Miroslava Kopicová

I taught Czech for foreigners (and English) right after high-school graduation for a while. After years of translating (I studied English literature), I feel drawn to teaching again because I’ve realised I enjoy teaching increasingly more, whether it is languages or even qigong.

Language learning is interesting to watch even in native speakers. For example, my daughter used to naturally chant or sing every new word she spotted when she first started speaking, which is excellent for word retention. Speaking different languages has always felt almost physically like tasting different cuisines; it is mind-opening because linguistic resources enable a somewhat different way of thinking in every language.

As a Czech teacher, I also find it useful to know that the students’ mother tongue may function very differently from ours.