Cafetalk 讲师专栏

How I Became a Teacher (Almost by Accident)

At junior high school in the UK, I studied one of the few computer courses available at the time. T...

真(zhēn)让(ràng)人头(réntóu)大(dà)??

汉语hànyǔ的de音调yīndiào本来běnlái就jiù很难hěnnán学xué了le，可是kěshì有些yǒuxiē音节yīnjié还hái会huì变调biàndiào，真zhēn的de让r...

Daily English Upgrade #002: Micro-Pattern — “The main reason is…”

  This pattern helps you sound clear and organized: Pattern:The main reason is + (noun / clause). ...

The Art of the Brave Word: Finding Your Voice Across Worlds

Have you ever felt like Bilbo Baggins stepping out of the Shire for the first time? That tiny flutt...

【一週兩次・讀台灣】台美關稅敲定15% 美認同「台灣模式」供應鏈合作

【一週兩次・讀台灣】 教科書を飛び出し、台湾の「今」を知り、生きた台湾華語をマスターしませんか？ 毎週2回、最新の台湾ニュースを題材に、台湾特有の文化、時代を映す言い回し、そして興味深い社会現象を...

Daily English Upgrade #007: Pronunciation — PREsent vs preSENT (stress changes meaning)

Quick pronunciation win: stress can change meaning. PREsent (noun) = a giftpreSENT (verb) = to show...

The Turkish tense that shows you how you know

Have you ever seen people online calling Turkish “-miş” the “gossip tense”? It went viral for a rea...

The dimension of my spot in the land of resurrection

The Crowd's Collective-yet-individual Consciousness in the Land of Resurrection How the collective...

A New Adventure in Teaching

Hello to all students (and fellow teachers)! I hope 2026 is treating everyone kindly. I’m still new...

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...

Daily English Upgrade #005: Better Questions — “What’s your take on…?”

  Want smoother conversations? Ask better questions. Instead of: “Do you like it?” Try: What’s your...

Daily English Upgrade #003: JP Trap Fix — “I’m agree” → “I agree”

Quick fix that instantly makes you sound more natural: √ I agree. (Correct)X I’m agree. (Incorrect)...

English Idioms Challenge - Week 2

Hey all! This is the second weekly English learning challenge: to try & use this idiom in your ...

Daily English Upgrade #006: Mini-Conversation — Small talk opener + 2 follow-ups

Small talk gets easier when you stop trying to be “perfect” and use a simple flow. Opener: How’s yo...

THE SILENT SECRET: Winning "Best Thriller Screenplay" in Los Angeles!

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the cafe! I’m still pinching myself as I write this. As many of...

Daily English Upgrade #008: Say It Better — “Maybe” (natural softening phrases)

“Maybe” is fine — but these give you better control. Soft “maybe”: Maybe. It depends. More natural:...

Daily English Upgrade #004: Tone Control — “Send it today” → “Could you send it today?”

Same message — very different feeling. Direct (can sound too strong): Send it today. Neutral / pol...

What Teaching English Taught Me

 Why Did I Became a Teacher? Motivation / Career / Learning The simple answer is...   I became ...

When and why did I decide to become a teacher?

I decided to become a teacher when I realized how much fulfillment I found in helping others learn ...

SHOWREEL

Hello everyone, and welcome back to the cafe! I’m still pinching myself. As many of you know, I’ve...

Daily English Upgrade #009: Micro-Pattern — “What I mean is…”

Great when you want to clarify (and sound calm). Pattern: What I mean is + (clarification). Example...

☆ Grammar Challenge ☆ January Grammar Clinic Quiz ☆

It’s already February, which means the January Grammar clinic has closed.  I’d like to thank everyo...

給中級學習者的口說進化課：寫作

  學了兩、三年的中文，你是否常煩惱： 雖然日常交流沒問題，但一遇到複雜的話題，就只能用簡單的詞彙和斷斷續續的短句？ 其實，想要突破口說的瓶頸，其中一個祕訣就在於「寫作」。 寫作並非只是為了把字寫漂...

用(yòng)汉(hàn)语(yǔ)介(jiè)绍(shào)自(zì)己(jǐ)

如rú果guǒ有yǒu1-2 分fēn钟zhōng的de时shí间jiān，你nǐ会huì怎zěn么me样yàng用yòng汉hàn语yǔ介jiè绍shào自zì己jǐ呢ne？If you had ...

When and why did you decide to become a teacher?

Rather than simply becoming an instructor, my wish to teach on CafeTalk stemmed from a desire to pr...

Not Cold, Just Considerate: Japan’s Silent Rules for Language Learners

Japan can feel incredibly welcoming—and sometimes strangely hard to read.   You didn’t do anything ...

Daily English Upgrade #010: JP Trap Fix — “Discuss about” → “Discuss”

Quick fix: √ discuss + topicX discuss about + topic Correct examples: Let’s discuss the plan. We di...

Short BBC documentary videos with subtitles - 短いBBCのドキュメンタリービデオ

https://www.bbc.com/reel/ BBC Reel is a collection of short documentary videos from the BBC about v...

10 Grammar Conflicts That Can Cause Confusion

Misunderstandings often happen as a result of a breakdown in communication: what the speaker said v...

Filming March 6th to 14th in the UK: Working on "Little Bits of Me

Hello from the set! The energy here is incredible. As I mentioned in my previous "Cafe talk" posts,...