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Karuna
Community TutorCommunity Tutor![]()
Teaches
Japanese
Native
Speaks
English
Native
Serbian
Croatian
Esperanto
Your bilingual cross-cultural specialist 🌊
Teaches
Japanese
Native
Speaks
English
Native
Serbian
Croatian
Esperanto
Your bilingual cross-cultural specialist 🌊
About Me
Me as a Teacher
My lessons & teaching style
Resume & Certificates
From United StatesLiving in Los Angeles, United States (13:48 UTC-07:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Jul 24, 2024InterestsTravelHistoryWritingArtFilms & TV Series
Hi! I'm Karuna, a bilingual Tokyo-born educator. I received my B.A. from Cornell University and my Master's from Tokyo University of the Arts, where I also worked as a TA/Research Assistant. I’ve also worked as a Curatorial Assistant to a Japanese museum director and as a Japanese-to-English translator. 📍 Currently I split my time between California, Japan, and various other destinations.
🍥 MORE ABOUT ME 🍥
I enjoy architecture, design, history, cooking, and most things “Showa retro.” Also currently trying to in study (I use the term loosely) basic linguistics and etymology. When I'm not teaching Japanese, I myself am (slowly, arduously) learning Serbo-Croatian!Me as a Teacher
Express yourself with cultural cognizance while staying true to your authentic self 🎋🏮 I focus on facilitating your voice, i.e. student-generated output. This will include journaling/writing assignments and structured speaking challenges, as well as more free-form conversations for upper-beginner+ students who so desire.
Above all, our lessons together will be compassionate to both the cultural and linguistic standpoints of a non-native learner.
Japanese is a complex but also incredibly flexible language: I can equip you with the most efficient conversational “tricks” that natives use in everyday communication — but won’t skimp on important foundational grammar, either.My lessons & teaching style
My lessons are best for adult students ranging from beginners to intermediate learners (Levels N5, N4, N3). I'll default to Genki I and Genki II for grammar homework — but by no means exclusively, if you prefer another resource.
Some of my resources for students include:
🕯 Effective self-study tools, quizzes, and flashcard optimization strategies, so that our one-on-one time can focus on the things you *can't* so easily teach yourself
🕯 Small, manageable semi-improvisational speaking challenges to get talking as early as possible in a comfortable setting
🕯 Journaling & writing promptsMy teaching material
- PDF file
- Text Documents
- Image files
- Video files
- Flashcards
- Quizzes
- Test templates and examples
- Homework Assignments
Education
2012 - 2016
Bachelor’s - Government, Film
2018 - 2020
Master's - Arts Studies & Curatorial Practices
Work Experience
2016 - Current
Freelance Travel & Culture Writer
2018 - 2019
Gallery Associate
5.0
Rating
94
Students
720
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
Japanese Lessons
Trial Lesson
72 lessons completed
USD 7.00+
Japanese for N5, N4, N3 Learners 🕯️ 40 min or 55 min
A1 - B2Language Essentials549 lessons completed
USD 35.00+
Package with 5% off
Japanese Conversation Session 🎋🏮 40 min or 55 min
A2 - C2Conversation98 lessons completed
USD 35.00+
Package with 5% off
Availability
Based on your timezone (UTC+00:00)
My creations
Quiz (5)
23 Reviews
Jeremy
11 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
Lessons with Karuna are always a pleasure. She is calm, patient, and looks for ways to draw out your strengths so you pay less attention to your flaws. She has a wealth of resources to help you study and assigns homework that gets you thinking outside of the regular book work.
Karuna engages with you in a very casual conversational manner that helps you relax and she actively listens to try to understand what you are saying. I never feel like she is distracted or inattentive during my lessons with her. Since I am very nervous when it comes to speaking, there are often awkward pauses that Karuna adeptly fills in with questions or her own insights to keep the conversation going.
I highly recommend Karuna if you are beginning Japanese or if you just need somebody to help you with speaking practice. She gives good travel suggestions too!
Oct 24, 2024
Eugene
9 Japanese lessons
Karuna is an excellent teacher with seeming endless amounts of patience. She is a pleasure to learn with. I highly recommend giving her lessons a shot.
Sep 2, 2025
Jay S
8 Japanese lessons
Karuna immediately created great rapport, understood where I was at and what I wanted to accomplish and was great fun to work with. I’m excited for my upcoming lessons.
Jul 25, 2025
Brett
42 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
she rocks
Oct 24, 2024
Cameron Donner
13 Japanese lessons
I've now taken classes with Karuna for a couple of months, and I would recommend her to everyone who wants to learn Japanese. Each week I feel my language skills and confidence grow; she's an expert at navigating what I need in my lessons, and she always tries her best to draw language out of me, even when I'm not sure of it myself.
On top of that, she always assigns excellent homework material and includes extra resources to ensure that what's talked about during lesson time sticks. However, the best part of learning from Karuna is that I feel I've gained more than just a language instructor. The environment she provides makes it feel like I just get to sit down to chat with a friend who's cheering on my journey each week. It's easy stay positive and focused when you have her in your corner!
Jul 30, 2025
Evelyn
39 Japanese lessons
Karuna is amazing, she is very chill and patient with me and does her best to make sure I am understanding the material
Jun 24, 2025
Trial Lesson
USD 7.00
Your final payment will be made in USD