Hi everyone! Abbe here, your English teacher at MosaLingua.
Today, I'd like to show you even more tools
for practicing your English in your spare time.
This time, let's look at some activities you can do while you're on the move.
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I've already talked several times about using movies TV or series
and other videos in English to improve your listening comprehension skills.
The only problem with this approach is that you have to stay seated in one place
until the video is over which can become a problem if you travel a lot or if you
have a very busy work schedule. You might not always have access to a television
or a computer but there are surely some spare moments during your day when you
have some extra time like during your commute to work
or while you're exercising.
Now what if I told you that you could use this spare time as an
opportunity to immerse yourself in English.
Since almost everyone nowadays has a smartphone, this is totally possible using podcasts and audiobooks.
For those of you who don't know what these are,
they are both recordings that you can store in your mobile device
and play whenever you want to.
Podcasts are usually shows that are similar
to what you might hear on the radio,
while audiobooks are entire books
that have been read out loud and recorded.
Podcasts are ideal for beginners
because many are specifically designed for English learners
and feature things like slower pronunciation and adapted vocabulary and grammar.
There are also plenty of "regular podcasts" on all sorts of topics,
so you're sure to find at least one that interests you.
Usually the level of English for "regular podcasts" is suitable for intermediate learners.
Although beginners who are very motivated might also be able to
understand them, especially if a transcript is available online.
Initially designed for people who are blind or visually impaired
or people who don't have time to read books on paper, audiobooks or books on tape,
are also great for language learners who want to work on their listening comprehension.
Audiobooks are generally best for more advanced learners
depending on the book, so be sure you choose according to your level. Podcasts and audiobooks are
available straight from your mobile device and more often than not they're
free. For those of you who use Apple a podcast application comes already
downloaded on your device. You can search from among the hundreds of podcasts
available, load and play. It's as easy as that!
For Android users, I recommend applications like TuneIn or podcast addict.
and these work in the same way that I just described. Similarly you can
search, download and play audiobooks on your Apple device using the iBooks app.
Use the filter to search for audiobooks only. The app Audible is also an
excellent source for audiobooks and is available on Android and iOS.
You can also explore the content of the app LibriVox which has thousands of free audiobooks.
Check with your local library to see if they offer downloadable audiobooks.
My library has a pretty wide selection and of course borrowing them is free.
You might need to download a special app such as Overdrive in order
to listen to these audiobooks. Now there are a few things you need to know before
downloading your first podcast or audiobook. You need to remember that
there are tons of these out there, and not all of them will be right for your
level or your interests. It might be smart to start with a
podcast that is dedicated to English learners, and if you understand that one
easily then you can move on to a regular podcast. In the description of this video
down below you'll find a link to our list of the best podcasts for learning English.
Of course you don't have to limit yourself to these. Once you feel
comfortable, go ahead and explore other podcasts about your interests or hobbies.
The same goes for audiobooks. As I said earlier these are usually best for
intermediate to advanced learners. If you do decide to take on this challenge
I recommend going for a book that is better suited to language learners
like "the little prince" or the first Harry Potter book. Another good option is to
pick a book that you have already read and enjoyed in your native language.
Since you're already familiar with the plot you'll be able to focus on the
language and really improving your comprehension skills.
I also recommend choosing a book that is fairly short to start or a book that
does not have tons and tons of characters and different plot lines.
Once again down below you'll find a link to an article on our blog that lists
some of the best audiobooks for English language learners. One last piece of advice:
while you're listening, be sure to use the pause and rewind buttons
whenever you feel that it's necessary. The more you repeat an expression
the more likely you are to remember it. And if you still find it too hard to
understand, feel free to reduce the audio speed.
There's usually a button in your app or music player that allows you to reduce
the speed to 0.75 or even point 0.5, the normal speed. 0.75 is usually perfect and
you'll see listening to English content can be easy and enjoyable. That's it for
this video, I hope you found it useful. So what are you waiting for? Put in your earbuds,
get moving and start learning a language today. And remember, consistency
and regularity are paramount if you want to make progress in English.
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Take care and I'll see you soon!