Testimonies

Vira 

Kharkiv, Ukraine 

Last year, because of the war in Ukraine, I had to leave my country. When I came to the United States, my skills in English were bad and I was having a hard time adjusting to life in the United States. Misha offered to help me with English. 

Misha has greatly helped me to improve my English-speaking skills and feel much more confident here. The lesson with Misha was always nice and I had a lot of fun. He chose a variety of topics for conversation, so that the lesson was not only useful for me but also interesting. 

Misha was always very kind and considerate to me. He had not only helped me improve my skills in English, but he made me feel so much better in a new country. I am very grateful to Misha for patience and help. 

Mansulah, mom to Rania, Jamal and aunt to Mahad

Kampala, Uganda

I introduced my children and nephew, Rania (8), Jamal (7), and Mahad (8), to Misha when I noticed they had difficulty reading in English. They hadn't attended school for over a year due to the pandemic and switching to Zoom classes didn't help much in Uganda. 

As an asylee currently living in the United States, I don't live with my children who are still in Uganda. Teaching my children online was challenging. Misha, with his interactional skills, has taught my children very well via Zoom, and they always look forward to his classes. I don't know how he keeps them engaged, but they always request for more classes. I have seen a difference now, Jamal the youngest one is more confident reading and speaking English. 

Misha, I appreciate your help!

Yuliya, Marusya’s Mom

Moscow, Russia

Working with Misha has been extremely beneficial for our adopted daughter Marusya. Misha is a native English speaker and speaks fluent Russian. Misha built a customized approach to Marusya’s English language needs, and lessons with him gave Marusya a lot of confidence in terms of beginning to speak the language. For example, Misha structured their lessons not as lessons but as games. He also got Marusya to watch cartoons and funny children's videos in English which contributed to her vocabulary development. 

Since working with Misha, Marusya has been getting “A” marks in English which was a huge confidence booster for her! 

Marusya and Misha work together every Sunday morning via Zoom and she looks forward to lessons with him very much. Marusya says that Misha is a lot less boring that her teachers at school and that she enjoys chatting with him about her life (in English!). Russians have a proverb: "Without love for the type of work you are doing, you could never become a master of that work." In the case of Misha and Marusya, I believe this proverb applies to both of them because Misha enjoys teaching Marusya, Marusya enjoys working with him. He has become a master teacher and with his help, she became a master student which translates into her enthusiasm for the English language and straight “A” marks in her English class. We appreciate Misha and the work he is doing with Marusya! 

Zhanna, Eva’s mom 

St Petersburg, Russia 

Misha introduced my adopted daughter Eva (10 years old) to a volunteer tutor Sofia in May of last year. Misha and Sofia started off teaching together while Sophia was in training, then Sofia took over the lessons as she continued using Misha’s methodology. 

Eva really likes her lessons with Sofia! The most important outcome from these conversational English lessons is the fact that Eva is now able to express herself in English without being afraid which translates into good grades in her English class at school. 

Misha and team have been very helpful in the development English skills and confidence of my daughter Eva! Thank you!

Yulia , Arina’s mom 

Almaty, Kazakhstan 

Misha and his team have been of incredible help to my daughter Arina (18 years old). Misha and Norah (a volunteer tutor at “Marusya”) had helped Arina to prepare for an English exam that was required for her scholarship application at several universities in Prague, Czech Republic. Misha and Norah were very patient, kind and efficient in preparing Arina for the exam, especially for the speaking and listening part. Arina successfully passed the exam and is now studying in Prague. 

We are very happy with the results of the work that Misha and his team have done! We would not have had the ability to have support from native English speakers without them and Arina would not have been able to gain confidence to express herself in English. Thank you, Misha and team! 

Racine, Mahmoudou’ s Dad 

Dakar, Senegal

Last year Misha and his team reached out and offered to help my son Mahmoudou – 11 years old- to improve his English skills. Mahmoudou has always loved English and as a French speaking schoolboy he has never had an opportunity to learn how to speak English at school due to a limited time allocated to English in his school’s curriculum. So I was thrilled by Misha and his team’s offer and accepted it immediately. 

Misha and Dahlia (one of the volunteer tutors at “Marusya”) have been meeting with Mahmoudou once every week virtually (through Zoom) and patiently have been taking him through basic English conversational concepts. Mahmoudou finds it so fun that he always looks forward to his class with his young teachers. The experience has been so amazing and fulfilling. I am beyond grateful for this opportunity. The passion and commitment that Misha and his team have been putting into this is so impressive. Kudos to them!