Cafetalk Tutor's Column

Extreme weather

Photo: a submerged road in Toronto2026 has been another year filled with extreme weather events acr...

Quick tips: sleep over vs. oversleep

You were supposed to wake up at 7 AM but you were tired and didn’t wake up until 8. Did you sleep o...

Quick tips: drawing a blank

When was the last time you suddenly forgot a word, or perhaps the name of something, in the middle ...

The world of miniatures

Photo: a miniature greenhouse diorama that my wife built One hobby that helps me stay creative is ...

Talking about pros and cons in English

In my last article, I talked about the pros and cons of different workplaces, so today I’d like to ...

My favourite place work

Photo: graduation day at the language school where I used to workEvery workplace has its pros and c...

Talking about summer heat and staying cool in English

Since the weekly topic is about keeping cool in summer this week, I’d like to share some vocabulary...

My favourite school subjects

Photo: Me, as a student, preparing for an exam with many sticky notes! As an elementary school stu...

The Big Smoke

Photo: Toronto's smoky skyline today The sky in Toronto today is orange and hazy due to wildfire s...

Quick tips: put

Using the verb put is a little tricky because it has no meaning if you don’t say where something is...

World Cup beavers

Photo: Korean-themed World Cup beaver in downtown TorontoYes, you read that right - World Cup beave...

Kariya Park (in Canada)

Photo: the gate of Kariya Park in Mississauga Earlier this year, I found out that Kariya City (in ...

3 tips to prepare before an online lesson

Photo by Mike Tinnion on Unsplash There are many things that you can do to prepare for a lesson, bu...

Quick tips: bust

The word “bust” has many meanings in English! As a verb, it can refer (informally) to breaking som...

World Cup 2026: A Canadian perspective

Photo: A massive World Cup 2026 ball at Sport Chek in TorontoThe World Cup is almost upon us, and w...

Quick tips: hunt

Is there a difference between hunting something and hunting for something? In fact, there is! A big...

Canadian desserts

Photo: Butter tartsToday I’d like to introduce 3 of the most well-known Canadian desserts, and then...

Quick tips: might as well

“Might as well” is an idiom that shows support or agreement with a course of action because it is t...

Spring plans

Photo: Allan Gardens (in Toronto) in MayThere are also a couple of things that I’ve already done so...

Quick tips: up to (number/amount)

Sometimes companies use tricky grammar in their advertising, grammar that makes a product sound won...

Why are New York Yankees caps so popular?

Photo by Caste on Unsplash I was at a department store in Toronto the other day and I came across a...

Why do people eat chocolate bunnies during Easter?

Photo: Chocolate bunnies at SOMA Chocolatemaker in TorontoAnother Easter holiday has come and gone ...

Talking about books in English: Part 2

Welcome back to this article about talking about books in English! In Part 1, we covered vocabulary...

Talking about books in English: Part 1

One of my goals for 2026 is to read more books, so today I’d like to share some vocabulary for talk...

Back to the 90s

I was born in the 80s, and although I have a lot of nostalgia for that decade now, my memory of it ...

Canada at the Winter Olympics: The good, the bad, and the ugly

Photo: Canadian men's curling teamThe 2026 Winter Olympic Games have wrapped up, and Team Canada wa...

Quick tips: taking a day off

Did you decide to take a day off? Or maybe it’s a national holiday in your country! Here are a few ...

Pet names (terms of endearment) in English

Photo by freestocks on Unsplash With Valentine’s Day coming up soon, I thought I’d share some comm...

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...

When and why did you decide to become a teacher?

Photo: A lesson in my old classroom I have been an English teacher for 15 years, but before that I...