Magdalena Petrovic Jelic
Dedicated Serbian teacher, always in search of innovation and improvement. Founder of Serbian language school Serbonika based in Sremska Mitrovica, Serbia.
“When I was a little girl, I knew I’d be a teacher. But I imagined a classroom full of children. I never dreamed that I’d become an online Serbian teacher! Now I love the internet technologies and I work hard to develop the best method for learning Serbian from scratch: Serbonika.”
Magdalena Petrovic Jelic
Dedicated Serbian teacher, always in search of innovation and improvement. Founder of SERBONIKA Serbian Language School based in Sremska Mitrovica.
“When I was a little girl, I knew I’d be a teacher. But I imagined a classroom full of children. I never dreamed that I’d become an online Serbian teacher! Now I love the internet technologies and I work hard to develop the best method for learning Serbian from scratch: Serbonika.”
Over 15 Years of Teaching and Language Learning
Teaching People of All Ages for Academia, Business, Love & Fun!
My teaching adventure started in 2004, when I was still a student of the Serbian Literature and Language in Novi Sad.
At the beginning, I must confess, I was obsessed with grammar – like so many language teachers. (Especially Serbian teachers!)
Since then, I’ve matured and my teaching has evolved.
Now I give grammar in teaspoons with a glass of vocabulary and practice – just like you should take “slatko” with a glass of water.
Now I happily teach Serbian online!
I work with intelligent and motivated people. Many of my students are teachers, university professors and researchers, successful professionals, or business owners. They’re all fun to talk to.
When my students come to Serbia, I love meeting them. Some of them were my guests in Sremska Mitrovica. Others met me in Belgrade, Novi Sad or Smederevo.
It’s always exciting to meet you in person! After so many hours that we’ve seen each other on camera… I love that! Then I know that I’ve become more than a Serbian teacher to you.
That’s what made me organize our summer school of the Serbian language and culture!
And I happily work on the go!
Another thing that I love about my job is that I’m free: I don’t have to go anywhere and I can work from wherever I am. That’s also one benefit of taking online lessons: you can be whenever in the world you want and still talk to me.
Even when I’m away from my computer – which is actually almost never, ha! – I always have a pen and my notebook to jot down ideas.
I think of my students even offline and plan how to help them in the best possible way for them. First I think about what skill they need to exercise, how to do that, what’s difficult for them and how to solve it, what method and material we should use…
My mission
is to help you make sense of our complex grammar gradually, in the most efficient way, while expanding your vocabulary and learning about the culture and lifestyle.
My method
is based on conversation. I’ll make you talk and understand Serbian from the start. With me you’ll train to use grammar naturally and speak with confidence.
My vision
is to produce the best courses for teaching Serbian language and culture at all levels and make my best lessons available for everyone, however busy you are.
My language-learning biography
My Language Skills
I love languages. I’ve learned many and I’ve mastered them – or not – to a different extent. Now I can speak English, Greek, Italian, Spanish, also some French and German (at a B1 level), and a very basic Russian with an intermediate understanding.
In the table you’ll see the languages I can work with or I’m learning. Besides them, I also know a thing or two about Latin, Old Church Slavonic, Macedonian, Slovene, Mandarin Chinese, Modern Standard Arabic, Persian, Norwegian…
I honestly enjoy learning languages or about them. Chatting in a foreign language or travelling to the countries where I can use the languages I know, is my favorite thing to do for fun .
Dialects are also my fascination. I love talking to people from various regions of ex-Yugoslavia and picking up their accent and dialect.
- Serbian
- Croatian
- English
- Greek
- Italian
- Spanish
- French
- German
- Russian
Why Learn With Magdalena Petrovic Jelic?
Over 17 Years of Teaching Experience
Teaching languages since 2004, both offline and online.
Serbian Language and Literature Expert
Graduated as a teacher of Serbian Language and Literature.
About 15 Foreign Languages
Learned about 15 foreign languages to a different level.
Certified in English and Greek
Certificate of Proficiency in English, Cambridge 2014. Certificate of a C2 Greek course, University of Athens 2015.
More than 150 Students
Successfully taught more than 180 students for over 17 years in person, a several thousands through online courses.
My lessons include:
- fun, laugh and hard work;
- reading, writing, listening and speaking practice;
- grammar and communication training;
- information about culture and customs;
- homework checked out of the lesson;
- after-class email support.
You need:
- willingness to learn,
- a stable internet connection,
- a free Skype or Zoom account,
- a device with screen big enough for you to see well,
- a notebook and a pen,
- and preferably a set of headphones.
What My Students Say
Structured plan and personalized lessons
“What I find particularly great about our lessons is the way Magdalena Petrovic Jelic is able to combine a structured lesson plan, while also allowing my questions to personalize each class. She gives very clear explanations for vocabulary and grammar, using the Serbian language as much as possible.
Magdalena is a professional Serbian Teacher. She’s friendly, and easy to talk with. I thoroughly enjoy our lessons and feel like I’ve improved a lot since we started! Hvala puno, Leno!”
John Kiappes
University researcher and teacher
Oxford
If you want to learn Serbian, this is your lady!
“I would really recommend working with Magdalena Petrovic Jelic. She is very thorough, very patient and gives you enough of a safe space to talk and learn through your mistakes.
When I was recently back in Croatia speaking with friends in Croatian, I was surprised how far my spoken language and my confidence had come on working with Magdalena.
So if you want to learn Serbian or Croatian language online, this is your lady!”
Jamie Carroll
Thrive consultant, London
DISCLAIMER
Be aware that you cannot master a completely new language in a month or two.
There is no magic pill. Learning a new language requires many hours of studying and practice. It takes time and effort. You must be serious about learning and ready to commit.
If you are starting from scratch, with no previous experience with the Slavic languages, it will take you about a year to get real results if you study about 2 or 3 hours a week.