
Who am I?
Hello, my name is Iain (イアン). I am a writer, artist, storyteller and English tutor from Sussex in the South East of England!
I have a bachelor's degree in Philosophy with Japanese from the University of Reading, with a year as an exchange student at Hosei University in Tokyo. That was one of the best years of my life as I met many Japanese friends and did all sorts of activities including kaiseki ryori classes, martial arts and...DJing!
I also have a master's degree in Creative Writing from the University of Bangor, am a trained voice actor and have written, adapted and performed stories on stage and on YouTube.
I am a CELTA qualified teacher of English as a Second Language and have teaching experience with students of all ages and in British secondary education (ages 11 – 18). I have helped students successfully pass school and university entrance exams and interviews.
I am a playful and imaginative person and I love to meet new people. Having been an exchange student learning Japanese, my number one aim as a tutor is for students to feel comfortable to risk making mistakes and experiment with English. No need to be shy! I will happily give you feedback, but if you’d prefer just to talk freely that’s fine too.
I have a lot of experience creating voices for characters and learning accents, so I can especially help you to improve your pronunciation.
I also have work experience in the corporate world, as well as my time in academia, so I can help you with business English and proofreading academic essays.
What are my lessons like?
I speak some Japanese, but my lessons are more suited to students of all ages who already know the basics of English and would like to improve fluency and confidence.
I offer three main types of lessons.
Conversation Practice: I can give you a choice of topics or you can suggest your own. We can use English articles, videos, literature etc. as a starting point or just have a relaxed, friendly and unstructured conversation.
Story Writing:
Structured lessons based around improvising and writing a story together, these lessons can be as silly or serious as you like! You don't need to have creative background, anyone can tell a story!
Listening and Pronunciation Training:
In these lessons, we’ll use YouTube videos to improve your ability to listen to natural, full-speed English and to speak more like a native speaker. I’ve developed a special method for these lessons that make them fun and effective – it’s almost like playing a game.
Custom Lessons, Textbooks & Special Requests
If you have textbooks that you would like to use or have a specific goal that is not covered by my standard lessons, such as preparing for a job interview, reviewing a business presentation, or polishing a piece of professional writing, please send me a message. I am happy to design a custom lesson tailored to your needs. We can discuss your requirements via Cafetalk messages.
Our First Lesson
For our first lesson, we can take an extra 15 minutes free of charge to say hello and discuss your learning goals before we start the lesson. I will check with you before the lesson if you want to add the 15 minutes to the beginning or end of the scheduled lesson.
If you have any questions about my lessons, please feel free to send me a message on Cafetalk.
Looking forward to meeting you!
***oV