Best Language Lessons in Forest Hills, NY

I started taking Hindi lessons with Dr. Sonia online in November, 2024, knowing virtually no Hindi except just a few words and the Hindi alphabet. Initially, we did one-on-one lessons, but after a few weeks I had caught up to another beginning student, so we had a class together. Then the two of us caught up to a group of another three students, so now we're a really nice class of five. I appreciate Dr. Sonia's systematic approach and the fact that she explains the grammar. I'm a bit of a grammar nerd, and I like to understand the rules behind why things are said a certain way. In less than five months, we have covered five verb tenses, the direct and oblique cases, postpositions, nouns and adjectives of course, and a good foundation of vocab. We focus on reading, writing, speaking, and listening at the same time. She makes you feel very comfortable trying to say things even though you might make a mistake. Mistakes are part of the process, and she provides feedback and correction without making you feel bad that you messed up. I'm also the only non heritage speaker in the class, so I'm literally starting from a base line of zero, but I don't feel lost even though the other four students come from Indian backgrounds and know a bit more vocab than I do. She also had to adapt some of the written materials for me a bit since I am totally blind and read Hindi Braille (yes there really is such a thing). She has made sure the textbooks and vocab sets were as accessible as possible for me so that I haven't had any accessibility issues with the course materials. Many teachers would have shied away from teaching a blind student because they probably don't know Hindi Braille and might think that teaching a blind student a language is massively different from teaching a sighted student. (It's not). But I told Dr. Sonia a bit about my previous language learning experience with Spanish and Arabic, and she was happy to teach me. So far so good. I'm optimistic that in a year, I will be able to have conversations with my boyfriend's family members who speak no English at all. One thing I will say about Dr. Sonia's classes is that, like learning any language, it's important to make a commitment to study, ideally every day or almost every day, and do the homework in prep for class. You learn much more that way. You also need to pretty much stick to the schedule you make with her at the beginning of the month, or at least let her know several days in advance if you have a conflict with a scheduled session. If you're able to make that commitment and are serious about learning Hindi, Dr. Sonia is a great choice for a teacher!

I cannot recommend Dr. Sonia Sharma Academy highly enough. Dr. Sonia is an exceptional educator whose passion for teaching Hindi is evident in every single class. From the very first session, I was impressed by how thoughtfully she structures her lessons to ensure that students develop skills in reading, writing, speaking, and comprehension. Her classes are engaging, dynamic, and extremely well-paced; balancing foundational learning with opportunities for real-world application. What sets Dr. Sonia apart is not only her depth of knowledge but also her ability to make language learning approachable and enjoyable. She creates a welcoming environment where learners at all levels feel supported and challenged. Each lesson incorporates interactive speaking practice, guided reading passages, and clear instruction on grammar and sentence construction. We regularly engage with cultural materials, which adds richness and context to the language. One of the most rewarding parts of this experience was having the opportunity to apply what I learned during a recent trip to India. I was able to confidently communicate in everyday situations, connect with my partner’s family, and truly immerse myself in the culture in a way I never thought possible before starting these classes. I was also surprised with how much Hindi I was able read. That confidence is a direct result of Dr. Sonia’s patient guidance and high-quality instruction. If you are looking to learn Hindi (whether for personal, professional, or cultural reasons) Dr. Sonia Sharma Academy is an outstanding choice. Her commitment to her students’ growth is unmatched, and I am truly grateful to be learning from her.

have been taking Dr. Sonia’s classes for about 4-5 months now. I have been learning so much and enjoying the classes a lot! After a 300+ day Duolingo streak that barely taught me anything besides random words and phrases, I was almost ready to give up on being able to learn Hindi. After a few months of these classes, however, I feel so confident that I’ll be able to have whole conversations in Hindi with my family next time I visit them. Dr. Sonia does a great job of mixing written homework assignments, textbook reading, and speaking practice to ensure you learn all aspects of the language, including proper grammar and pronunciation. I’ve been very impressed at my own progress so far and it hasn’t even been very long. There are both Indians and non-Indians in my class so I know it’s not just because I grew up hearing Hindi. Overall, I highly recommend Dr. Sonia as a fantastic teacher who will level up your Hindi super fast and ensure you are learning the right way.

