Alpha Korean Alpha Korean →
Online small-group · First cohort

Choose. Ask. Tell.

Six sessions to go from picking a drink to telling your own food story — in Korean.

Organic Korean Beginner 1 · Unit 1 — Food & Dining.
You don’t need to have been to Korea.

6 sessions · 60 min each 2–4 students Wed & Fri 10:00–11:00 KST Starts Wed, Oct 14
Apply for the free level test

A short conversation, not a written exam. No payment until we both agree it’s a good fit.

Three steps, not six topics

Most beginner courses teach you to order and stop there. Ordering is where this one starts.

CHOOSE
Sessions 1–2

You pick what you want, and say so.

ASK
Sessions 3–4

You get the information you need before you decide.

TELL
Sessions 5–6

You stop following prompts and start saying something of your own.

Syllabus

What you’ll actually say

The phrases below are the ones you’ll be using out loud, not reading about.

CHOOSE

Sessions 1–2

You pick what you want, and say so.

01

Your first Korean café

Read a menu, pick a drink, order it, and say exactly how you want it.

~ 주세요~ 있어요?아이스로 주세요따뜻한 걸로 주세요이걸로 주세요저는 ___가 좋아요저도요

Real Korean café menus. You order from me first, then from each other. Ends with a Mini Café Mission.

02

What should we order?

Ask what a dish is, ask for a recommendation, and decide together what to share.

이거 뭐예요?뭐가 맛있어요?추천해 주세요이거 주세요양이 많아요?1인분이에요?둘이 먹기 괜찮아요?

A real restaurant menu, first visit. Choose a dish for two or three people, take a recommendation, and say why you chose it.

ASK

Sessions 3–4

You get the information you need before you decide.

03

Food that fits you

Ask what's in it, ask how it tastes, say what you can't eat, and find the dish that works for you.

뭐가 들어가요?고기 들어가요?많이 매워요?달아요?짜요?안 매운 것도 있어요?저는 ___를 못 먹어요덜 맵게 해 주세요저는 이게 더 좋아요

Compare photos and menus, guess the ingredients, predict the taste — then recommend something to your partner.

04

At a Korean market

Ask if it's fresh, say what you're cooking, and ask them to prepare it for you.

이거 싱싱해요?오늘 들어온 거예요?어떻게 먹어요?손질해 주세요구이용이에요?찌개용이에요?구워 먹으려고 하는데 뭐가 좋아요?

A market, a fish stall, a butcher. Your mission: “I’m making Korean food tonight.” Challenge phrases for those who want them — 토막 내 주세요 · 머리랑 내장 빼 주세요.

TELL

Sessions 5–6

You stop following prompts and start saying something of your own.

05

Food Talk

Use everything so far to talk about the food you love, your family's food, and the cooking you've done — and ask about theirs.

어떤 음식을 제일 좋아해요?누가 만든 음식을 좋아해요?직접 만들어 봤어요?누구와 먹어요?왜 좋아해요?

My Food Story and Partner Interview. You also plan your final video here — on a Planning Sheet, in your own sentences.

06

My Korean Food Day

Bring all six sessions together. Show your video, ask each other questions in Korean, and get your final feedback.

뭐가 들어가요?맛이 어때요?추천해요?어디에서 먹을 수 있어요?

Quick review, video showcase with questions from the group, then feedback — what you did well, and one thing to try next time.

Final project

By session six, you won’t just be practising Korean. You’ll be using it to tell your own story.

My Korean Food Day — a 1–2 minute video about a Korean dish you love, or one you want to try.

  • · It doesn’t have to be a dish you ate in Korea. A Korean restaurant near you counts. So does something you cooked at home.
  • · You won’t be given a script. In session 5, you’ll build your own sentences on a planning sheet, and I’ll help you make them sound natural.
  • · No grades. You get feedback: what worked, and one thing to say differently next time.

Every 60 minutes looks like this

10 min
Retrieval Say last session's phrases out loud again, before anything new.
10–15 min
New situation A new place, a new set of phrases — with real menus and photos.
15 min
Guided speaking You build sentences from cues, not from a script.
15 min
Pair or group task You order, ask and recommend to each other. I listen.
5–10 min
Mission & wrap-up A short mission, then what to bring next time.

I keep the explanations short, so you have more time to speak.

When it’s over, you can

Café
  • Order what you want, the way you want it.
Restaurant
  • Ask for a recommendation and choose a dish.
  • Ask what's in it and how it tastes.
  • Say what you can't eat, and what you prefer.
Market
  • Ask the basic questions when you're buying fish or meat.
Conversation
  • Talk about food you love and cooking you've done.
  • Listen to someone else's food story and respond to it.
Presentation
  • Make a 1–2 minute video introducing a Korean dish, in Korean.

Never more than four

How the hour runs depends on how many of you there are. In every case, you speak far more than you listen to me.

2 students

Almost one-to-one, with me in the conversation. More individual questions, more individual feedback.

3 students

Whole-group conversation. Questions pass from one of you to the next, so nobody sits and waits.

4 students

A short explanation to everyone, then pairs. We share back briefly at the end.

First cohort · October

Start with a free level test

  • CourseOrganic Korean Beginner 1 · Unit 1
  • Sessions6 × 60 minutes
  • ScheduleWed & Fri, 10:00–11:00 KST
    Tue & Thu evening in the US
  • StartsWednesday, October 14
  • Group2–4 students
  • Tuition$129 USD · first cohort
Apply for the free level test

You only pay after the level test, once we agree this is the right class for you.

Questions? helena@alphakoreanclass.com