About Leyla
I teach French the way I wish languages had been taught to me.
I’m Leyla, a native French speaker, self-taught polyglot and language coach. I created the Bla Bla Method to teach you what school never taught me: how to learn a language.
My story
I wasn’t “good at languages.” I learned how to learn them.
At school, languages were my weak subject. The methods didn’t work for me, and my grades showed it. Everything changed the day I decided to find my own way.
English was my first real foreign language. Now I’m doing the reverse: helping English speakers learn French.
- 📺
As a child
Fascinated by people who spoke several languages
I watched translators and interpreters on TV and thought it was amazing, and completely out of reach for someone like me.
- 📉
At school
Traditional lessons didn’t work for me
I wasn’t interested, and my language grades weren’t good.
- ☀️
One summer, around 14
I taught myself English
Videos, movies, books, notes and long lists of words, with a lot of repetition. When school started again, my grades shot up, and I fell in love with languages.
- 🌍
The years after
Portuguese, Spanish, and Turkish
I used the same approach for other languages, including reading and writing Turkish, which I had only ever spoken at home.
- 🎓
At university
I started teaching online
I met so many people who wanted to learn a language but didn’t know how. So I started teaching them how to learn first.
- 💬
Today
Bla Bla French and the Bla Bla Method
After 9+ years teaching students from all over the world, I’ve turned what works into a method, built for English speakers learning French.
The languages I speak
Most of them learned outside a classroom, so I know exactly what the journey feels like.
French
Native
My mother tongue, and the language I teach.
Turkish
Native
I grew up speaking it at home, then taught myself to read and write it.
English
Native level
Self-taught, starting one summer when I was around 14. My first real foreign language.
Portuguese
B2
Self-taught. I even created a course teaching French to Portuguese speakers.
Spanish
A2–B1
Self-taught, and still improving.
I’ve been where you are
Stuck, unmotivated, convinced I wasn’t “a language person.” I know the challenges because I’ve faced them, and I know how to get past them.
Friendly for first-time learners
If French is your first foreign language, I break everything down clearly and never assume you’ve done this before.
Beyond my lessons
My work with languages doesn’t stop at one-to-one lessons.
1,500+★ 4.5
Students on Udemy
My online course teaching French to Portuguese speakers.
Nearly 40K
Subscribers on YouTube
Free videos for French learners around the world.
EdTech
Language learning, from the inside
I’ve helped build a language learning app, and today I work in data analysis and AI language models, alongside instructional design and ed tech.
“She made me feel comfortable and supported as we practice new words and pronunciations.”
Jim, USA 🇺🇸
Start learning French your way
Book a free trial, tell me about your goals, and let’s build your plan together.