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At home one. At home one. Where is Jane? She is in the living room. What is she doing? She is playing the piano. Where is the car? It is in the garage. Where is the dog? The dog is in front of the door. What is the dog doing? The dog is eating. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:0:0 > 00:0:21
At home two. At home two. Where are you? I am in the kitchen. What are you doing? I am cooking dinner. Where are Bill and Mary? They are in the living room. What are they doing? They are watching TV. Where is the cat? She is in the dining room. What is she doing? She is sleeping. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:0:21 > 00:0:46
My favorite photographs one. My favorite photographs one. Who is she? She is my sister. What's her name? Her name is Jennifer. Where is she in this photograph? She's in Toronto. What is that building behind her? She's standing in front of the CN tower. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:0:46 > 00:1:7
Location one Location one. Where is the school? It's between the library and the park. Where is the post office? It's across from the movie theater. Where is the Royal Bank? It's next to the supermarket. Where is the gas station? It's around the corner from the church. Where is the barbershop? It's near the bus station. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:1:7 > 00:1:35
Location two. Location two. Excuse me? Can you tell me the way to the nearest bank? Yes, it's on Geneva Street. As a matter of fact, I'm going that way myself. So if you come with me, I will show you. Thanks very much. You are welcome. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:1:35 > 00:1:54
Color one Color one. May I help you? Yes, please. I am looking for an umbrella. What's your favorite color? It's black. Sorry, we have no black umbrellas right now. Here is a nice umbrella. But this umbrella is yellow. That's okay. Yellow umbrellas are very popular this year audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:1:54 > 00:2:17
Color two Color two. Excuse me? Is this your umbrella? No, it isn't. Are you sure? Yes, I am sure. That umbrella is brown, and my umbrella is yellow audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:2:17 > 00:2:32
No Questions No Questions. Are you married? No, I'm not. I'm single. Tell me about your new car. Is it large? No, It's not. It is small. Tell me about the questions in your English book. Are they difficult? No, they're not. They are easy. Tell me about your new neighbors. Are they quiet? No, they aren't. They are noisy. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:2:32 > 00:2:58
Short answer Short answer. Is Alice young or old? She is young. Is Bill tall or short? He is short. Is Albert's apartment big or little? It's small. Were the last examinations easy or difficult? They were difficult. Is Julie married or single? She is single. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:2:58 > 00:3:25
Telephone call two Telephone call two. Hello, Jack. This is Dave. I want to return the book I borrowed from you last night. Will you be home at about six o'clock? Yes, I will. I'll be cooking dinner. Oh! Well! Then I won't come over at six. Why not? I don't want to disturb you. don't worry! You won't disturb me. Okay. I'll see you at six. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:3:25 > 00:3:47
What's a grant? What's a grant? My daughter is going to college. That's great, but it must be expensive. Yes, but she has a grant. A grant? what's a grant? The government is giving her money. To pay for her education? That's right? Does it pay for everything? No, she has a loan, too. What's the difference between a loan and a grant? You have to pay back a loan; a grant is a gift. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:3:47 > 00:4:9
Bless you. Bless you. Ah-choo! God bless you! Thank you. Do you have a cold? Yes, that's why I'm sneezing so much. I hope you feel better soon. I get a bad cold every winter. Are you Taking anything for your cold? I'm taking Contac. Does it help? Yes, but it makes me sleepy. You'd better not drive then! audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:4:27 > 00:4:47
I don't feel well I don't feel well. What are you looking for? My jacket. I'm going to the doctor. Why? What's the problem? I'm not sure, but I don't feel well. Do you have a fever? No, but I have a pain in my chest. What time is your appointment? Eleven-thirty. I'm going now. Bye. Goodbye. I hope it's nothing serious. Thanks. See you. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:4:47 > 00:5:8
Can you help me? Can you help me? Can you help me, officer? I'll try. What's the problem? I can't get into my car. Where are your keys? They're in the car. Don't worry. I can open it. How can you do that? With a coat hanger. It's easy. Where can we get a coat hanger? There's one in the police car. Wait here. Thanks a lot! You're very kind. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:5:8 > 00:5:28
