Dena Mandala

I was so excited by our morning lesson that I booked one for the same night so that my son could also start learning with Dena. Dena was great with him and really drew him in to the language. After the lesson, I could hear my son practicing the lesson by himself. He was so enthusiastic that he’s trying out different sentences on his own by translating things that he wants to surprise Dena with in our next lesson.

Dena told the backstory of the alphabet which made a review of the sounds of the alphabet really interesting. He gently corrected my pronunciation of the letters so that I can sound out additional words that I’ll need and practice them with him so that I can sound like a native. He is so knowledgeable about how new learners begin the language and how to make lessons fun. He had just the right phrases ready so that I can ask for useful things when I’m in the country. I really enjoyed our lesson together.

Dena told stories about Bali and Indonesia to make me feel like I was there, using the language with him. He provided background on when to use formal and informal phrases so that I would sound like a native. He patiently repeated the phrases until I sounded like a local. He asked about my learning style and adjusted as we went along to suit my learning needs. He was so knowledgeable about the language and customs. that I immediately signed up for a package because I can't wait to have more lessons with him! I didn't know language learning could be so much fun!