What We Do
Our Courses Allow You To Improve Your Work Performance Quickly and Effectively
Our Courses
Participating in Meetings
Get Your Point Across Respectfully
Participating in a meeting requires knowing specific language forms to participate fully. From making a suggestion, disagreeing with someone, holding your turn to politely interrupting someone, all can feel overwhelming. In this English language course, you learn the language you need to participate in a meeting actively, either online or in person. You will have the opportunity to practice in mock meetings, understand the nuances of interacting in a business environment and learn effective intonation and active listening.
Interview Success
What Is Appropriate in American work-place Settings
In this series of English classes, you will learn the ins and outs of successful interviewing skills. We will cover the importance of body language, how it is cultural and what is appropriate in an American workplace. We will help you develop a strong elevator pitch to be given at an interview and used in various other places like your resume or networking opportunities. We will do a deep dive into those very challenging interview questions like: “Tell me about yourself…; Why do you want this job; and, What are your strengths and weaknesses?”
Interpersonal Communication
The Power of Small Talk
Integrating into American workplace culture requires that you communicate with your colleagues one on one. An important aspect in building these relationships is the ability to make small talk. It’s called “small talk,” but it has a big impact when relationship building is the goal. In this 5-day course, you will learn how to make small talk. We talk about appropriate and inappropriate discussion topics, idioms that often show up in casual office conversations, and body language that is necessary to create a comfortable and inviting feeling.
Body Language and Intonation
in a Meeting or Interview
Did you know that only a fraction of meaning is communicated through words alone? Much of what we communicate to each other is through intonation and body language. In this 5-day course, we will cover body language from a western perspective and discuss how intonation can communicate many different things and is often more important than words. We will practice these two speaking skills through one-on-one conversations with peers, mock interviews, and meeting participation and end with an individual presentation and a group assessment.
Active Listening
Hearing Vs Listening
How is hearing different from listening? Are you an active listener? In this course, we will learn the difference between “hearing” and “actively listening“ and how body language contributes to the overall success of an interpersonal or group interaction.
Custom Coaching
Based on Your Needs
We offer custom courses and coaching on a regularly-scheduled basis to provide the unique support you need to be successful in your work and professional relationships. We can also guide you through specific projects, speaking engagements, or other needs.
Pronounciation
Intonation and Accent Reduction
In this course, students work on problematic pronunciation points that all English learners struggle with, as well as challenging pronunciation points specific to their native languages. We practice “ the music of English,” otherwise known as intonation. We work on understanding the importance of intonation in conveying meaning and how it is an essential element of pronunciation for successful communication in English.
Verb Tense Review
Review Course
In this course, students work on problematic pronunciation points that all English learners struggle with, as well as challenging pronunciation points specific to their native languages. We practice “ the music of English,” otherwise known as intonation. We work on understanding the importance of intonation in conveying meaning and how it is an essential element of pronunciation for successful communication in English.
Writing
Sentence structure and beyond
In this course, students learn the building blocks of sentence construction. They will learn to create more complex and interesting sentences, which will enable them to write better and clearer emails, memos, and proposals. Students will know how to make their writing more exciting and effective.
Who We Are
We're on a mission to help professionals learn what they need to succeed.
Anita Walter
Founder, BayAreaESL
Anita is an ESL specialist with expertise in remote and in-person instruction for international software developers. She helps international software professionals achieve their English language goals by giving them the tools to advance in their English language journey, specifically in the American tech-based workplace. Before transitioning to the tech industry, she held positions at several Bay Area universities. She has created a curriculum for the software developer community targeting areas that present specific professional challenges, such as participating in meetings, successfully navigating an interview in English, and having strong interpersonal communication skills in their second language. She founded BayAreaESL with a robust international tech student community helping them to succeed in their positions in American companies.
Partners
Everywhere
We partner with experienced specialists to meet specific client needs for just about anything. We can handle needs ranging from individuals to corporations that need ongoing support services for large teams.
Let's Connect.
