Having spent my most tender years with my adorable mom learning how to read, write, and speak properly, at the age of five I told my beloved parents that I didn't want to attend the kindergarten anymore, I was fully grown up and ready to go to school.

Since I had left kindergarten and my parents didn't know what else to do with me during that year, they literally poured into me every bit of knowledge and every skill they believed I would need for primary school.

Looking back now, I realize how crucial that year was. It was that year of preparation that served as the foundation and made me such a confident student in the years to come.

Thank you, Mom and Dad. I love you so much.

Obviously, no school would accept a five-year-old, so I had to wait another year. And... oh, Lord, I didn't take that year for granted.

If you ask me what memories I cherish most from primary school, I would definitely mention three things:

• The incredible aroma of delicious cinnamon buns and hot chocolate that filled every classroom from our school bakery

• My first love, Roman, and the sweet affection we had for each other from the very first sight

Those three things were the reason I ran to school every single morning.

Straight A's. Never missing a single class. Why? Because you don't want to miss the things you love.

I'm deeply grateful to my beautiful first teacher for the love, care, and attention she gave us. Every child felt loved, valued, and cared for.

Her gentle way of teaching inspired me so much that whenever I looked at her, I would always smile and imagine myself one day teaching children with the same kindness and care.

Perhaps one day I'll write a book and share the beautiful and meaningful stories from that time. But for now, it's enough to imagine the impact she had on little Daniela. Let's move on!

• My amazing, kind, gentle, tactful, honest, caring, and loving teacher, Helen.
Ah, I loved her...

After graduating from primary school, I went straight to secondary school. New teachers, new classmates, new experiences.

I'll never forget my very first lesson there. It was a history class.

I walked into the classroom and was completely blown away.

And she did it every single time.
It was so inspiring and captivating that we naturally wanted to discover the story behind those drawings.

The entire chalkboard had already been transformed into a beautiful work of art. Using colorful chalk, our teacher had illustrated the historical story we were about to discover.
Oh my God! What a gift of a teacher she was. Such a beautiful soul...

That memory stayed with me for many years.
When I eventually began creating my own lessons, I realized why I had always been naturally drawn to visual learning.

Sending an enormous thank you to my history teacher for inspiration and extraordinary devotion to her profession.

It wasn't simply because visuals help us remember.
It was because, as a child, I had experienced how beauty makes us curious.

Teachers like you make the students like me fall in love with subjects we would otherwise not pay our due attention to
♡

My first steps...

Not every year of my school life was sweet and fluffy.

I remember that when I was eleven years old, all of a sudden, some of our teachers retired, while some of the younger ones went on maternity leave. New teachers would come and go. It was a time of real confusion.

During that time, I noticed something interesting.
The only moments of happiness and excitement I experienced at school were during our French and English classes. Those language classes were where I felt the deepest connection with my linguistic essence.

I remember coming home, opening my laptop, and searching for any website where I could learn languages in greater depth. I went through hundreds and hundreds of websites, looking for answers.

I learned grammar rules while discovering the logic behind them and the historical roots.

I read books.

I watched films.

I listened to podcasts.

I studied different accents.

I memorized essays.

I completed thousands of exercises, quizzes, tests, you name it.

The amount of self-confidence that whole process gave me was unimaginable.

The deeper you study, the more eloquent and precise you become in expressing your ideas, your wishes, and your feelings.

I'm so grateful to myself for those three years of daily hard work and dedication to becoming a linguist.

Those three years helped me understand the depth and roots of every language I was learning.

I wanted to understand not only words but also the stories behind them.
I studied vocabulary while exploring the origins of each word.

As a result, most of the time we didn't have a substitute teacher, so the classroom was entirely ours. At first, doing nothing was fun. But soon enough, going to school began to feel rather pointless.

At times, I felt like an archaeologist discovering hidden treasures.

Treasures that no one could ever take away from me.

Thank you, Daniela. I love you.

My classroom...

Once I turned fourteen, things changed dramatically.

So, what did I do?

When you realize you've been absorbing so much knowledge and so many skills nonstop for so long, there comes a moment when you feel as though you're about to burst with that energy. You need to share it. You need to spread it and help others experience that same joy and excitement.

I literally bought a whiteboard and a marker and started teaching an imaginary classroom.

And all of a sudden, I realized I was at a loss for words. I started stuttering...

