From CanadaLiving in Toronto, Canada (01:18 UTC-05:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Sep 8, 2020
InterestsReadingFilms & TV SeriesFoodTravelPets & Animals
I was born in Hong Kong, and have lived in Canada for most of my adult life. I recently finished a long successful career, and would like to do something that I'm passionate about. Language learning and teaching is something that I can never get tired of.
English is probably my strongest language in terms of writing, reading and speaking. However, I can also converse confidently in Mandarin with little to no accent as evident in my video. Cantonese is my native tongue; although I don't use it nearly as often as my English, I have no problem switching back and forth between the two languages when I need to.
Me as a Teacher
I am experienced in formal (classroom) teaching of the English language to Chinese students preparing for their university entrance exams, as well as one-on-one tutoring of Cantonese to students from the foreign business community in Hong Kong. In addition, I have a certificate from the Hong Kong Chinese University for a course on the teaching of Putonghua (Chinese Mandarin), which I successfully completed in the top fifth percentile of the class.
My lessons & teaching style
I recognize that everyone learns differently, and I vary my approach accordingly. My general method is to follow a semi-structured approach. In other words, I will create a plan for each lesson with learning objectives, but will also make sure there’s room for any questions from the student.
For each student, I will discover what their objectives are during the first lesson, and customize future lessons to suit their individual needs. For beginners that are more analytical, I can start with the building blocks of the language, such as the pronunciation rules, parts of speech and basic vocabulary. For an advanced learner, I would recommend a more conversation-based approach.
My teaching material
PDF file
Text Documents
Audio files
Image files
Video files
Flashcards
Articles and news
Homework Assignments
5.0
Rating
314
Students
5,635
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
5.0
Rating
314
Students
5635
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
Chinese (Cantonese) Lessons
Trial Lesson
192 lessons completed
USD 12.00+
VIP students (By invitation)
A1 - C2Language Essentials976 lessons completed
USD 14.42+
Package with 18% off
Cantonese for All Levels
A1 - C2Language Essentials3,625 lessons completed
USD 14.71+
Package with 18% off
Conversation practice
B2 - C2Conversation841 lessons completed
USD 13.50+
Package with 18% off
Availability
Based on your timezone (UTC+00:00)
367 Reviews
Karen
630 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
Teacher’s pick
My kids improve their Cantonese a lot with Zack.
Jun 2, 2023
George
331 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
Teacher’s pick
It’s rare to find a native speaker so attuned to (and interested in) the intricacies of their own language. I feel like I can come to Zack with any question (whether it’s about proper usage of a new word or grammatical constructions that my brain has a hard time processing) and his responses are always clear, thoughtful, engaging, enlightening, and motivating. If needed, he will take the time outside of class to properly address any questions I have. He pushes himself to fully understand any linguistic phenomena I express interest in so that he can teach them to me as clearly as possible. He is one of the most talented, dedicated teachers I have ever had both in and outside of language learning—and he is certainly one of the kindest. I also really appreciate his infectious sense of humor. I really can’t recommend Zack highly enough. I'm looking forward to our next lesson (as always)!
Jul 18, 2022
Charlotte Singleton
5 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
Zac is friendly, organised and methodical. As a beginner I feel really well supported, learning the building blocks and foundations of Cantonese while also building my vocabulary along the way. He also has a way of explaining the tricky phonetic differences in a way that makes it easier for me to understand.
Jan 15, 2026
Rachelmc
184 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
Teacher’s pick
Really enjoyable lessons!
Zack is always well prepared and his lessons are relaxed yet well structured, with a sound grounding in grammar and pronunciation. I really like the pace of progress and review, in our lessons.
Mar 22, 2023
王晶晶
10 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
非常好的老师,让我有信心学好白话
Jan 19, 2026
Teresa Frontado
10 Chinese (Cantonese) lessons
Zack was a great help in deciding whether to learn Cantonese or Mandarin first. He was patient with me and very clear in his instructions. I enjoyed the class and will continue learning under him.