Kana
About Me
Lessons
Availability
Reviews
Visited an hour ago
Kana
Professional Teacher![]()
Teaches
Japanese
Native
Speaks
English
French
Spanish
Italian
Absolute beginners are more than welcome😊 Let's study Japanese and have fun at the same time!
Teaches
Japanese
Native
Speaks
English
French
Spanish
Italian
Absolute beginners are more than welcome😊 Let's study Japanese and have fun at the same time!
About Me
Me as a Teacher
My lessons & teaching style
Resume & Certificates
From JapanLiving in Portland, United States (22:41 UTC-07:00)
About Me
italki teacher since Aug 13, 2021InterestsHistoryFoodFashion & BeautyPets & AnimalsTravel
I was born in Tokyo and raised in Kanagawa prefecture, which is next to Tokyo. I moved from Kanagawa to the United States last summer, and now live in the State of Oregon.
I like traveling, watching Netflix, cooking, and baking. I love both dogs and cats, and have two dogs. (Your pets are welcome to join the lessons, too!) Because the major for both my Bachelor's and Master's degrees was intercultural communication, I enjoy learning about other cultures and sharing mine.
私は東京都で生まれ、神奈川県で育ちました。昨夏神奈川からアメリカに引っ越し、今はオレゴン州在住です。旅行や、ネットフリックスを見ること、料理や、お菓子作りが好きです。犬や猫も好きで、犬を２匹飼っています。（ペットもレッスンに参加するのは大歓迎です！）大学・大学院での専攻が国際文化学だったので、異文化を学んだり、自分の文化を発信するのも好きです。Me as a Teacher
I started teaching Japanese in 2013 as a volunteer in my hometown, and completed all the requirements of the Japanese Language Teacher Training Course in 2020. Since then, I have been teaching Japanese as a certified teacher, and I have met people from more than 30 countries through this teaching career so far. I started teaching part-time on italki in August 2021, and I have been meeting wonderful students here as well!
2013年に地元でボランティア講師として日本語を教え始め、2020年に日本語教師の資格を取得しました。それからは、有資格の教師として日本語を教えていて、日本語を教えることを通じて今まで30カ国以上の人に出会いました。italkiは2021年8月にパートタイムで始め、ここでも素晴らしい生徒さんたちに出会えています。My lessons & teaching style
Because italki is mainly for private lessons, I would like to focus on what and how the students want to study. I think studying Japanese in Japanese is a bit too hard sometimes (especially for beginners), so I would love to help students by using English if needed.
I am currently accepting new students since I moved to the States and started working in different time zone. If you are interested in my lessons, please feel free to message me.
For the cancellation policy, please check the lesson booking page.My teaching material
- PDF file
- Text Documents
- Image files
- Video files
- Articles and news
- Quizzes
- Test templates and examples
- Graphs and charts
- Homework Assignments
Certificates
Certificate of completion 日本語教師養成講座420時間修了証 - Tokyo Central Japanese Language School - 2020I completed all the requirements of the Japanese Language Teacher Training Course (420 hours above.)
Certificate verified
Teaching experience
2013 - 2022
Japanese TeacherI taught Japanese as volunteer work at a local community center. I taught Japanese to children, housewives, and full-time workers, who were living in Japan.
2017 - 2018
Student Assistant VolunteerWhile I was studying at Michigan State University as an exchange student (August to December 2017), I did volunteer work at a Japanese class at the university as an assistant. I helped students to make presentations and to practice talking in front of the class.
2020 - 2022
Japanese TutorAs a Japanese tutor, I helped international graduate students work on their homework from classes and their graduate thesis.
2021 - 2022
Certified Japanese TeacherI gave online private Japanese lessons from February to December 2021.
2021 - Current
Certified Japanese Teacher
Education
2020 - 2022
Master's - Intercultural CommunicationMy major is not particularly about Japanese language education, but my thesis was about cultural understanding through learning cultural aspects of the Japanese language, focusing on the reception of Japanese anime/manga and Japanese language education in the United States.
Work Experience
2018 - 2020
Chief of English Tour GuidesI had worked at Samurai Museum in Tokyo as an English tour guide. Unfortunately, the museum has been closed due to the pandemic, but we can talk about Japanese Samurai, history, swords, armor, and so on during the lesson!
2016 - 2020
Tutor (for English, Japanese, and math)I taught Japanese and math to the 2nd-6th grade Japanese students, and English to the 7th-12th Japanese students at a cram school. The lessons were mostly private, and I learned how important to think about what the students really need and change the lesson styles depending on each student and their individual needs.
2022 - 2023
SecretaryI worked on U.S. Navy bases in Japan. My job was to work for U.S. civilian department heads as their secretary, which included language and cultural support. I used English daily at work.
5.0
Rating
103
Students
958
Lessons
100%
Attendance rate
100%
Response rate
Japanese Lessons
Trial Lesson
65 lessons completed
USD 8.00+
Conversation Practice 会話の練習
A1 - C1Conversation147 lessons completed
USD 17.00+
Package with 7% off
Textbook Lesson 教科書を使ったレッスン
A1 - B2Language Essentials568 lessons completed
USD 31.50+
Package with 5% off
Customized Lesson カスタマイズレッスン
A1 - C1Language Essentials165 lessons completed
USD 28.50+
Package with 6% off
Availability
Based on your timezone (UTC+00:00)
65 Reviews
Jeremy Arnold
142 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
For my two years of having Kana as my teacher, she is very kind and patient teacher. She waits for me if I’m not confident in my speaking. She also will help correct you if you need it. She also helps you feel more confident in your speaking by talking with you about your life in Japanese every lesson. Also the mini conversations during each lesson about what you’re learning helps a ton. I would recommend her to anyone as a Japanese tutor.
Jan 5, 2024
Chad Martineau
143 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
Very friendly, accommodating, and easy to talk to. I have been having a lot of fun taking lessons with Kana-Sensei
Oct 8, 2021
Lori
13 Japanese lessons
I have taken a few textbook classes so far with Kana and she is a delight to learn from, very patient and explains the grammar and topics in great detail. I look forward to future lessons
Jan 30, 2025
Peggy
118 Japanese lessons
Teacher’s pick
Because I really love Japan + Japanese, I asked Kana if I can try to read something about Japan, on top of my textbook lesson. I like travelling in Japan, and she chose a book and tailor made the content for my level, and we talked about a basic understanding of Japan today. It’s a really nice and interesting lesson when I can read and learn Japanese with no pressure at all. I enjoyed it so much. Really a big thank you to Kana!
Jul 16, 2022
Ayla Sharii
1 Japanese lesson
My trial lesson with Kana went great. We were able to do some conversation in Japanese at the beginning with what I knew, and then could discuss in English what the options were for how to progress from there. She was kind and informative.
Mar 13, 2025
Jacquelyne Prelusky
9 Japanese lessons
Kana is very fun to learn with. She is very kind and understands nuances very well. I am excited to continue on my learning adventure with her guidance.
Dec 27, 2024
Trial Lesson
USD 8.00
Your final payment will be made in USD