Foreign language study is great for your brain!

Susan D.

I majored in French thirty years ago at Middlebury College, and spend my junior year abroad in Paris, where I took classes in French literature and language, and also political classes at the Institute for Political Studies, one of the so-called "grandes ecoles" in Paris ("Sciences Po" is its nickname, l'Institut d'Etudes Politiques the complete name.) I completed a Double Major in French and Political Science, and attended law school after receiving my Bachelor's degree in 1985.

After 24 years as an immigration lawyer (I have also practiced in the areas of family, business and criminal law), I decided to obtain my certification to teach foreign languages, and last year I taught a middle school Spanish I class that I really enjoyed. I have also taught French to grade school children through the Lingualinks company that operates out of East Longmeadow. While I pursue more training in classroom management and pedagogy, I would like to try one-on-one tutoring, which I believe would be a very enjoyable way to share my love of languages, my familiarity with French and Spanish culture, and my real world experiences using both French and Spanish in my law practice.

I am bilingual in French and English and capable of teaching advanced levels of French, including the imperfect, subjunctive, conditional and future tenses, for example.

I am fluent in Spanish but consider myself better able to teach practical or conversational Spanish than advanced verb forms and written expression. I can certainly help the beginning Spanish student to speak and understand Spanish.