Birmingham → Minsk · Teaching since about 2015
I'm Jon Weaver.
This site is Jon Weaver English — my UK sole-trader 1:1 line. I grew up in Birmingham and I teach from Minsk.
The long way round
I grew up in Birmingham and left at eighteen to study Modern History and Politics in Manchester. After university I spent ten years in and around the betting industry — five at William Hill, three of them managing a shop, then five working for myself, living and travelling through London, Israel, Barcelona and, eventually, Belarus. It isn't the usual route into teaching, but a betting shop teaches you things: how to talk to anyone, how to stay calm, and how to listen.
- c. 2015
Went full-time as an English teacher in Minsk — private students, plus my own formats: Conversation Class, and Walk and Talk (exactly what it sounds like).
- 2016
My wife and I opened a language school — group classes in Minsk.
- 2016–2020
The school grew to around 250 students, six classrooms and six teachers. What made it work was the community — people who came to speak, not only to study.
- 2020
We moved the school online.
- Today
The work is simpler now: one teacher, one student, one conversation. This site is Jon Weaver English — my UK sole-trader 1:1 line. The teaching here is mine.
Outside lessons I play chess most days, with mixed results, and in 2011 I ran the Barcelona Marathon — once was enough, though I still have the T-shirt. My YouTube algorithm typically suggests football, cricket, AI, cooking, travel, Theo Von, and the occasional political podcast.
How I teach
In class, my job is to bring good energy and keep the conversation real. No script — we talk about what matters to you.
You should leave the hour feeling a bit more confident than when you came in. That is what classtime is for.
For the overall approach →Live with a child and you don't notice them growing. A grandparent who visits twice a year sees it at once. You are the parent of your own English. Part of my job is to be the grandparent.