Why learn with me?
I’m a U.S. native speaker who is fluent in Hungarian.
My materials are built from 35 years of experience answering student questions.
I offer real-time correction for common Hungarian mistakes in conversation.
Strong retention shows my students trust me and see results.
My teaching style:
- Selection survey students fill out to best focus on their learning interests (abbreviated sample survey below).
- Students do about 90% of the talking. I give real-time corrections on grammar, vocabulary, pronunciation and intonation.
- Give oral explanations of cultural and language logic differences to help students understand American English thinking
- I offer 60 or 90 minute online classes once or twice a week.
Good fits for classes:
- Students in bilingual educational programs
- Foreign university students getting their degrees in English programs
- Adults working at multinational companies
- Those preparing to move to America either for work or studies
Meet your teacher:
- I love teaching and getting to know my students, seeing them progress in their language speaking ability as they develop more confidence.
- I’m a real teacher. I have a Masters in Education from the U.S. and taught in the States before coming to Hungary in 1991.
- I have a Hungarian wife and 4 lovely children, all adults now, who are bilingual of course.
Contact me at kirk.lederhaas@gmail.com for a free 15-minute chat discuss your goals and answer any questions you may have.
Below you can see a sample of the curriculum survey students can choose from.
Selection Survey Guide (sample of topics)
Advanced vocab units
- Account (on account of sg/sy)
- And (wait and see, odds and ends)
- Better (think better of sg/doing sg)
- Check (check up on sy/sg)
- Collocations (fresh news, genuine concern)
- Compound words (heavy-duty, off-season)
- Hard (find sg out the hard way)
- Have (have a word with sy, have enough on your plate)
- Homonyms (cite/site/sight)
- How sg is said (murmur, plead, boast)
- Keep (keep track of sg, keep tabs on sy)
- Look 1,2 (look to sy for sg, look into sg)
- Make (make my day, make allowances for sg)
- Mind (cross your mind, never mind)
- On (weigh on sy, prey on sy)
- Over (sign over sg, glance over sg)
- Pass (pass on sg, pass up sg)
- Prefixes (misplace, remove)
- Pronunciation difficulties (silent letters, estimate vs estimate)
- Put (put a stop to, put in for sg)
- Run (runs counter to, run short of sg)
- Set 1,2 (set sy back, be set in his ways)
- Situation descriptions (be up in the air, in an awkward position)
- Slip (slip out, let sg slip)
- Sounds (crackle, groan, giggle, whirl)
- Suffixes (industrial/industrious imaginative/imaginary)
- Take (take sg/sy for granted, take a toll on sy/sg)
- Wear (wear down, wear off, wear out)
- Word usage errors (insure/assure/ensure, prolong/extend)
Daily activities of life
- Dressing habits (brand loyal, water resistant)
- Cooking habits (seasoning/spice, defrost, marinate)
- Eating out habits (I’m treating, service charge)
- Family budgeting and banking (transaction, outlay, overhead)
- Family relationships (take after/resemble)
- Foods and our diet R (sunny side up, casserole, leftovers)
- Home maintenance, services R (repairman, utility companies)
- Household work (dust, disinfect, straighten up)
- School and learning S (academic year, tuition, board)
- Shopping (discontinued product, end-of-season sale)
Free-time activities
- Cinema (setting, suspenseful)
- Music and our lives (encore, choir, feel the rhythm)
- Reading habits and the future (audiobooks)
- Sports activities (championship/tournament, judge/referee)
- Theater (backdrops, stage props, acoustics)
- Volunteer work (make a difference, helping the less fortunate)
Interpersonal behavior
- Ability, capability, aptitude
- Advice (confide in sy, turn to sy for advice, offer sy your advice)
- Character traits R (easy-going/versatile, upbeat/cheerful)
- Commitments and responsibilities (take sg on, be in charge of it)
- Communication strategies (drop a hint, make sg clear to sy)
- Comparing ourselves (feel incompetent, dealing with envy)
- Complaining, showing frustration (put up with sg)
- Conflict handling (confront sy, be straightforward with sy)
- Encouragement (you’ll get the hang of it)
- Forgiveness, apologizing, expressing regret (make a confession)
- Goal-focused behavior (objective/target, aim/goal)
- Gratitude and appreciation (I owe you one, Thanks to you…)
- Regret and remorse R (I wish I hadn’t…,)
- Reluctance and giving assurance (have reservations about sg)
- What the Bible says about people
- Worry and Anxiety (be unsettling, be stressed out)
The World Around Us
- Building and renovating
- Choosing a place to live
- Digital ID, global surveillance
- How weather affects us
- Protecting ourselves and risk-taking
- Saving our environment
Travelling
- Accommodations (making a reservation, cancelation policy)
- Airport and flying procedure (stopover, taxi in, receive vouchers)
- Car travel (junction, right-of-way)
- Public transport (monthly pass, switch to)
- Vacationing (requesting time off, prebook)
Healthy living
- Doctor’s and hospital visit (get a referral)
- Eating habits (have a sweet tooth)
- Methods to keep fit (light impact exercises)
- Healthy well-being (keep yourself active and connected)
American cultural uniqueness
- How American and Hungarian values differ
- California vs. Texas (both big influences on the country)
- How are the major holidays spent differently
- New York City
- 7 regional differences of the US
Workplace speaking skills
- Evaluating situations (it turned out better than we thought)
- Forecasting, speculating (it’s bound to happen)
- Agreeing/Disagreeing (We’re on the same page.)
- Presenting language (What this graph shows us is…)
- Progress, speed and development (moving ahead with sg)
- Purpose, reasons and results (attain/achieve/accomplish)
- Scheduling language (I can’t make it then)
- Step by step instructions (the first thing you have to do is…)
- Talking on the phone (I just called to ask if…)
- Time expressions (by/until, in time/on time)
Grammar
- As if, As though, Like
- Causative R (have sy do sg/get sy to do sg)
- Conditional expressions (unless/provided that/as long as…)S
- Future tenses review
- Had better, should, are supposed to, have to
- Past tenses review
- Present tenses review
- Thought transitions (whereas, besides, in addition to)
- Verb+Verb forms R (enjoy doing, let sy do, refuse to do)