The Creative WRITING Sprint! begins on May 13, 2022.
We will explore CREATIVITY & CLARITY.


- Self-editing that doesn't hurt
- Sentence struture
- Strategies to structure creativity
- Creative writing as a tool to improve your spontaneous speaking skills
- Vibrant language
- Fluency in the language of feeling and emotion

https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/calendar/creative-writing-sprint

LAST CALL for those who wanted to join a creative writing SPRINT!

It starts today.

Apply here https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/calendar/creative-writing-sprint

A whole new page is ready for you with FAQ and convenient payment methods (in USD and RUB)
It's not too late to join this CREATIVE WRITING program.
You get lifetime access and 12 months of guaranteed personalized feedback on every text you write.
Join us before MAY 15, 2022 to get onboard and participate in line editing sessions in real time.

https://courses.nataliatokar.me/courses/creative-writing-sprint

We started today! Gosh I love the idea of SPRINTs! They keep us all moving, they challenge our learning habits, and they help us develop the speed we needed to move forward. Join us now if you wan to learn to hear, understand, and communicate your intentions in English. It's not only about mastering the rhythm of English (where intonation plays a great role), but about communicating what you understand and gaining a clear perspecting on what others meant to say. The details are in the description box under the video https://youtu.be/99y7qWB31xk

I guess this is the result of my writing practice. Click to see the full text in the Community Writing Studio. I use the same tools that I teach in my writing courses: they are simple, free, available, and adaptable tools that helps us learn to self-edit, self-correct, and express our thoughts in English.


https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/writing-skills/simple-vs-simplistic-through-the-lens-of-learning-and-comprehension-skills-88f808d7-1311-4862-be09-4009634bd44f

Reading is a cognitive skill, just like remembering, reasoning, holding attention, solving problems, thinking, focusing, and learning.
Reading out loud is one of the fundamental exercises to achieve Native-Like fluency in the target language because through the experience of reading you acquire many other cognitive abilities directly in the target language.

Most people only focus on reading English words correctly and getting their teacher's approval.
Try reading out loud to someone. Imagine you're creating an audiobook. You will have to give the task your focused attention. You will have to listen to yourself. You will have to make sense of what you're reading. You'll have to pay attention to your intonations. You will not be simply reading words. You will be engaged in cognitive training that will challenge your attention, memory, reasoning, and other cognitive skills in English.

Focus on developing reading fluency.
What is reading fluency? Fluency is made up of rate, accuracy, and prosody. Here’s another way to say it: Fluency is reading the words of any text accurately, at a reasonable pace, and with expression and phrasing that sounds like talking.

You want to make sure that your reading sounds like talking. That would be the desired outcome of the reading practice.

See the full text to practice reading it too and engage in a conversation in the Community of Practice
https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/ask-anything/natalia-reads-enraged-letter

Based OFF or Based ON? How I work with new vocabulary and the questions I ask myself

The audio above is from a new post in the Community of Practice, section "Daily Tips". The post is here https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/tips-to-build-your-practice-routine/based-on-or-based-off
The full post has the link to the grammar blog post I'm referring to and other resources.

If you're not a member, start your free trial today. It costs nothing. Unlock access to all the exercises and join collective work. People work in teh Community daily, and that is my biggest reward.

See the full post on this "flat intonation" in English here https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/ask-anything/gliding-forward

“Knowledge is only rumor
until it lives in the bones.”
The Asaro Tribe

This Sunday, on May 29! Join a 4-hour practice reading session in Petroff Palace Moscow. You can see the details and register right here. The application form is on the event page https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/calendar/may29-reading-session

I'm so looking forward to reading again out loud with you!

Tomorrow, on JUNE 1, 2022, I am welcoming the 3rd cohort of the Native-Like Fluency group.

It's a 6-month program where we learn to create deliberate, sustainable, well-structured, and creative practice routines to achieve Native-Like Fluency. We learn to continuously improve the quality of our English skills and our communication skills in English.

Most of the confirmed participants are in the process of relocation to an English-speaking country. They need better quality relationships in English, better quality listening skills, and much better fluency. We focus on clarity, communication presence, self-correction, writing skills, and we actively apply metacognitive strategies to accelerate the learning process and create a meaningful learning journey for ourselves. The program introduces a system of exercises that everybody can master and continue practicing on their own with continuous feedback. It's a very creative journey, and I can't wait to welcome the new group!

To apply and schedule an introductory 20-min call, please click here https://forms.office.com/r/XSKMSGFr6S

If you live in Moscow, would you like to swap books in English? People who have English books are ready to share. People who would like to read English books, would gladly borrow rather than purchase. Read more about our new Community Initiative here https://community.nataliatokar.me/c/ask-anything/book-swapping-in-moscow-it-was-your-idea