We’re Francesca and Shani, the co-founders of BeNative Online. We’re both from the UK — Francesca is from Brighton and Shani is originally from Essex, now based in the South of England. We both spent time living and working in Spain, where our experiences working with young English learners helped inspire BeNative. Francesca worked in a primary school, while Shani worked in a high school, giving us experience with different ages, personalities and learning styles.
While working with children and teenagers, we noticed how different it can feel to know English and actually feel confident using it in real conversations. We saw how easily children can lose interest when English becomes all about textbooks, exercises and getting the “right” answer, so we wanted to create something different — a space where English feels fun, interactive and social, and where children can actually use the language they’ve been learning.
Outside of BeNative, Francesca loves arts and crafts, reading and creative activities, while Shani enjoys reading and dancing. We both love bringing our own interests, creativity and personalities into the sessions we create.
We created BeNative because we believe learning English should be something young people enjoy, not something they simply have to do. Our goal is to give children and teenagers a place where they can speak, laugh, make connections, build confidence and enjoy using English in real life.
BeNative Online is all about real conversation, confidence and connecting with others through English.
Francesca & Shani
Co-founders of BeNative Online