?

"Yes, I know the rule, but how do I explain it? How do I formulate it? What words should I use?"

And that's where you start from the very beginning, relearning every rule—not from the perspective of a student, silently analyzing it, but from the perspective of a teacher, asking yourself how that rule can serve the student and in which situations it can be applied.

Looking back, I realize something.
I wasn't pretending to be a teacher.
I was becoming one.

We become what we dream of becoming by practicing our dream, not by merely dreaming it.

It took time to transform myself from a "professional student" into an "amateur teacher."

As the days and months went by, I got better and better. How? Well, if you do something passionately a hundred times, eventually you get better, and it begins to feel absolutely natural, as if you were born with that skill.

In fact, I became so confident and natural that whenever my parents walked into the room, my mom would smile and say,
"Oh, you're working. Okay, I'll come back later."
She treated my teaching practice as if it were a real job.

My first student...

Ah... where do I begin?

When I was sixteen, life gave me another quiet sign that I was walking in the right direction.

It was pulling me toward teaching.

At the time, I was already studying at university. My days were filled with lectures, presentations, essays, and exams. Yet, despite everything I was learning, my heart kept pulling me somewhere else.

For years, I had been filling myself with languages, ideas, and methods of learning. Now I felt ready to share them with someone else.

I had no expectations whatsoever. The advertisement itself felt like a victory. It was one more step toward the life I had imagined for so many years.

Coming from a generous family, making people feel welcome came naturally to me.
Before every lesson, I would stop at a shop to buy fruit, sweets, and little snacks before heading to Jasmine's home. Together, we would set the table, make ourselves comfortable, enjoy each other's company, and only then begin learning English.

Officially, our lessons lasted an hour and a half.
In reality, they often stretched to three wonderful hours.

Not because we were wasting time.
But because every topic led to another.

Grammar led to history.
History led to culture.
Culture led to music.
Music led to accents.
Accents led to stories.
And every new discovery made us curious enough to keep going.

I didn't just want Jasmine to learn English.
I wanted her to discover the entire world hidden inside it.

Before I knew it, every lesson had become a little journey.

And we both loved every minute of it.

Looking back today, I realize that Jasmine wasn't simply my first student.

She was the first person who allowed me to discover who I really was as a teacher.

She showed me that teaching wasn't merely something I enjoyed.

It was the place where my curiosity finally found its purpose.

That memory remains one of the greatest treasures of my life.
Thank you, Jasmine. I love you, beautiful.

So one day, I gathered all my courage and posted a small advertisement online. It simply said that I was a first-year university student offering English tutoring.

Then, something happened that I will never forget.

Three minutes later, my phone rang.

On the other end of the line was Jasmine's mom.

And just like that, Jasmine became my very first real student.

Before we began learning together, her family invited me over so we could simply get to know one another. That first meeting made me feel completely at ease, and soon afterwards our lessons began.

Those lessons taught me just as much as they taught Jasmine.

At sixteen, I didn't know much about lesson planning or time management. What I did know was that I loved languages with all my heart, and I wanted my student to feel that love from the moment I walked through the door.

My education...

Here, I'd like to be absolutely transparent with you.
I know not everyone will agree with my perspective, and that's perfectly okay. But it's important to me to explain the reasoning that has shaped the way I approach education.
If I could give one piece of advice, it would be this:

Because schools, colleges, and universities can provide structure, discipline, and valuable knowledge. But the quality of that knowledge depends greatly on the people who teach it.
Every teacher and every professor is different.
Some are passionate.
Some are exhausted.
Some are experienced.
Some are just beginning.
Some walk into the classroom excited to share what they know.

Others walk in carrying the weight of personal struggles, stress, or simply years of burnout.
And all of those factors influence not only what they teach, but, more importantly, how they teach it.

I learned that lesson the hard way during my school years.
Some teachers absolutely loved what they did, and their enthusiasm made every lesson unforgettable.

Others seemed to have lost that passion, making even the most fascinating subjects feel painfully dull.
That's when I realized something important.
School is, in many ways, a lottery.
Sometimes you're fortunate enough to meet an inspiring teacher, someone who makes you fall in love with a subject you might otherwise never have noticed.
And sometimes you meet a teacher who unintentionally convinces you that the most beautiful subject in the world is unbearably boring.

That's simply life.
Life doesn't owe us to be perfect.

