Language is more than just a tool for communication; it represents a culture, a different way of life. As a native-born English speaker who studied French and Italian in school, I have always had an interest in learning about other cultures through language. Following graduation from with a Bachelor of Arts in Media and minor in English, I worked in Toronto's bustling advertising industry as a VFX artist and spent my vacation time exploring the countries that have always fascinated me. It was after returning from a month-long whirlwind trip around Europe that I decided to move to South Korea to teach English and fulfil my desire to explore abroad and share my native-tongue with non-English speakers.

I am currently teaching English to elementary and middle school students in South Korea.

My students range in ability from absolute beginner to high intermediate. In addition to practical experience, I have a 100-hr TEFL/TESOL/TFL certification which I obtained through in-class and online training. I also have experience teaching English online through Skype. In the summer of 2015, I Skyped nightly for 1 hour sessions with groups of 3 Chinese middle school students at a time. The focus of my lessons with them were to improve their conversational English. My qualifications and experience make me a fitting candidate to teach English with Verbalplanet.

As a student of language myself, I can relate to my students' frustrations and this gives me a unique quality as an English teacher. Learning a new language can be incredibly daunting and discouraging when a plateau is reached. Therefore, my students' command of English grammar is not my only goal as their teacher. The most important part about learning a new language is having the confidence to use it.

My experience teaching varying levels of English ability combined with my enthusiastic and friendly approach to teaching make me a prepared, empathetic and motivated teacher.