Dr. Sonia Sharma is a compassionate life coach with a positive attitude. She offers personalized support and care for your goals. I recommend her wholeheartedly.

Dr. Sharma embodies the best of what can expect from a teacher: she is empathetic, engaging, and enthusiastic during each and every session. I couldn't recommend anyone more than her; I have had the privilege to learn from her for over one year, and I do not think that I have had any professor more caring or attentive to my individual journey than her. 5/5 stars is the minimum I can give!

I am very lucky to have been able to take Dr. Sharma's Hindi class for three quarters while I was at Stanford. She is one of the best language teachers I have ever had and just a really wonderful, down to earth person overall. She did a really great job of breaking down concepts into bite sized chunks and giving us real world scenarios and tasks to go exercise the fundamentals that we learned. It's very unique for a teacher to be able to make sure you learn the fundamentals of a language, operate those fundamentals in everyday use cases, connect the language to an understanding and appreciation of the underlying culture, and make sure you are having fun in the process. As someone from Indian ethnicity who grew up in the US, Dr. Sharma really helped me better connect with my culture in a whole new way. I highly recommend taking Hindi classes with Dr. Sharma.

Dr Sharma was my Hindi teacher at Columbia University. She does a great job making Hindi accessible to non native speakers and works hard with students on pronunciation and writing. Professor Sharna also made class fun with opportunities to practice on field trips to Jackson heights and other cultural events. One of the best language teachers I have ever had 🙏🏾

Sonia Ji is the best Hindi teacher I've had! Before working with her, I could speak Hindi but I didn't have that much confidence and it was broken. During her coaching sessions, she would prepare multiple topics for us to discuss (including complex ones like politics!) and patiently correct my responses so I was using the right grammar and vocabulary. My spoken Hindi is so much better because of her. Could not recommend her coaching highly enough!

Professor Sharma was my Hindi teacher during my tenure at Columbia University. She did an amazing job of making Hindi learning accessible, and incorporating native and non-native speakers of the language in one class. She put immense effort into ensuring we got our pronunciation and writing skills right, and I consider myself so fortunate to have been able to take her class. She is undeniably one of the most impactful language instructors I've ever had.

Dr Sonia helped coach me through her 30 day Phoenix programme. We delved back to my past and uncovered my triggers to help me handle and improve relationships in my life. Her method is enlightening and paced well , she really spends time understanding her client. I would highly recommend Dr Sonia to aid anyone requiring healing from difficult relationships.

I was super lucky to have taken my first year of Hindi with Dr. Sonia Sharma at Stanford. I am an immigrant from India, but never got to learn Hindi as my family moved before I could go to school. Taking Hindi was my way of reconnecting with my cultural roots and having more meaningful visits to India.I would highly recommend taking Hindi classes with Dr. Sonia Sharma because she creates a very warm, caring, and enjoyable class environment that is conducive to learning. She tailors the lessons to the needs of the students. She is very experienced and organized. We made fast progress on all skills—speaking, listening, reading, writing, vocabulary, grammar, and culture!I took her class in 2017 and still to this day I am blessed to have her in my life encouraging me as a young adult.

Sonia Ji is a thoughtful, thorough, and dedicated instructor. Now that I am an educator myself, it is clear looking back that she created a safe and supportive space for us as students to grow and learn. Sonia Ji cultivated community and provided us with a breadth of experiences and learnings across language, religion, culture, and more.

I've been a student of Dr. Sonia's Hindi lessons for seven months now, and I am very pleased with her teaching! She creates a welcoming and conducive learning environment and is very flexible with my schedule. Her distinguished teaching methods has helped me improve and learn Hindi, and I am very happy with my progress. I would recommend Dr. Sonia's Hindi courses to anyone interested!

