[My daughter] has enjoyed [the Japanese classes] and your excellent teaching very much.

Sam offers a fun, effective, remote learning experience that my 3rd and 6th grader learned so much from. She has a kind and engaging manner and the whole lesson is entirely in Japanese. Within 2 weeks my sons were speaking simple sentences and had learned enough to pick out words from anime shows (which really boosted their motivation!).

My son recently told me that at first he wasn’t sure about the class, but now he really understands why you’re presenting the material the way you do, so you’re doing great! He has learned so much in your class and loves reading Japanese characters out to us when we come across them as well as recognizing Japanese words when we are watching movies or overhear people speaking Japanese.

I had the pleasure of taking part in Japanese language learning discussions led by Samantha. Samantha was very welcoming of everyone in the group and had a strict attention to detail that could make a newcomer instantly feel as though they had been in the group for months. Between organizing snacks, tea, discussion points, and keeping the members engaged, Samantha went above and beyond. Although she often kick-started discussions, she knew when to simply let her group continue the discussions freely, so that the meetings always felt like natural conversations. Of course, there was a very wide variety of levels of proficiency in the group. Some, like myself, came in with little to no conversational Japanese knowledge. Samantha took notice whenever someone was quiet for long periods of time and took it upon herself to nudge them into participating more. It is because of this that the group outgrew our room within only a few months. Between Samantha’s knowledge of Japanese language, her attention of detail, and her kindness, Samantha is able to seamlessly turn a group into a lively exchange where everyone can participate regardless of their level. It was my pleasure working and meeting with Samantha, and I can only hope other people are fortunate enough to do the same.