Taking a cab Taking a cab. Hello. Hello. Where do you want to go? 70 Maple Street, please. 70 mibble Street? No, Maple Street. Maple Street, let's see. Is that near St. David Street? I don't know. I've only been here one week. Oh, where are you from? Toronto. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:5:28 > 00:5:49
I hate to get up I hate to get up. I hate to get up in the morning. Me too! What time do you get up? At six o'clock. Why do you get up so early? I have to be at work by seven. I don't get up until eight. You're lucky, what do you do? I own a bookstore. What time does your store open? At eight-thirty. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:5:49 > 00:6:7
A hot day A hot day. This heat is killing me! Me too! It must be ninety-five degrees. I would like a cold drink. I'll get you one. Thanks. Mmm. This tastes good! It does, jeez. This hot weather makes me lazy. Me too, Get me another drink? I guess if you're lazy no one else is allowed to be! Heh, thanks for understanding! audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:6:7 > 00:6:32
Phone out of order one Phone out of order one. Hey! Hey! What's wrong? There's something wrong with the phone. I'm getting a strange noise. Are you? I can hear you clearly. Hello! hello! This pay phone might be out of order. I'll call you again with another phone. Hello! How about now? Is there still a strange noise? Yes. Perhaps my phone is out of order. You should get in touch with the phone company. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:6:32 > 00:6:56
Phone out of order two Phone out of order two. Hey! What's the matter with the phone? Here listen to this peculiar noise. It doesn't sound like a dial tone. It must be out of order. We'd better notify the phone company. How do we do that? We can't use the phone? Let's go next door and use our neighbour's phone. He's always complaining about people. I don't want to ask any favors of him. How about across the street? I forgot about Mrs. Riley! I'm sure she'd let us use her phone. audio/EECPart1.mp3> 00:6:56 > 00:7:24
Quote from Earl Nightingale we become what we think about audio/1-01.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Woody Allen Eighty percent of success is showing up. audio/1-02.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Vince Lombardi Winning isn't everything, but wanting to win is. audio/1-03.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Confucius Everything has beauty, but not everyone can see. audio/1-04.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Roger Staubach There are no traffic jams along the extra mile. audio/1-05.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Vincent van Gogh I would rather die of passion than of boredom audio/1-06.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Booker T. Washington If you want to lift yourself up, lift up someone else. audio/1-07.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Audrey Hepburn Nothing is impossible, the word itself says, "I'm possible!" audio/1-08.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Henry Ford Whether you think you can or you think you can't, you're right. audio/1-09.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Quote from Napoleon Hill Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve. audio/1-10.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Red Ball on the Floor The ball is on the floor. It is a red ball. It is a rubber ball. The baby looks at the ball. The cat looks at the ball. The cat is black. The cat walks over to the ball. The cat hits the ball with its paw. The ball rolls on the floor. The baby smiles. audio/ru001n.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Warm Air and a Sandwich The window is open. Air comes through the window. It is warm air. It is a warm day. The air smells like bread. It smells like fresh bread. It smells good. It makes the boy hungry. The boy goes to the kitchen. He makes a sandwich. He sits down. He eats the sandwich. audio/ru002s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
He Gets Dressed, Sees His Friend The boy puts on his socks. He puts on his shoes. He ties his shoelaces. He walks to the front door. He turns the doorknob. He pulls the door open. He steps outside. He closes the door behind him. He walks to the corner. He sees his friend. He waves to his friend. audio/ru003s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Noisy Animals, Quiet Animals The dog barks. It likes to bark. The bird sings. It likes to sing. The dog and bird are noisy. The cat meows. It meows when it is hungry. It meows when it is angry. The fish says nothing. The turtle says nothing. The mouse says nothing. The lizard says nothing. They are quiet. audio/ru004s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