Dr. Sonia is an incredibly kind and accommodating teacher! She’s very responsive and tailors her curriculum to the needs of her students. Great for beginners, but also great for students that already have a background in Hindi. Looked forward to my lessons every week! Thank you, Dr. Sonia :)

Dr. Sonia Sharma is not only the greatest Hindi teacher I've learned from, but she is flat out one of the greatest instructors I ever encountered. Her ability to work at your pace and level make learning Hindi feel straight-forward and fun. She incorporates lessons and activities that work towards your specific goals, and she encourages you to push yourself beyond what you thought you could do. She is an excellent tutor, and I am excited to keep working with her!

Sonia is a very thorough and helpful teacher. I like that she starts very fundamentally, with the Devnagari script and grammatical structure. I’m able to move at my own pace with Sonia and she meets me where I am. I recommend learning beginning Hindi with her!

Dr Sonia is a wonderful teacher. Thanks to her classes I got a firm handle on the Devanagari alphabet is very short order. Dr Sonia is highly experienced, and has developed a very detailed and logical method for teaching Hindī. I highly recommend to anyone who wants to learn Hindī to study with Dr Sonia!

Highly Recommend! A Wonderful Learning ExperienceI had the absolute pleasure of learning Hindi for 2+ years with Dr. Sonia Sharma, and I cannot recommend her highly enough to anyone considering learning this beautiful language. From the very beginning, she catered her teaching style to my specific needs and interests, making each lesson engaging and incredibly relevant to my life.For example, knowing that I had a keen interest in Bollywood and medical terminology, she thoughtfully incorporated both Bollywood movies/songs and medical dialogues into our sessions. This personalized approach not only made the lessons more enjoyable but also significantly accelerated my learning, because she so highly emphasizes relevance in her teaching style. Her ability to adapt to her students' passions and goals truly sets her apart as an exceptional teacher.Learning Hindi has been an invaluable skill. As a medical student, I have used Hindi in both clinical and research contexts. In fact, I am currently in Nepal for a global health year and, while I am learning Nepali, my knowledge of Hindi has allowed me to connect and converse with locals. The linguistic and cultural bridges that Hindi has helped me build are priceless.If you are looking for a dedicated, insightful, and highly adaptable Hindi teacher, you are at the right place. Dr. Sonia Sharma has made my learning journey both effective and enjoyable, and I am confident she can do the same for you!

Taking Hindi classes with Sonia ji was one of the highlights on my undergrad experience at Stanford. Sonia ji made learning to read, write, and speak feel fun and easy with her interactive teaching style and kind personality. She meets students at whatever level they are at and uplifts them. I would recommend her services to anyone wanting to learn in an inviting and stimulating environment!

Dr. Sonia is a wonderful teacher! She takes the time and consideration to assess your level of proficiency and sets the pace of your lessons based on that assessment. Exercises and assignments both during and outside of lessons are very manageable and approachable. I especially appreciate the way Dr. Sonia will work with you to find a time that best fits both her and your schedule. Lessons are not only engaging, but also fun because of the energy Dr. Sonia brings. Each lesson I felt more and more confident with my Hindi capabilities.

Dr. Sharma is superb! She has given considerable time and thought to developing her pedagogical/andragogical approach for teaching Hindi effectively. I am always amazed (and quite often, relieved) by her ability to adapt the pace based on my learning style. Her extensive experience in language teaching is evident in the ease with which she adjusts her lesson plans to focus on my challenging areas. She is also lovely, cheerful and kind, and deeply invested in her students' growth and success.

Taking Hindi with Sonia Ji during my undergrad was such a wonderful and incredibly rewarding experience. I always felt so comfortable in her class and welcomed as a student with little to no previous experience with the language. She's a phenomenal teacher and is always willing to meet you where you are at and even though it's been a couple of years, I was able to retain some of my Hindi and am still able to read the script which is a testament to Sonia Ji's teaching abilities. I would highly recommend her as a teacher, you could not be in better hands.