useful** native phrases!

Idioms....phrasal verb...expressions - you might feel a bit overwhelmed at just how frequently you ...

Spring flowers

Walking in my local park recently has been a real pleasure because the spring bulbs are really bloo...

Happy Birthday to me!

It's my birthday!   No, not my actual birthday...unfortunately that falls in late December ;-)   It...

Inspirational podcast on 'Haiku'

I am a big fan of 'Luke's English Podcast' and think it's a great resource for upper intermediate &...

New Year, New Topics!

Happy New Year! I hope you have all had a good start to 2026. I am back at work and look forward to...

My Christmas Tree is up!

As the year draws to a close, I wanted to say a very warm thank you to all the amazing students I h...

Is the Japanese Prime Minister getting enough sleep?!

Last week I read an article in my favourite newspaper about Sanae Takaichi's sleep routine, and her...

New lesson! Let's describe a short video!

Many of you are already enjoying my popular 'Describe a Picture' lesson and realising the huge bene...

'Daylight Saving Time' in the UK!

  Next weekend, on Sunday 26th October, we will say goodbye to 'British Summer Time' and hello to '...

Daily English writing! Let's be penfriends...

CafeTALK...the clue is in the name, it's all about talking, right?    Well yes, I agree but I think...

Longer classes for more effective learning!

Since the demise of Skype, more students and tutors are preferring to use Zoom. I certainly find it...

Goodbye...

....no I'm not leaving! But it's goodbye to this tag:     Because I have just completed my first 6...

The surprising benefits of describing pictures!

Many of you who have taken lessons with me will know that I'm a big fan of incorporating photograph...

What's happening here?!

  Do you know what is happening in this photo? Are you intrigued to find out?  I have a new series...

Current Hot Topic - the M&S strawberry sando!

When I saw this week's Tutor Column theme 'What is a current hot topic in your country?' there was ...

Have you ever tried taking a dictation?

Cafetalk....it's all about talking, right? Well yes, but I believe that if you want to improve your...

First 100 lessons!

A huge thank you to all of my students who have helped me to achieve my first 100 lessons here on C...

Let's Celebrate!

2 reasons for celebration today! Firstly...it's the weekend! What do you have planned? Let me know ...

Make up....

So many English learners find phrasal verbs and prepositions difficult to master, and it's not surp...

What English lesson types would you like to see on CafeTalk?

Hi to all the students reading this, and thank you to those of you who have already selected me as ...

England's beautiful Lake District

As we start to welcome the arrival of spring, my thoughts are turning to this year's holiday plans....