Professional and patient Swedish language teacher, based in Cambridge, lessons available via Skype

Find out more about Susanne

• Do you speak this language fluently because of your origins or because a teacher inspired you to learn?

  Yes, I am a native speaker. I was born and brought up in Stockholm, Sweden.

• Can you name a living, historical or fictional character that you think is the emblematic representative of the language's culture?

  One person that springs to mind and who is easy to talk to students about is Astrid Lindgren. She has played a large part in Sweden both during her lifetime and her legacy lives on continuing to next generations. She was an advocate for equal opportunities and children's rights, ecology and animal welfare. She made ground breaking academic achievements as well as being the most translated Swedish author. Some of her books include: Pippi Longstocking, Emil in Lönneberga, The Brothers Lionheart and Mio Min Mio.

• Is there a typical word, phrase, tradition or behaviour in the language that you particularly like?

  Not necessarily a specific word but Swedes do have a certain way to use the tone of voice to emphasise what they mean. A simple yes or no can actually mean quite the opposite.

• Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  I am proud of my origins and feel it is important to remember your roots. I have ensured to pass this on to my children bringing them up bilingual. They are now benefitting both on a personal and professional level from speaking Swedish.

• What is the main difficulty in learning this language and what can help the process of learning?

  The Swedish language has some specific sounds that can be a challenge to pronounce. These include the sound made by sj, sk, sky, stj sounds. As well as the letter r which we roll quite clearly in Swedish. These can be overcome by clearly forming your mouth (both inside and out) and with a lot of practice and listening.

• Provide a valuable anecdote related to your language learning or your days at school.

  Having a good teacher teaching the right subject can make all the difference. My English teacher at school was very scary and seemed to take pleasure in belittling everyone. My heart sank when she also was to become our Spanish teacher. But, for some strange reason, she was fantastic, very encouraging and made it fun to learn. Sadly she continued being a dragon for our English lessons.

• How has travel or a specific trip helped you to increase your skill and knowledge of the language?

  I have been lucky to have travelled a lot, first as a child together with my parents and later on working for an airline in the days when this was a really good job. I studied a few different languages at school (Swedish, English, Spanish, French and Norwegian) and this has made me aware of differences but also similarities across the world Where possible I try to communicate in the local language (even if this is only a little bit) or finding a joint language to speak when meeting people from different countries. I find people appreciate when you try and it is fascinating what you can learn.

• What makes you a Superprof in language?

  I work really hard for my students in order for them to reach their own desired level of Swedish. I take care in trying to get to know them in order for me to personalise each lesson individually. I strive for my students to enjoy our time together and I try to sometimes get them to learn new things without them even thinking about it.