Native Japanese, fluent in English. Great communication skills and international cultural knowledge.
Teaches
Japanese
Native
Speaks
English
French
Other
Native Japanese, fluent in English. Great communication skills and international cultural knowledge.
About Me
Me as a Teacher
My lessons & teaching style
From JapanLiving in Geneva, Switzerland (22:19 UTC+02:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Sep 6, 2021
InterestsTechFoodHistoryArtTravel
Hello, I’m Yoshi. I am a professional documentary photographer currently based in Europe. Born and raised in Japan, I have spent my adult life navigating international environments—including over a decade in the US (San Francisco and New York) and twenty years working with international organizations in Europe.
As a native Japanese speaker fluent in English, I offer more than just language lessons; I offer a bridge between cultures. If you are interested in Photography, Art, or Global Travel, I invite you to search for 'Yoshi Shimizu Photography' online to view my photo gallery. We can use also these topics as a foundation for our lessons, helping you move beyond textbooks.
Me as a Teacher
I first got involved in teaching Japanese as a conversation tutor when I was at the university in San Francisco, USA. Since then, I love working with people from different cultural backgrounds. This is also one of the reasons why I became a documentary photographer. I have visited over 90 countries to document different cultures and people. For the joy of teaching, I have also taught photography at workshops. Teaching requires a great deal of patience and communication artistry which also apply to become a good photographer as well. In general, it is truly rewarding to see my students succeed in learning skills.
My lessons & teaching style
My lessons will be based on conversations and dialogue exchanges, and they are designed for individuals aged 15 and above. On our first trial lesson, we will assess the level of Japanese you are at and tailor our future lessons. The aim here is to make our lessons as enjoyable as possible. If you start loving what you do, you will naturally be good at what you do. Learning your grammar and building vocabulary is essential; however, the most effective learning is to put what you have learnt into practice, listening and speaking face-to-face. Our goal will be that you will overcome your fears of making mistakes, of being shy - all things that hinder you from improving your Japanese.
My teaching material
PDF file
Text Documents
Presentation slides/PPT
Image files
Articles and news
Quizzes
Graphs and charts
Homework Assignments
5.0
Rating
521
Students
5,895
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
5.0
Rating
521
Students
5895
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
Japanese Lessons
Trial Lesson
293 lessons completed
USD 14.00+
Conversational lessons and Free talks in either Japanese or English. / 会話とフリートーク
A1 - C2Conversation5,601 lessons completed
USD 15.00+
Package with 10% off
Japanese Conversation Lesson for Two Students
A2 - C2Conversation0 lessons completed
USD 27.00
Package with 10% off
Japanese Conversation Lesson for Three Students
A1 - C2Conversation0 lessons completed
USD 38.00
Package with 10% off
Availability
244 Reviews
Jerry Morrow/Alethea
136 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
ヨシ先生のレッスンを受け始めてもうすぐ2年になります。私たちは年齢も人生経験も近いので、とても仲良くやっている。ヨシ先生、生徒への献身に感謝します。
受ける (うける) to receive
年齢 (ねんれい) age
人生 (じんせい) life
経験 (けいけん) experience
仲良く (なかよく) getting along
献身 (けんしん)dedication
感謝 (かんしゃ) gratitude
Apr 9, 2025
Riley
183 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
The lessons are great for improving my comprehension. He does a great job walking through sentences and making sure I understand.
Mar 10, 2022
Chuck Woehrle
1 Japanese lesson
よしさん was very good at carrying the conversation, even with my not particularly great speaking skills. He spent a good amount of time allowing me to answer questions and providing support when needed as well as providing a challenging but appropriate level of listening practice. I felt very comfortable and that the time was used very well. Highly recommend!
Feb 16, 2026
Gerald Greene
134 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
Shimizu-san is exactly what I need. I lived in Japan for twenty years but didn’t have opportunities to speak it once I returned to the US in 2005. We talk about a wide variety of things which has helped my recall and has improved my fluency.