My first Live Lesson

[MariaJSalmeron]

Hey Chatterbugs!
I was thinking that I would love to share my experience when I did my first Live Lesson! I never felt like that before!

I’m a Spanish speaker learning German and German for me has always been a little bit…let’s say scary. So I when I started I did a lot of Self-Study and card sessions, just to prepare myself for what might happen. I don’t know what I was thinking, maybe that the Live Lesson was going to be like a battlefield?

At the end of my first Live Lesson, a comforting and proud feeling invaded me! I never felt like that after a language class! I just spoke to a German native speaker for 45 minutes straight! And we understood each other!

So I was wondering how you all felt? It would be interesting to know if we felt the same!

[Megan]

Impressive @MariaJSalmeron!

Although my first Live Lesson was quite some time ago, I remember feeling pretty anxious about it. I wasn’t reallllly sure what to expect. I started with a bit of German knowledge, as I had already taken an A1 class at Volkshochschule in Berlin. I definitely did not have the confidence to speak German after not speaking much in my class (I am more of a sit in the back and take notes silently type of student) so I wasn’t really ready to speak for 45 minutes straight. I also knew that my tutor spoke English so that helped ease the nerves.

As soon as the Live Lesson started, I felt instantly more relaxed. The tutor had a big smile on her face and was so warm and friendly! After a few exercises she told me that I should move up a few levels because my German was more advanced than Level 1.0, which instantly made me feel more confident. Once the Live Lesson was over I thought to myself, that wasn’t so bad - it was actually really fun! I was immediately ready for my next one.

Here I am years later, still enjoying my Live Lessons!

[SKrausser]

My first live lesson as a tutor was in October 2017. Actually it was a training lesson with @lizclink. That was amazing. I was a bit nervous, but she explained me everything being extremely friendly and patient. So that prepared me for many live lessons to come!

[james.cradock]

My first live lesson and a few subsequent lessons filled me with anxiety. I would study the exercises the day before the lesson and tried to ensure I knew as much as possible before appearing in front of the tutor. I was keen not to make mistakes and was treating the live lessons as more of an exam than an opportunity to be taught. It was this frame of mind that made me anxious before each lesson and I needed to force myself to book more, rather than looking forward to the next one.

I have since learnt that it is important to feel comfortable with making mistakes, as this is expected in the lessons and is largely the point of having them. Once I felt comfortable making mistakes and asking the ‘stupid questions’, or allowing myself a long pause to reply, then I began to look forward to the lessons. All the tutors I have had so far have been patient and every lesson, with this new mindset, has been enjoyable.

[Shannon]

I had forgotten how nervous I used to feel before live lessons…this thread brings those memories back, but in a good way. It’s nice to realize how comfortable I’ve gotten with live lessons. I LOVE talking to people in German!