Learning a new language as an adult is never easy — and learning your first Slavic language as an adult is very hard indeed. Most adults who take on Russian give up shortly after memorizing the Cyrillic alphabet and learning how to count to ten. Having a good teacher can make all the difference to whether you stay motivated, keep on challenging yourself, make good progress and enjoy your studies. Maria Kletsko is precisely such a teacher. My contact sessions with her over the past year have been invaluable. And it’s been fun, too.

The best thing about my Russian tutor, Maria, are the sweet delights she offers each time I arrive. Along with good coffee from the Natal midlands and the special Russian teas! Now that I had to move too far away from her, and can only continue my lessons via Skype, the sweet delights are only a distant memory. At least she still promptly responds to my homework, pushes me just enough to ensure I stay on track, and not fall away, and really helps me to understand the language and its intricacies.

I recently traveled to Russia and I could almost have Maria on call, ready to assist in any way that I might need. That was a great comfort in such a foreign culture.

I would highly recommend her services. However, don't count on the tea and cookies... I think she only does that for me. Or I'd like to believe so!"

I am very glad I contacted Maria for continuing my Russian lessons. It is important to feel at ease when trying to learn the mighty Russian language and what a beautiful language it is.

Maria is a great tutor and helped me a great deal to understand and get a better feel for the language. She provides a very comfortable atmosphere, where one can quickly gain more confidence in talking Russian.

At this stage, I have one lesson per week and it is one of the highlights of my week. It is possible to talk about many different topics with her and this is the best way to increase your vocabulary.

If you are interested in learning Russian, I would certainly recommend Maria. You will be speaking Russian in no time!

My family, consisting of myself, my wife and baby son (now toddler) moved to Moscow, Russia for a total period of 21 months. Initially only me and my wife went across and soon realised that acquiring at least a basic level of Russian was very necessary. In the couple of months, we came back to SA for the birth of my son I started looking for a Russian tutor. Luckily, I found Maria. Her Skype way of lessons were an ideal fit with a new-born baby in the house. Her energy and passion during the lessons made it easy to follow. The fact that she is so integrated into South African culture already meant that she could easily explain Russian and the Russian culture by comparing it to things I am used to. We often compared language nuances with Afrikaans rather than English.

Again, due to all lessons being over Skype we could continue seamlessly when we went back to Russia. All material suggested by Maria was very easy to follow and all lessons were valuable especially because I could immediately apply it in my daily life in Moscow. I would recommend Maria to anyone who wants to learn Russian.

Exceptional teacher!

As an engineer and a man of science, languages do not naturally come to me, but Maria with her mountain of knowledge in the Russian and Ukrainian languages together with her professional yet energetic teaching methods has made the daunting task of learning a new language easy and immensely enjoyable! Through practice and repetition she has brought me a long way. Doing homework assignments daily and fault finding and corrections during the classes, my reading and writing skills are beyond that which I originally hoped for! She uses dialogs and engages in conversations to promote comprehension and articulation of words, grammatically structured sentences and concepts.

Maria adjusts each lesson according to the skills and progress of each student, ranging from absolute beginners to intermediate and advanced learners. Young or old, slow or fast learner, I would recommend Maria as a teacher of both Russian and Ukrainian to everyone.

With an abundance of materials such as books, audio books, poems, novels, articles, music and movies, you can be sure that she can structure a lesson to capture your interests.

I look forward to continuing my lessons with Maria and improving my skills.

Hmm, how do I describe Maria? First word that comes to my mind is warm! She has a unique warmth, from welcoming you into her home (as I was) for lessons, to the cup of coffee before starting on the morning’s work. With her infectious laughter, she not only invites you to learn but inspires you as well!

Maria is diligent with her preparations whether it be lessons or tours. She is the most trustworthy and dependable person I have ever met! I am proud to call her my friend!

Her passion, energy and zest for life is a gift worth learning from.

Learning Russian with Maria is both fun and fast.

She knows her subject and has a special gift to make you feel confident and excited about trying to speak Russian in a short time

I can with confidence say, if you have a desire to learn and speak Russian fast Maria will help you achieve your goals!

So don't delay - get Maria in your corner, she will help you to read and speak Russian quickly!

Finding Maria has not only been a privilege, but the methodology of locating her must be eluded to in detail. On meeting Maria, her all-encompassing personality and vitality made an immediate positive impression. Her enthusiasm and energy made me want to set about achieving my goal.

She is inspiring not only from her wishing to proceed with the studies, but from also establishing the reasons for my need to start the tuition. She has a style of teaching that suits her personality; she does not change her personae from being herself and to being a tutor. Her focus was on my requirements and always responded immediately to any questions. She never displayed her knowledge to make an impression.

From the start, she set challenging targets and expectations. Her drive and commitment makes the whole experience interesting and ultimately successful. She encourages participation and goes beyond her duty to give clarity of content. Maria is extremely organized and structures her lessons in a manner, which I imagine is in accordance with each pupil’s potential and progress. Maria has contributed to making my endeavours everything I was hoping to achieve.

I am most satisfied and excited that I have achieved something I did not think was possible. Without Maria's patience, dedication and enthusiasm none of this would have been possible. During most lessons, Maria would not only cover content but also give some insight of the history of the Russian language and also give some background into the culture of the peoples of the previously C.I.S. countries.

In every lesson, she motivates a sense of eagerness to learn. Maria's ability to retain one's attention in this regard is admirable. Maria has the unique quality of utilizing her immense knowledge in her subject; yet simultaneously being able to impart some of this to people wishing to accomplish their objective.

I have enjoyed every minute of my Russian language experience. On each and every occasion I left my lesson with a feeling of achievement. These circumstances made me look forward and encouraged to complete my home study.

From my experience, I can do no more than to highly recommend Maria to any one or a group of students to attend either her personalized lessons or group lectures.

It has been an opportunity and privilege to have Maria as a tutor and now also a good friend.