Uit Verenigde StatenWoont in Los Angeles, Verenigde Staten (12:27 UTC-07:00)
Over mij
italki leerkracht sinds 24 Jul 2024
InterestsReizenHistoryWritingArtFilms & TV Series
Hi! I'm Karuna, a Tokyo-born and U.S.-raised educator. Once upon a time, 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.📍 Currently I split my time between California, Japan, and various other destinations.
🍥 MORE ABOUT ME 🍥
I enjoy architecture, design, cooking, long train trips, armchair linguistics, social history, and slow/intentional travel. When I'm not teaching Japanese, I myself am learning Serbo-Croatian and slowly dipping my toes into Ulster Irish!
Mijn creaties
Ik als leerkracht
Inconvenient truth: you don't always need a tutor. Much of Japanese is self-teachable. But I'm here for the curious, the ambitious, and the hardworking: for anyone who REALLY wants to put their active conversation skills to the test.
Above all, our lessons together will be compassionate to both the cultural and linguistic standpoints of a non-native learner.
I focus on facilitating your voice, and my goal with every student is enabling authentic self-expression. To that end, you can expect structured speaking challenges as well as more free-form conversations for upper-beginner+ students who so desire.
Mijn lessen en manier van lesgeven
My lessons are best for adult students ranging from total beginners to intermediate learners (Levels N5, N4, N3). I'll default to Genki I and Genki II for a general trajectory/roadmap — but by no means exclusively, especially at intermediate levels. Please note I do not teach children under 18!
Some of my resources for students include:
🕯 Effective self-study tools, quizzes, and 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 prompts
Mijn lesmateriaal
PDF-bestand
Tekstdocumenten
Afbeeldingsbestanden
Videobestanden
Flashcards
Quizzen
Voorbeelden van examenvragen
Huiswerkopdrachten
Opleiding
2012 - 2016
Bachelor’s - Government, FilmCornell University
2018 - 2020
Master - Arts Studies & Curatorial PracticesTokyo University of the Arts (東京芸術大学)
Werkervaring
2016 - Huidige
Freelance Travel & Culture Writer--
2018 - 2019
Gallery AssociateClear Gallery Tokyo
5.0
Beoordeling
120
Studenten
1,158
Lessen
100%
Aanwezigheid
100%
Beantwoord
5.0
Beoordeling
120
Studenten
1158
Lessen
100%
Aanwezigheid
100%
Beantwoord
Japans lessen
Proefles
94 lessen voltooid
USD 14.00+
Japanese for N5, N4, N3 Learners 🕯️ 40 min or 55 min
A1 - B2Algemeen842 lessen voltooid
USD 45.00+
Pakket met 4% korting
Japanese Conversation Session 🎋🏮 40 min or 55 min
A2 - C2Conversatie oefenen222 lessen voltooid
USD 45.00+
Pakket met 4% korting
Beschikbaarheid
Mijn creaties
Quiz (5)
26 Beoordelingen
Jeremy
11 Japans lessen
Keuze van de leerkracht
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!
24 okt. 2024
Cathy
7 Japans lessen
It was really great because I could create my own sentences and I always have opportunities to speak.
26 feb. 2026
Benjamin
16 Japans lessen
Karuna is fantastic! Very encouraging, she is always looking for fun ways to personalize her lessons to keep learning atmosphere entertaining and engaging.
31 okt. 2025
Brett
42 Japans lessen
Keuze van de leerkracht
she rocks
24 okt. 2024
T.L. Langford
2 Japans lessen
Karuna gave a great presentation in the first lesson of how she teaches, what texts she uses, and she answered all my questions. Very prepared. Looking forward to working with her.
2 dec. 2025
Eugene
16 Japans lessen
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.