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Starbound Academy • Live online English

English as a Second Language

Practice speaking in a small group, and build accurate grammar one-on-one. Every class is taught by Shasta Fox, a TEFL-certified teacher.

Speaking groupsGrammar lessons

Two ways to learn

Take one line or both. Each follows the same three levels.

Speaking

Conversation practice with other learners at your level. Each class has a topic, useful phrases, speaking tasks in pairs and as a group, and feedback on pronunciation and natural phrasing.

Group
3 to 8 learners
Format
8 weeks, two 50-minute classes a week
Starts
January 10, 2027 launch; three learners at the same level are needed. Meeting times are confirmed with your group before booking
Cost
$192 for the 8-week course, $12 a class
Request a speaking course · $192

Grammar

Private lessons that build accurate grammar step by step, at your level and pace. Each lesson explains one structure, practices it in speaking and writing, and ends with notes you keep.

Format
One-on-one, live online
Length
50 or 30 minutes
Booking
One lesson at a time, at a time that suits you
Cost
$45 for 50 minutes, $25 for 30 minutes
Request 50 minutes · $45Request 30 minutes · $25

Find your level

Choose the description that sounds most like you. Not sure? Book a 30-minute grammar lesson, and Shasta Fox will check your level and recommend a speaking group.

CEFR A1–A2

Beginning

You know some words and simple phrases. Learn to introduce yourself, ask simple questions, and handle everyday tasks like shopping and appointments.

CEFR B1–B2

Intermediate

You can talk about familiar topics. Learn to tell stories, give opinions, and handle work and travel conversations with fewer pauses.

CEFR C1

Advanced

You speak with confidence. Learn precision and nuance for presentations, interviews, debate, and academic or professional English.

Speaking curriculum

Each week has one theme and two classes. Every class starts with a warm-up, introduces useful phrases, moves into pair and group speaking, and ends with feedback.

BeginningCEFR A1–A2 · 8 weeks · 16 classes
  1. Week 1 · Meeting people. Greetings, introductions, spelling your name, numbers, and personal details.
  2. Week 2 · Daily life. Routines, telling the time, days of the week, and what you do every day.
  3. Week 3 · Food and shopping. Ordering at a café, asking about prices and sizes, and paying.
  4. Week 4 · Home and family. Describing your home, your family, and the people you live with.
  5. Week 5 · Getting around. Asking for and giving directions, public transportation, and making appointments.
  6. Week 6 · Health. Saying how you feel, talking to a doctor or pharmacist, and following simple instructions.
  7. Week 7 · Work and study. Talking about your job or classes, your skills, and your schedule.
  8. Week 8 · Plans and invitations. Inviting, accepting, and declining, and talking about weekends and holidays.
IntermediateCEFR B1–B2 · 8 weeks · 16 classes
  1. Week 1 · Telling stories. Past experiences, putting events in order, and keeping a listener interested.
  2. Week 2 · Opinions. Giving and supporting an opinion, and agreeing or disagreeing politely.
  3. Week 3 · Work conversations. Meetings, phone and video calls, and asking someone to clarify.
  4. Week 4 · Travel and problems. Hotels, delays, complaints, and solving a problem with a stranger.
  5. Week 5 · Health and wellbeing. Habits, advice, and describing symptoms in detail.
  6. Week 6 · News and community. Local news and current events, and summarizing what you read.
  7. Week 7 · Requests and negotiation. Polite requests and offers, and reaching a compromise.
  8. Week 8 · A short talk. Plan and give a three-minute talk, then answer questions from the group.
AdvancedCEFR C1 · 8 weeks · 16 classes
  1. Week 1 · Discussion and debate. Building an argument, conceding a point, and answering a challenge.
  2. Week 2 · Presentations. Structuring a talk, guiding listeners through it, and handling questions.
  3. Week 3 · Interviews. Job and academic interviews, answering with clear examples from your experience.
  4. Week 4 · Professional communication. Leading a meeting, giving feedback, and disagreeing diplomatically.
  5. Week 5 · Nuance and register. Idioms, phrasal verbs, humor, and choosing formal or casual language.
  6. Week 6 · Media and culture. Discussing film, books, and social issues in depth.
  7. Week 7 · Explaining complex ideas. Making research or technical ideas clear to someone outside your field.
  8. Week 8 · Final presentation. A prepared talk, with detailed feedback on fluency, accuracy, and pronunciation.

Grammar curriculum

Lessons follow this order, and you can spend extra time on any topic. A 50-minute lesson usually covers one topic; a 30-minute lesson reviews or practices one.

BeginningCEFR A1–A2 · 10 topics
  1. The verb be, and have and has
  2. Present simple for routines and facts
  3. Present continuous for what is happening now
  4. Questions and negatives with do and does
  5. Articles (a, an, the) and plurals
  6. Prepositions of time and place: in, on, at
  7. Past simple with regular and irregular verbs
  8. Can and can’t for ability and requests
  9. The future with going to and will
  10. Possessives, this and that, some and any
IntermediateCEFR B1–B2 · 10 topics
  1. Present perfect and past simple
  2. Past continuous and past perfect
  3. Future forms compared
  4. Comparatives and superlatives
  5. Modal verbs for advice, obligation, and possibility
  6. First and second conditionals
  7. The passive voice
  8. Reported speech
  9. Relative clauses
  10. Gerunds and infinitives
AdvancedCEFR C1 · 10 topics
  1. Third and mixed conditionals
  2. Advanced passives and causatives (have something done)
  3. Modals of deduction about the past
  4. Inversion for emphasis
  5. Cleft sentences
  6. Wishes, regrets, and the subjunctive
  7. Nominalization and academic style
  8. Linking words and discourse markers
  9. Phrasal verbs and collocations
  10. Editing your own writing for accuracy

How it works

  1. Choose a line and a level. If you are not sure of your level, start with a 30-minute grammar lesson.
  2. Book. Press a Book button, or send a message below with the line, your level, and the times that suit you.
  3. Confirm. Speaking groups launch January 10, 2027, once three learners at the same level have joined. You receive the confirmed schedule and a payment link.
  4. Meet online. The video link comes the day before your class or lesson.

Your teacher: Shasta Fox teaches every ESL class. She holds a TEFL certificate and is bilingual in English and Spanish.

Email Shasta Fox at shastaandziggy@gmail.com.