My name is Alex and I have lived in the US and now I'm back in the UK. In 2013 I first got very interested in Ukraine during their revolution of dignity, the passion and agency that was demonstrated by so many people. I had decided to start to learn Ukrainian at the end of February 2022 after the renewed illegal invasion because I knew that one day I will want to travel to the country to see its beauty for myself. I knew I would need more than some pre-recorded online video lessons and an app, so I decided to research actual in person lessons to learn the language. After initially not finding anything in my immediate surroundings I expanded my search a bit which took me to London.

I found the website for The Ukrainian Institute in London which had a very user friendly interface with a large amount of information. I decided to cross reference this school with some Ukrainians I had heard speak on twitter spaces who lived in London. Alona of Ukraine DAO what she thought of the Institute and she came back saying:

This was a very encouraging sign so I decided to contact Mykola as I had heard him speak on twitter so I knew he would have great insight and advice on this topic. His response:

So I began my In person beginners Ukrainian language lessons at the Ukrainian Institute after contacting them to find out term dates and prices. Located in Holland Park in London surrounded by embassies and leafy historic streets of Kensington it is a fantastic location to learn the Ukrainian language. There is a long history behind the Institute and it has helped the Ukrainian community in London and the UK in many ways.

https://ukrainianinstitute.org.uk/about-us/#story

Doing one lesson a week of 2 hours in length was fantastic as we got a chance to learn and ask questions as they naturally came up. I personally much prefer to learn in person when it is a new subject to me. I wanted to supplement my classes with extra learning resources as I also need repetition to help me in the learning process.

These resources included:

• A paid online pre-recorded series of lessons from https://www.speakua.com/ taught by Inna Sporonchuk called “From Absolute Beginner to a Confident Speaker” This course has some great learning resources and tables that you can save and come back to reference at any time and because of my in person lessons I was able to apply things from each to one another and would have a little head start here and there.
• I have also subscribed to Inna Sporonchuk’s YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/c/SpeakUkrainian this has many many great free lessons.
• Inna Sporonchuk Also has written a book on the Ukrainian case system called “Master Ukrainian cases”. This is an important part of the language but is also quite difficult for an English speaker to understand. This book has many exercises and examples of how to use the cases, I highly recommend it. https://www.speakua.com/product/master-ukrainian-cases-hardcover/ It can also be purchased on Amazon.
• I also purchased some other books from amazon which were very affordable (under £10). One is a children's book on the Ukrainian alphabet and how to pronounce it in English the other is a big book of vocabulary and its pronunciations.