“She has been appreciated as an excellent instructor, with a pleasant personality and is reliable in all her dealings.”
– Monique M. (Instruction Supervisor Berlitz language center – Pasadena, CA)
“I took an extensive eight-and-a-half week course of Italian instruction from Emanuela Selva at Santa Monica Berlitz. First of all, I will say that I am a retired university professor (35 years of teaching at Loyola Marymount University), and in my profession I had the opportunity to observe many of my colleagues teaching and to serve as a master teacher for three tenure-track junior professors (all of whom were promoted to tenure and full professorships). Ms. Selva certainly could hold her own with any of them. As an English professor, I appreciated her grasp of the grammar of Italian and the ability to convey it clearly to a novice speaker. I am quite sure she gave more specific and organized grammar instruction than is usual under the Berlitz method, and, frankly, I appreciated that. She was thorough, patient, and generous with her time, sending us frequent extra materials (outlines, exercises, and so on). The lessons were two and a quarter hours each, and she managed to pace the time well, shifting her methodology at intervals within the class time to avoid tedium. She is personally very charming and good-natured, but she is also appropriately demanding of her students and she made me want to do well and work hard for her! I was very impressed with her, and I think she would do very well with college-aged students – or students at any grade level.”
– Sharon Locy (retired professor at Marymount University)
“Emanuela has worked for our center for over a year. She has very good knowledge of the Italian language. She likes to go the extra mile with students and help them understand and practice the language as much as possible.”
– Director Alex Jimenex (Pasadena Language Center – Pasadena, CA)
“I am happy to recommend Emanuela as a private tutor. Emanuela is an excellent and professional tutor of the Italian culture and language, supporting my lofty learning goals yet realistic in her approach to teaching; “Piano! Piano!”. Separated by 2,000 miles and 4 states, our lessons are done online , and it is so convenient! She is always sensitive to my busy schedule and is prepared for each lesson. She amazingly remembers all of my areas with which I struggle and we work on these areas until well mastered. She is tough on me when I slack, and she celebrates when I succeed. In each lesson, we review and then she challenges with new material. Our lessons are always fun, enjoyable and conversational. The time flies! More importantly, she pushes me to learn the material better and faster. I look forward to advancing in the language with her help.”
– Michael M. Fuselier (Executive & Advisor/International Business & Finance)
“Emanuela is a wonderful teacher. She is a native Italian so speaks, writes and translates the language as only a native speaker can. Emanuela also possesses the ability to transfer her insights and nuanced understanding of the language to her students. I enjoyed my classes immensely. She made them fun and exciting while also demanding high performance and effort from her students. My Italian improved fantastically and my desire to learn more about the country and to be able to communicate in Italian grew exponentially. Emanuela is affordable, personable, creative, inventive, fun and as an added bonus-she is quite beautiful both inside and out. She is also one of those rare persons who under promise and over deliver. Finally, I am a classical concert pianist. The word “rubato” is a musical term and quite frequently the explanation of its meaning is to “take time-slow down a bit”. I learned from Emanuela that the word “rubare” in Italian means “to steal” so the word “rubato” (past tense) means “stolen” so the more precise and far superior meaning of the word for a pianist is “to steal time”. Emanuela is worth multiple times whatever money one might spend to have the honor of studying Italian with her.”
– David Troy Francis. (Musician)
“Emanuela is a great tutor. I travel to Europe frequently and I have been through three different schools / tutors and I have found a perfect match. She is efficient and because I am busy, it saves a lot of time by doing lessons on skype. She knows where my strengths and weaknesses are and uses them to better guide me in my learning experience. We have a lot of fun and she is perfectly priced.”
– Brandon Peterson (Peterson Event Lighting, LLC)
“Emanuela is great! She was my teacher for several sessions at Pasadena Language Center. Over the years, I’ve had many language teachers– for French, Spanish, Korean, and Italian. Emanuela gets you to speak more than almost any of the other teachers I’ve had. Granted, with only 2 or 3 people in the class, there was a greater-than-usual opportunity for student participation– but wow, Emanuela’s teaching style is a sort of mash-up of jazz, boxing, and karate, Italian style! “Jane, how do you say, “to eat”? Mike, cosa c’è sul tavolo? OK, now let’s do a role-play “virtualization”. Mike, you are Michele. Jane, you are Francesca. After the dialogue has been read and the books have been closed, Emanuela gives you your lines in English and has you translate your part of the mini play. Her classes are action-packed and there’s no rest till they’re over. If you want to get comfy with the Italian language, Emanuela is the way to go.”