They Play Catch Bob picks up the ball. He throws the ball. Bill catches the ball. Bill throws the ball back. Bob catches the ball. Bob throws the ball to Bill. Bill drops the ball. Bill picks it up. He throws it over Bob's head. Bob runs back. He jumps up. He catches the ball. audio/ru005s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Dog Copies Cat The cat licks its paws. The cat licks its belly. The dog licks its paws. The dog licks its belly. The cat lies in the grass. The dog lies in the grass. The cat rolls onto its back. The dog rolls onto its back. The cat and dog do things together. audio/ru007s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Hungry for Hot Dogs He opens the refrigerator. He looks inside the refrigerator. He is hungry. He wants something to eat. He sees a package. It is a package of hot dogs. Six hot dogs are in the package. He takes two hot dogs out of the package. He closes the refrigerator. He puts the hot dogs on a plate. audio/ru008s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Her Book and Her Cats She picks up the book. It is her favorite book. It has a red cover. It has 52 pages. It has many pictures. It has pictures of many animals. She likes animals. She has two cats. She likes her cats. Their names are Fluffy and Muffy. She shows them the pictures in the book. audio/ru009s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Kids and Their Teacher He has a job. He is a teacher. He teaches kids. He teaches them how to read. He teaches them how to spell. The kids are fast learners. They learn how to read quickly. They learn how to spell quickly. He likes his job. He likes kids. He likes to teach kids new things. audio/ru010s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Cookie on the Floor She takes a cookie out of the package. She drops the cookie. It falls on the floor. The cookie breaks. It breaks into four pieces. Four pieces are on the floor. She picks up the pieces. She takes them to the kitchen. She throws them into the trashcan. She takes another cookie out of the package. audio/ru006s.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Accidents Listen A Minute.com. Accidents. I wonder how many accidents I’ve had in my life. I’ve had a few serious ones where I’ve ended up in hospital. Traffic accidents are the worst. They’re always painful. I haven’t had too many work-related accidents. I suppose that’s because I do office work and that’s not so dangerous. Most of my accidents are those around the house. I’ve lost count of the number of times I’ve hit my thumb with a hammer. I’m also really good at standing up and hitting my head on something. I’m not as bad as my friend though. He’s a real accident looking for somewhere to happen. Almost every time we meet, he has some story to tell about his latest accident. He’s quite unbelievable. I think I’d be very worried if I were his mother. audio/accidents.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Advice Listen A Minute.com. Advice. I don’t know what I would do without my friends’ advice. They’ve all given me so much good advice over the years. It’s sometimes very difficult to make decisions on your own. Listening to advice can be great for helping you make the right decision. The greatest piece of advice I’ve received was from my father. He told me I can do anything in life if I try hard. He was right. I am now passing on his advice to my own children. Right now I need some advice on money. My financial advisors are telling me to be very careful. That’s very sound advice. I would advise anyone to do the same. Someone asked me the other day about the worst piece of advice I’ve ever had. I couldn’t answer. I don’t think I’ve had any really bad advice. audio/adviceA.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Bad Habits Listen A Minute.com. Bad Habits. What are your bad habits? I think everyone has bad habits. Not everyone agrees on what bad habits are. Some smokers don’t think smoking is a bad habit. Young people don’t think listening to loud music on the train is a bad habit. In Japan, slurping your noodles is a sign that you enjoy your food, but making a noise while eating in England is not good. Have you ever tried to break your bad habits? I have quit smoking and have stopped leaving things laying around the house. I wish other people would stop their bad habits. I get annoyed when people are late for meetings or talk loudly on their phones in public. I also think many motorists need to think about their driving habits. Perhaps I should point out their bad habits. audio//badhabits.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Books Listen A Minute.com. Books. Don’t you think books are the best thing in the world? I can’t remember a time in my life when I wasn’t reading a book. I still have memories of being in my school library when I was about five years old. I have been a bit of a bookworm since then. You’ll usually see me with my head buried in a book. I love all kinds of books. Novels are great for getting to know other worlds and cultures. A good book is one where you never want the story to end. I also like autobiographies because I think it’s interesting to read about people’s lives. Encyclopedias are cool too – you can learn everything about everything in these. I still prefer books to the Internet. Books need to be in your hand and made of paper. audio/books.