Speak English: guides and how-tos
Practical guides to speaking English at work and on the road, and a guide to practising with FluentSession so you see real progress.
The FluentSession guide
Step by step: from your first conversation to measurable progress. Read in order.
- Part 15 min read
How to start speaking English with an AI tutor: your first conversation, step by step
You understand English but freeze when you have to speak? Here is how to set up your first conversation with an AI tutor and what to do in the first 10 minutes.
- Part 24 min read
How do you want to be corrected? 5 ways to correct mistakes when speaking English
Being stopped at every mistake or a conversation without interruptions? We compare five correction styles with examples and show which one fits each stage of learning.
- Part 35 min read
What level do you speak English at? How the CEFR assessment after each conversation works
What B1+ and a score of 47/100 mean, how we measure grammar, vocabulary and fluency, and how long moving up a speaking level realistically takes.
Guides
- 3 min read
English for code reviews: comments and phrases that don't sound rude
How to write and say code review feedback in English without sounding harsh: softeners, questions instead of orders, labels for comments, and phrases for PR walkthroughs.
- 2 min read
How to disagree politely in English at work
Phrases for disagreeing politely in English at work: partial agreement, questions instead of objections, disagreeing with your manager, and pushing back in writing.
- 3 min read
How to explain a bug in English, to developers and to managers
A four-part structure for explaining a bug in English, with examples for a developer, a manager and a client, plus phrases for uncertainty and estimates.
- 3 min read
Why you understand English but freeze when speaking (and what helps)
You follow meetings and films, then go blank when someone asks you a question. Where the freeze comes from, what to say in the moment and a daily 60-second drill.
- 5 min read
Common mistakes Polish speakers make in English (and which ones matter)
The English mistakes Polish speakers make most often: articles, tenses, false friends, word order and pronunciation, why each happens and which to fix first.
- 4 min read
Job interview in English: the most common questions, sample answers and phrases
The most common job interview questions in English with sample answers, the STAR method, useful phrases and the mistakes non-native speakers make most often.
- 2 min read
How to talk about salary in English when it is not your first language
Phrases for salary expectations, counteroffers and asking for a raise in English, and the gross, net, annual and monthly mix-ups that cost non-native speakers money.
- 3 min read
What to say in a daily standup: scripts for 6 situations
Daily standup scripts in English for a normal day, a blocker, a delay, a day with no visible progress, time off and helping a teammate, with the tenses to watch.
- 3 min read
How to stop translating in your head when you speak English
Why translating from your first language slows you down, and five exercises that help you think in English: chunks, describing, narrating and timed speaking.
- 4 min read
Tell me about yourself: answers for developers who are not native speakers
Four sample answers to "Tell me about yourself" for developers, testers and career changers who speak English as a second language, plus phrases for when you go blank.