Language learning made fun: through story-based textbooks and online courses.
Is language learning difficult? Let’s be honest: yes, it is. But who says it shouldn’t be a fun and an enjoyable experience? Therefore we design our language courses in a way that will make it easy for you to keep learning until you hare achieved fluency.
Our textbooks and online video courses are based on coherent stories instead of boring dialogues. You want to know how the story ends? Well then – you will have to keep learning!
Self-study is not enough for you? We can recommend you teachers for 1:1 lessons with a through Zoom or Skype.
Story-based textbooks
Learn a language with a story instead of boring dialogues. Can’t stop reading? Well then – you’ll have to become fluent! Our textbooks come with full grammar instructions, exercises, pronunciation videos, …
Online video courses
Our online video courses are your budget language school – but much more fun: based on a coherent story (just like our texbooks), yet with full explanations on video,audio exercises for download, and much more.
Live online lessons
Feeling stuck? No (traditional) language course in your area? Our teachers give individual lessons 1:1 through Skype, whenever you have time. Courses are tailored to your needs. Take a free demo lesson first.
Languages you can learn:
Our philosophy of language learning
We are tired of all the methods selling you the idea that you might “learn Japanese in 30 days” or “become fluent in Serbocroation in three months”. Let’s face it: there is no magic trick to learning a language (if you know one, publish it and get rich). Yes, there are principles that you need to stick to, and in our courses we will make sure you’ll do that. But still, becoming fluent in another language is a marathon, not a sprint.
However: why should language learning have to be boring? It’s a long process, but shouldn’t a long process be fun?
Or to be more precise, doesn’t a long process have to be fun because otherwise you will give up? That’s the starting point for all the materials we create.
So here are our principles:
Language courses are supposed to be fun.
Unlike the usual language school marketing poetry, we don’t even try to talk you into nonsense like “learn Chinese in three months”. Learning a language is hard work, but why not have fun while doing it? That’s why our language courses are based on a coherent story instead of boring dialogues.
Emphasis on pronunciation.
There are also free pronunciation videos for our language textbooks available online, and even more in our online video courses. If you need more tips on practicing proper pronunciation, we can refer you to an experienced teacher.
Grammar is a tool,
nothing more, but nothing less. We won’t drown you in grammar rules before you can say your first complete sentence. But we don’t have a grammar phobia either (and if you do, we’ll train you out of it …).
What others are saying about Skapago
Martin L.
Priest from W.
I’m going to enroll into all of Skapago’s courses so I can finally translate the bible into more languages!
Donald T.
Former president of U.
I recently heard there are other languages than English. If I ever were to learn one of those, I would definitely choose Skapago!
Mao T.
Revolutionary leader from C.
If only I could have learned Norwegian with one of Skapago’s amusing Norwegian courses, then I’m sure Norway would be a communist country today!
Julius C.
Emperor of R.
I came, saw, and bought a language course from Skapago.
Meet some of our students
Beate
A German speaking tour guide next to the polar circle
Beate is from Northern Norway – where the sun does not go down in the summer and never shows in the winter.
Beate had learned German in school, but it was mostly reading and not speaking. So she decided to brush up her German with the Jens & Jakob textbook and some 1:1 lessons with a German teacher recommended to her by Skapago.
Dimitris
A true polyglot
Growing up in the United States means – for most people – they will never speak another language than English.
Not so for Dimitris. He learned French at school and by the time his family took him on a trip to French Polynesia two years later, at age 15, was able to communicate in French with the locals.
That sparked an enormous passion for travelling and languages. Today Dimitris is fluent in English, Greek, French, Italian, Spanish, and Norwegian, and understands 13 other languages at a more basic level.
After moving to Norway in 2013, he began learning the language with a 1:1 course with a teacher recommended by Skapago and later revised his grammar with self-studies using the Nils textbooks.
Piotr
From professor to student to author
Having grown up in communist Poland, languages have been a key for Piotr to see the world. So he graduated in Beijing, took a PhD at UC Berkeley and became an associate professor for Chinese language and literature at the College of Charleston in South Carolina.
When he wanted to visit a friend in Tromsø, Norway, he decided to learn some Norwegian before his trip. That’s how he found Skapago’s Norwegian textbook The Mystery of Nils. „I instantly liked the concept of learning the language through an absurd story,“ Piotr says.
To dig deeper, he enrolled into the online video course based on the same story. He enjoyed the approach to language instruction so much that he reached out to Werner from Skapago asking whether he would not be interested in making a Chinese textbook based on a similar concept?