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Cars Listen A Minute.com. Cars. Are you into cars? My brother is. He’s car crazy. He buys car magazines, watches car programmes on TV and spends hours looking at car websites. He knows the name, maker, engine size and top speed of every car on the planet. Every time we go out, he talks non-stop about the cars he sees. I like cars. They are interesting. If I had a lot of money, I’d like to buy a sports car. I’m saving up for a small car at the moment. I’ll probably buy a hybrid car that is good for the environment. My brother thinks these are boring. He says a car should be powerful and fast. I don’t agree. I think cars should get you from A to B and be big enough for me and my friends. I also prefer smaller cars because they are easier to park. audio/cars.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Clothes Listen A Minute.com. Clothes. I have too many clothes. I have many clothes I’ve only worn once. Sometimes I even find something at the back of a drawer that I never even wore. I bought it, put it away, and then forgot about it. I’m sure I don’t need so many clothes. I don’t think anyone really needs 11 pairs of jeans and 32 sweaters. I won’t tell you how many pairs of shoes I’ve got. That’s way too embarrassing. The simple truth is I love clothes and I love shopping. Maybe I have a problem. I’m sure I’d be a lot richer if I didn’t buy so many clothes. I like brands, so the clothes I buy are quite expensive. One day I’m going to have a big clearout. I’ll take all the clothes I no longer wear and give them to charity. audio/clothesA.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Computers Listen A Minute.com. Computers. It’s hard to believe that no one had computers a few years ago. I wonder how people lived. There must have been a lot of paperwork. I can’t imagine writing everything by hand. I also wonder how everything worked without computers. We need computers today for everything. Hospitals, airports, the police… nothing can work without computers. I’m sure I’d be ten times busier than now if I didn’t have a computer. Imagine having to find a piece of paper and an envelope and then walking down the street to mail a letter! I love my computer. It makes everything in my life so convenient. Sure, it freezes and crashes sometimes. Sure I lose some data. But that’s not often. Most of the time my computer is like my best friend. audio/computers.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Culture Listen A Minute.com. Culture. I’m really interested in the culture of other countries. I don’t know why, but I always think other cultures are more interesting than my own culture. Every time I travel, I learn wonderful, strange, amazing and interesting things about other cultures. One of the biggest surprises I had was when I went to the USA as a child. I’m English so I thought Americans had the same culture as me. When I went to America I understood Americans and Brits are very different people. Understanding the culture of other people is very important. It helps us all to get along. If everyone really tried to learn about other cultures, the world would be a more peaceful place. The world is becoming smaller, so I think this is happening. audio/culture.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Danger Listen A Minute.com. Danger. Danger is everywhere. It’s all around us. That what I’ve decided. I thought about danger the other day and decided we live in a dangerous world. Even our house is full of danger. There are many chemicals in our cosmetics, cleaners, fridges, computers that are not good for us. The electric wiring could go wrong and electrocute us. We could fall down the stairs or slip on the kitchen floor. And then when we leave our house, we enter a dangerous world. Cars travelling at speed, people holding cigarettes, construction workers with heavy objects above our heads… all of these things present danger. Just turn on the news or open a local paper to see how much danger there is. I think I’ll stay in bed today. audio/danger.mp3> 00:00:00 >
Dreams Listen A Minute.com. Dreams. I dream almost every night. I have a lot of dreams and I remember most of them. I’m not sure what they mean. Some of them are quite strange. One day I’ll have to buy a book on dreams and see if I can interpret them. When I was a little kid, I had really bad dreams. Real scary ones. They were probably nightmares rather than dreams. Usually it was some big, bad stranger chasing me. My dreams today are all very different. Sometimes I’m speaking in another language in my dream. The ones I don’t like are the ones where I’m falling. But I my dreams where I’m flying. I sometimes have really nice dreams, but then my alarm clock goes off. I press snooze and try and get back into my dream for another ten minutes. audio/dreams.mp3> 00:00:00 >

