“I can’t remember how I discovered Noriko (it might have been a Tofugu blog post…) but I am so glad I did! She has really inspired me to level up my Japanese! I have been taking private lessons with her for the past few years. Through her lessons, I have gained confidence in conversing in Japanese. We talk about anything and everything. Also, she helps me with shadowing exercises, and Japanese books I am reading. Noriko is cheerful, enthusiastic and engaging - just a pleasure to talk to. She is an excellent communicator and asks great questions. If ever I am feeling unmotivated or stuck, simply talking to her or listening to her podcast makes me feel rejuvenated! Honestly, I can’t say enough good things about her. I would highly recommend taking lessons with Noriko. Not only are her lessons invaluable, her community - Japanese Together - is a wonderful resource. You can connect with fellow learners, participate in a variety of challenges, and practice Japanese in a fun way. Thank you Noriko!”

“I have been learning Japanese with Noriko for 2 years. When I started having lessons I could understand Japanese to an intermediate level but found speaking very difficult. However thanks to Noriko's lessons and guidance I can now comfortably have conversations with Japanese people on a range of topics. Noriko's lessons have a range of topics that she can tailor to your needs - our lessons are always filled with interesting and challenging - but not too challenging - topics and activities. At the same time, she creates a very relaxed and positive atmosphere where it's ok to mistakes, and she is always genuinely interested in both my Japanese language journey and about my life in general. I'm so glad I chose her to help me improve my Japanese.”

“Noriko is very flexible in terms of doing the kind of lessons that the student finds helpful. Of course, as a student, it is often difficult to talk smoothly. Sometimes you can crash into a brick wall with a ‘bang’. Sometimes you're in a hurry and don't know what to say, or what that word is. But with Noriko's guidance, I either get over it or smoothly move past it. Noriko is very patient.

Thanks to Noriko, I know more about how Japanese conversation goes. When I talk to Noriko, I feel like I'm not a student, but just a participant in the conversation. My confidence in conversation goes up as well.

After taking lessons from Noriko, I know that I can speak better when I meet Japanese people in real conversations. I am not as nervous as before. It seems as if I have more time to express my opinions than before.

I definitely recommend Noriko's sessions, you will have a fun time and learn a lot.’”

“I have had Noriko as a teacher for over two years and I have never been happier with my Japanese level. Before meeting Noriko I had studied the language as a teenager for multiple years but never reached anything higher than lower intermediate. I then took a long break from it but a couple of years ago I decided to restart my studies and I am very glad that I found Noriko. As a starting point, we discussed what my interests, ambitions and proficiency were and Noriko has been great at adjusting her lessons to match those. And how entertaining her lessons are! I just have a great time studying with Noriko, who seems to easily answer any question I throw at her, be it regular grammar or some strange internet slang I came across. I would absolutely not hesitate to recommend her as a teacher.”