Every Speaker Counts

MotivationApril 17, 2022June 23, 2022

Bias against foreign accent and how to handle it

When I first came to the US at the age of 25, I couldn’t wait to learn English. I didn’t doubt my abilities because I had already learned Polish in my early 20s and knew that English grammar was easier. I imagined that when I learn grammar and enough vocabulary, I would be a confident […]

LanguageApril 10, 2022December 18, 2023

The power of simple words

I still remember my first English writing class that I took in college. Back then I was thinking, “This is not an ESL school anymore; this is real college.” This thought excited me and intimidated me at the same time. In Minnesota, the first state I lived in after arriving in the US, there were […]

MotivationApril 3, 2022December 18, 2023

Fear of speaking English and what to do about it

One day during our vacation in Cancun, Mexico, my husband and I went to a grocery store and asked one of the workers for something we couldn’t find. We didn’t speak Spanish, but we tried our best to communicate what we wanted using hand gestures and a few Spanish words. But she was so terrified […]

Culture, My storyMarch 27, 2022December 18, 2023

What surprised me when I moved to the US

When I was on a plane from Poland to the United States exactly 20 years ago, I was very excited. I had always wanted to come to the US. I didn’t speak English back then and couldn’t wait to learn it. When I thought about my future life in the States, my plan was to […]

MotivationMarch 20, 2022August 3, 2022

The superpower of resilience

Some of you might not know, but I am a tennis lover. Although I don’t play tennis, I love watching it. There is nothing better than watching two world-class athletes being on the verge of their physical capabilities and not giving up. But a few days ago, during the Paribas Open tennis tournament, the former […]

MotivationMarch 13, 2022August 3, 2022

To fake it till you make it or to be authentic?

When I was in elementary school, my physics teacher – a very good-hearted, but often contradicting herself – once looked at the class and said: “I’ve never told you, but let me repeat.” She proceeded to explain whatever she was trying to explain at the moment, but the rest of the class and I couldn’t […]

LanguageMarch 6, 2022August 3, 2022

Embarrassed due to a mispronounced word?

Not long ago, one of my students shared with me a funny, but slightly embarrassing story regarding mispronunciation. She wanted to thank the technician who was fixing something in her house. But instead of “thank you for your patience,” what came out of her mouth was “thank you for your passion.” The guy looked perplexed […]

LanguageFebruary 27, 2022December 18, 2023

How to memorize words

When I first arrived in the US, I didn’t have work permission documents. We moved to the States because of my husband’s job, but in the beginning the visa that I had didn’t allow me to work. I wasn’t in a hurry to look for a job though because I didn’t speak English and wanted […]

MotivationFebruary 20, 2022June 19, 2024

Almost native: the power of an adverb

When I was still learning English in one of my ESL classes many years ago, I remember when we had to write a short essay. I can’t recall the topic, but I remember that I had already started to feel more comfortable with the language and my writing skills. So I felt quite confident when […]

MotivationFebruary 13, 2022August 3, 2022

Shitty draft – embrace fear and start writing

Have you ever written a shitty draft? You’d probably say: “Of course, I’ve written many shitty drafts” 😅. But I’m actually asking if you’ve done it on purpose. Last month I was taking a class at the university, and because summer classes are only six weeks long, the workflow is heavy, to put it mildly. […]

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