– Jonathan Raines
“Emanuela was my teacher. She has an excellent grasp of English and understands how to convey the idiosyncrasies between the two languages. She is very patient and explains things in a clear, logical and precise manner- all of which I personally find very helpful. In addition, she uses visual aids, speaks slow and perfect Italian, uses dialog, repetition and writing as part of the learning process. While my command of the Italian language is quite basic, I am confident my time with Emanuela will be well- spent by the end of my instruction. I hope Emanuela is afforded whatever opportunity comes her way because she is very capable and a genuinely sincere person.”
– Linda Ardito
“Emanuela is an amazing Italian language professor. Her style is professional and very personal. After working with her for a short time, I was able to travel to Italy and experience the local, rather than tourist, experience. I highly recommend Emanuela as a teacher of not only the Italian language, but of the beautiful Italian culture. I have also utilized her skills as an Italian interpreter. She is able to understand and convey the the nuances of both the Italian and English cultures. She is truly a beautiful gift.”
– Tina Maluso
“With her unique way of teaching and her great personality I can strongly recommend Emanuela as a Italian teacher.After 3 months of lessons with her I am able to have a day-to-day conversation and also to read and write comfortably in this beautiful language. It has been an excellent experience.”
– Barbara Simonian
“Emanuela is a language teacher who has the patience and ear to teach my children Italian. They have enjoyed learning and I’ve seen their vocabulary grow in just the 6 months they’ve worked with Emanuela. I feel my eldest could travel in Italy and manage to find his way due to the lessons he’s received.”
– Elisabeth Jeresky
“Ms. Selva’s lessons, although demanding, are taught in a manner that is easy to follow as she continually challenges me to do better each week. She is patient in her explanation of grammar, verbs and tenses- and will find alternate ways to explain rules using various examples. She consistently follows-through, expecting the student to complete assignments and provide an understanding of the material at the next lesson. Ms Selva is not only reliable and on time, but truly gifted as a teacher, committed to helping her students learn the language. I have referred Ms. Selva to other friends and colleagues as she is not only highly qualified but a pleasure to be with.”
– Jacquie Ochoa Rosellini
“If you are looking for a fun way to learn the Italian language, Emanuela is the tutor for you. Being from Italy, she knows the Italian culture. And since she has lived in the US for quite some time, she understands the American culture as well. You will learn more than just words and sentences, you will also get an understanding of the Italian culture. Her lessons are fun and very practical at the same time they are also structured well. I have taken several lessons at different times and I plan to continue my education in the Italian language.”
– Liza Yambao (Analyst to Kaiser Permanente)
“I have taken Beginner and Intermediate Italian and love Emanuela Selva. She was very prepared and professional, and perhaps most important (for me) patient. I have tried on line and at home courses, but nothing beats live instruction and the discipline of a classroom setting. As a full time professional taking Italian to complement trips to Italy, Emanuela was the perfect choice.”
– Steven B.
“My boyfriend and I recently took a series of private Italian lessons before leaving on a trip to Italy. We loved our teacher, Emanuela, and felt that she did a wonderful job preparing us for our trip. She was able to effectively judge our pace of learning and presented each week’s material accordingly. We plan on continuing our classes in the future.”
– Ronna D.
“Ms. Selva has demonstrated her teaching qualities and skills by teaching different students and attending numerous in-service training sessions. Emanuela Selva is an innovative person who seeks out the most effective methodologies to meet need of students. Through her dilgent efforts, Tutoringalaxy’s students have improved their performance, their grades, and accomplished their language acquisition goals. She has also organized before and after school programs for students. Her work ethics, instructional abilities and overall skills in working with people in an invaluable asset.”
– Izabella G.C. (Founder of Tutoringalaxy & credential teacher)
“Emanuela is great! I’ve been taking her private tutoring classes each week, for a number of months now – and I am becoming quite good at speaking Italian. She’s always willing to see me in person but we often do our class over a video conference – which is a nice option for me because I’m so busy. I believe she is genuinely interested in seeing her students learn the language, evidenced by her work ethic. I would recommend her to anyone looking for a private tutor here in LA/West/Beverly Hills area – or beyond, given the online option!”
– Brandon J. LoCascio (Developer & Commercial, General Contractor)