Listen A Minute.com - Very short listenings. Free printable handouts, downloads plus MP3 listening and quizzes.

How to learn

How to Learn Pronunciation

There is one student in the class. He is from South Korea. This student from Korea says that he has a question. He says that he has a big problem with pronunciation. He knows that his pronunciation is not very good but he doesn’t know how to make it better. He doesn’t speak much because he doesn’t like his pronunciation.

He says that he reads and watches films in English a lot. He understands very well but he also wants to speak well. He asks if there is something what he can do with his pronunciation.

The teacher says, “OK, I can tell you something about pronunciation and how to practise it. I also want to teach you a technique which can help you with pronunciation.

First, we have to look at why students have problems with pronunciation. When we speak, we have to move our mouth. We have to use muscles in our mouth. The problem is that when you speak English, sometimes you use your muscles like in your native language.Then your English pronunciation is like pronunciation in your native language.

This happens to many students who learn English. Almost every student has a little different pronunciation than native speakers have. It is not a big problem because usually people understand what you want to say. You are a student and it is logical that your pronunciation is not perfect when you study English.

But you can work on your pronunciation and make it better. There is a great technique that can help you a lot.

The name of this technique is shadowing. The technique is very simple. When you do shadowing, you simply copy the sound which you hear. When children learn their first language, they also copy what they hear. They copy after their parents again and again and after some time their pronunciation is perfect. You can learn English proununciation the same way.

You can take some video which is not very fast and which you understand very well. You listen and you copy what you hear when you hear it. It is all.”

Then our teacher tells us, “Shadowing is also good when you are prepareing for a presentation and you want to have good pronunciation. Before the presentation you can go to some place where you are alone and you can do shadowing for about 10 minutes. You will see how much it will help you to have better pronunciation during the presentation.”


When you want to have good pronunciation, repeat after native speakers.



How to Practise Speaking

Monica is a student from Italy. my teacher asks Monica some questions. My teacher knows Monica because Monica visited her class one year ago. It was a class for beginners and it was only for two weeks during summer holiday.

When Monica speaks, her English is beautiful. Her pronunciation is very good and she is very fluent.

My teacher is very happy and she tells Monica, “Your school in Italy must be very good.”

Monica says, “I don’t go to any school. I learn English at home. I use techniques from you. I do a lot of reading, shadowing and thinking aloud. I try to think more in English than in Italian.

This is how I work on my English. The two weeks which I spent last summer at your class helped me a lot. You showed me the way. I know how to work on my English every day. This is why I wanted to go to your class again because one year ago, I was a beginner and now I can speak English. I want to learn from you again.”

My teacher is very happy when she hears these words. She thanks Monica for her hard work.

Our teacher says, “It is a very effective technique. You have to have a strong motivation to learn English if you want to have benefit from this technique.

It is also good to know that for some people this technique is a little crazy. But when you start to think aloud, your English can be better very fast.”

“OK, it is actually very simple. You think in your native language all day every day. It is normal. Now, you can start to think in English. And when you start to think in English, then you can think aloud. You simply say aloud what you think. It is all.”

Then our teacher asks Monica if it is OK for her to speak about her experience with thinking aloud. It is no problem for Monica.

She says, “When I started with this technique, it wasn’t easy. I started with very simple sentences. For example, ‘I can speak English. It is good that I can speak English. I want to be better. I need to practise every day. I don’t know many words. But I can use these words well. I can say my ideas with these words. I can do this. This is great.’

The sentences were really simple. But at the beginning there was one problem. My thinking in Italian was long and complicated. I wasn’t able to say in English exactly what I was saying in Italian. I needed to find a simpler form for English. To think in simple English was the hardest part. But after some time it was normal for me to think in English.

Then something interesting happened. I met a girl from Australia. She was on holiday in Italy. I was still a beginner, but we started to speak English. I could see that I was able to speak with her without big problems. My sentences were simple and short, but I was able to speak. I didn’t translate in my head from Italian to English.

After the meeting with the girl from Australia, I started to use thinking aloud more. This technique helped me a lot with my speaking. I still use it every day. It is really a very effective technique.”

When you want to speak English fluently, think aloud.



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