"The Language Unschool was invaluable in preparing me for the CIPLE A2 examination. Having completed the exam, I can see how every one of the lessons is designed to give TLU “Unschoolers” exactly what they need to succeed, on that test and in everyday interactions in Portuguese. I have been consistently impressed with the degree of preparation Catarina brings to every Live Chat — which are amazingly helpful sessions, since I learn from watching other Unschoolers as well as from my own participation.

Michèle, USA

"I have been an Unschooler for six months now. Before joining the course, I had been learning Portuguese intermittently for about a year. I had also completed a government-sponsored beginner’s Portuguese course. By then, I had acquired some basic knowledge of Portuguese: I could order at restaurants or have simple interactions with cashiers, but that was about it. For a while, I felt “lost.” My self-study was haphazard, and any progress came very slowly.

I discovered Catarina through her YouTube videos. What drew me to her content was her natural way of speaking—she uses Portuguese the way people around me do, without the slowed-down, simplified, or exaggerated enunciation. This was exactly the Portuguese I wanted to understand. I also appreciate her teaching style; her passion for languages and her skill as a linguist shine through in each video.

From the very beginning, Catarina showed genuine interest in my learning approach, my interests, and how she could support my progress. She is fully invested in each of her students and has an incredible memory for what we have discussed in past sessions. Although the course is self-paced, Catarina is always just a message or email away, ready to help with any questions. It truly feels like having a personal tutor guiding you in your learning journey.

Catarina’s approach covers all aspects of language acquisition—listening comprehension, reading, writing, and speaking—so that whatever learning style you prefer, be it auditory, visual, or tactile, she can help you succeed. For example, I am a tactile learner who learns best by writing what I want to express. In other online courses, learning through writing has been challenging because instructor feedback is often limited. With Catarina, I simply send her my writing, and she responds with thorough corrections, detailed suggestions for improving sentence flow, word choice, and more.

In the six months I’ve studied with Catarina, my Portuguese has improved by leaps and bounds. My listening comprehension, writing skills, and confidence in speaking Portuguese have all grown significantly. For the first time since picking up my first Portuguese book, I truly believe that one day I will attain fluency!"

Tony, Indonesia

"I found Catarina quite by chance, on YouTube. She was very funny and it was immediately apparent she loved language learning.
I became a student last October [2023]. I haven’t looked back since.
Besides talking about how much fun it is at her school, I wanted to share a bit about how I feel about my learning journey.
I am never alone. Catarina took the time to get to know me, really know what motivates me, what my interests were, what my learning style was. I feel I am always supported. I can reach out day or night and ask a question, get clarification, or simply say hi. I always get my questions answered. And in those moments when I am frustrated Catarina gets me out of my funk and points me in the right direction. 
I’ve never experienced a teacher like Catarina, nor a learning environment like she has created here at The Language Unschool. 
I am now conversational and am headed to fluency. 
Thank you Catarina!"

Amy, USA

"The little Portuguese I had picked up thirty years ago had been getting more and more rusty, but — time-pressured and habitually stressed —I felt reluctant to enrol in a formal course. 

Flor, The Netherlands

"I started the The Language Unschool program with Catarina a few months ago.  
I had tried other courses, but wasn’t progressing in understanding the spoken language and speaking. 
Catarina’s Unschool program focuses on how the language is really spoken in a fun way. 

"I grew up in the UK in the 1980's when languages were not taught in school beyond the basic level.
By the time we were of an age to select options for G.C.S.E., I , like most people had already given up on my rudimentary Spanish. Worse, the education system of the time did not teach basic rules of grammar, as, we were told, you should be able to read, write, speak etc without it! Typical British.... ;-)