What is in our hands is learning how to adapt and make the most of every situation.
The sooner we develop that skill, the easier—and, I would even say, the more enjoyable—life becomes.
That realization stayed with me throughout every university program and every online course I chose to take.
No matter who stood in front of the classroom, I never expected them to be responsible for my education.
That responsibility was always mine.

Considering how much I adore education in general, I have a whole collection of diplomas and certificates in my bedroom. Here, I will mention only a few of the online and offline programs related to linguistics that I completed:

I'm incredibly grateful to every student I shared those years with—for the coffee breaks where we laughed and complained together, for the late nights we spent preparing for exams, and for celebrating together once we passed them.
I'm grateful simply for being there for one another.

Don't go to university if you are not ready to do 90% of the learning yourself.

Why do I say that?

I studied Spanish Language and Culture at the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona.

Then, I studied Business English at University of Pennsylvania.

I'm also grateful to every professor who went out of their way to share their wisdom, life lessons, and support us on our journey—not only as students, but as human beings trying to understand this chaotic, multilayered world.
Thank you. You made my experience complete and truly worth remembering.

And also, I studied Linguistics at the Saint Petersburg Institute of Foreign Languages.

My practice...

Over the years, I've had the honor of teaching students from all walks of life—lawyers, pilots, flight attendants, businesspeople, IT specialists, Olympic coaches, doctors, teachers, and, of course, my most beloved schoolchildren.

The universe has been incredibly generous, sending all these diverse and fascinating people into my life so that we could expand each other's perspectives, share our worlds, and learn from one another.
What a joy it has been!

After many years of teaching, I felt ready to take a new step and share my lessons beyond the classroom. When I started posting online, I hoped that maybe 10–20 people would find my videos helpful, and that would make me super happy! But to my surprise, almost overnight the lessons reached millions of students worldwide.

Still surprised... and super grateful for all of you!

Turning point...

One of the turning points came in February 2023, when a young student from South Korea sent me a message showing her desk full of printed screenshots of my videos, letting me know that she was preparing for her university exam.

I was deeply touched by this response, and the very next day I decided to begin creating a real, audio-visual book so students could enjoy a tangible learning experience.
That decision marked the beginning of Englexs Academy.

By July 2024, the book’s content — more than 1,100 pages of visual learning materials — was ready, and I began building the website and designing my first courses. It was a path filled with inspiration, challenges, late nights, happiness, and excitement, as well as discipline and focus — and it was absolutely worth it.

Englexs Academy...

Englexs Academy is the result of all my experiences, passions, and years of teaching. It is a space where learning feels personal, inspiring, and joyful, designed to help you not just improve your English, but truly gain confidence, clarity, and freedom in communication.

Inside Englexs Academy, you will find:

• Carefully designed courses that focus on real-life communication, pronunciation, and fluency

• Audio and video materials created and edited by me personally, so every lesson carries clarity, care, and attention

• Tools to practice, repeat, and absorb language naturally, without stress or pressure

• Supportive guidance to help you feel motivated and confident, even when tackling the hardest challenges

The first course inside Englexs Academy is dedicated to English pronunciation, helping students build a clear, confident, and natural sound from the very beginning. Every lesson was created with heart, intention, and joy. Truly hope you'll enjoy it!

This is only the start — new courses are already in development and will be released very soon, expanding into new areas of language learning and communication. You are welcome to join whenever you feel ready.

Beyond Teaching...

When I’m not teaching or creating courses, I immerse myself in art and creativity.

I love drawing, reading, dancing, traveling, visiting museums, attending masterclasses, and I deeply cherish my family.

These passions inspire me, nourish my imagination, and bring energy into everything I do — from designing courses to connecting with students. I believe creativity, exploration, and beauty are just as essential to learning as discipline and practice.

Gratitude...

I carry deep gratitude for my teachers, students, and all the kind people I have met across different countries and cultures. I am thankful to life itself for the opportunities, lessons, and paths that shaped me — an intricate journey I could never have imagined or created alone.

Above all, I am deeply grateful to my family, especially my mom (my greatest gift in life), for their love, care, and unwavering support.

I hope Englexs Academy feels like a true home for learning — a place where knowledge and kindness go hand in hand, where you always feel welcomed, inspired, and empowered to grow.

Sending you much love and best of luck! May your learning bring you new opportunities!