A guide for families living abroad
Online Turkish lessons for children abroad
Roots & Talks is an online Turkish school for children of Turkish and mixed families living abroad. Since 2021, children in the USA, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Canada, Australia and the UAE have met our teachers in live, one-to-one lessons designed for them.
How Roots & Talks began
Roots & Talks has its roots in Hatay, the city of many cultures where our founder Gamze Beyaz grew up. Looking for a child-centred way to teach language to her daughters, she began teaching on screen from a room in her home. Her lessons, which bring together early childhood education and Turkish teaching, spread by word of mouth to families abroad. Teaching up to twelve hours a day, she still could not reach every child. Roots & Talks was founded in the USA in 2021, so that teachers using the same approach could reach families all over the world. In lessons, children know Gamze as Teacher Dünya.
What a lesson looks like
Each lesson is live and lasts 25 minutes, a length that suits a child's attention on screen. The teacher works with games, stories, pictures and our own characters (Pingucan, Ela, Dino, Eylül, Gazi, Dünya and Gamze), and the starting point is set by the child's experience with Turkish, not by age alone.
- Ages 4–17, from first words to reading, writing and conversation
- One-to-one lessons, or siblings learning together
- You choose a time from the teacher's open hours, in your own time zone
- Every lesson is recorded for quality and safety
Teachers experienced with bilingual children
Every Roots & Talks teacher passes a 7-stage interview; about 2% of applicants join the team. Our teachers work with bilingual children: those who understand Turkish but struggle to speak, those who speak but struggle to read and write, and those meeting Turkish for the first time. Teaching a child with no Turkish is different from teaching a child who understands but answers in another language; the teacher observes this in the intro lesson. You can read each teacher's profile and choose your child's teacher yourself.
Free and paid options can go together
Türkiye's Ministry of National Education offers free Turkish and Turkish culture lessons for children abroad, such as the Ülkem Yanımda programme and courses run through consulates. These are valuable, scheduled programmes. Families often add Roots & Talks when they want one-to-one attention, a teacher they choose, a time that fits their week and lessons that continue all year.
Recognition and social impact
In 2025 Roots & Talks received the Eğitimin Yıldızları (Stars of Education) award, a social entrepreneurship award and a patent award; our founder graduated from the She's Mentoring programme and we were a FutureLab Demo Day finalist. In 2026 we took part in Bett UK and Google for Education programmes. After the 6 February 2023 earthquake, Roots & Talks renovated classrooms in two village schools in Hatay.
Questions on your mind
My child understands Turkish but answers in another language. Can lessons help?
Yes, this is one of the most common starting points. The teacher creates small, safe reasons to speak, so that understanding turns into speaking step by step.
Which countries do you teach in?
Lessons are online, so your country does not matter. Families join us from the USA, the UK, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Canada, Australia, the UAE and more; you pick a time in your own time zone.
How old should my child be?
We teach children aged 4–17. For the youngest children a parent stays in the same room during the lesson.
Is there a free trial?
Yes. The first 25-minute intro lesson is our gift and no payment details are needed. You can also book a short call with our team first.
How much do lessons cost?
The price is per lesson and gets lower as your family takes more lessons in a 4-week period; siblings' lessons count together. Current prices are on our prices page.
Who founded Roots & Talks?
Our founder is teacher Gamze Beyaz. It all began with the lessons she gave her daughters from a room in her home, and Roots & Talks was founded in the USA in 2021. She still leads our education team, and children know her as Teacher Dünya.
Let’s talk!
Take the first step for your child
Discuss your questions about lessons or teacher choice with our education coordinator, or go straight to an intro lesson.
