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On May 09th, 2025, I spent about 15 minutes watching a Sky News video with Professor Michael Clarke. I chose this video because I wanted to learn more about Ukraine and what help they need from other countries. The video helped me practice listening to formal English with some difficult words about politics and war.

The video is a news explanation. The speakers are British, and their accents are clear. The grammar was formal but easy to understand. The vocabulary was hard sometimes, with words like “ceasefire” and “peacekeepers.” I had to stop the video a few times to check the meanings.

Michael Clarke spoke very clearly with a British accent. The video didn’t have jokes or sarcasm, but it had some expressions like “boots on the ground,” which means soldiers in the country. The speech was mostly easy to understand, but I needed to pay attention to some special words.

I liked this listening practice because the speaker talked calmly and clearly. I learned new words and phrases used in politics and war. The video used formal language, which was good for learning. Even though some words were difficult, I feel more confident now to listen to news in English. Next time, I will try to take notes to help me remember new vocabulary.

Minhas reações / atitudes:

I found Clarke’s calm but authoritative tone helped me follow complex geopolitical reasoning.

The segment avoided informal language or jokes, which was good for practicing formal listening comprehension.

The consistent clarity of pronunciation made the video accessible, though I paused a few times to look up terms like “operational phase.”

This activity increased my confidence in following British news analysis, even on complex topics.

Next time, I’ll focus on note-taking to better capture definitions of specialized vocabulary.

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On May 17th, 2025, I watched a BBC News video for about 15 minutes. The title was “Hamas says new Gaza talks begin after Israel launches major offensive.” I chose this video because I want to practice my listening and understand real news in English, even if the topic is difficult.

When I started the video, I felt a bit lost. The journalist spoke fast and used many words I didn’t know, like “hostilities,” “escalation,” “civilians,” and “negotiation process.” I had to pause the video several times, go back, and search for the meaning of some words. It was not easy, but I tried my best.

The type of English was formal and journalistic, with serious information about the war situation. The speakers had British accents, which was new for me. At first, it was hard to catch all the words, but after a few minutes, I started to recognize more things.

I also noticed that the grammar was complex, with long sentences and formal expressions like “launched an operation” and “ongoing talks.” The pronunciation was clear, but the speed and the vocabulary made the listening harder for me.

I didn’t hear any jokes, irony, or sarcasm. The tone was very serious, because the topic is about a conflict that affects many people.

At the end of the video, I felt challenged, but also happy that I didn’t give up. I understood the main point: Israel started a military operation in Gaza, and at the same time, Hamas is talking about new negotiations.

I know I still have a lot to improve, but I’m proud that I tried to listen to real news in English.

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Hamas says new Gaza talks begin after Israel launches major offensive | BBC News

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On May 24th, 2025, About 15 minutes watching the BBC News video called “Gang guilty of Kim Kardashian heist in Paris”

I chose this video because I wanted to understand how journalists talk about real crime and celebrity cases. Also, I wanted to practice my listening skills with a clear British accent, but the topic was serious and emotional.

At the beginning, I had some difficulties with legal expressions, like “held at gunpoint”, “grandpa robbers”, and “sentenced.” I had to pause the video several times and write down these words in my notebook to understand them better.

The style of the video was very serious and direct, with no jokes. The journalist and the people interviewed used formal and correct English, but the speed was a little fast for me. The sentences were long, and the speech included terms like “testified in court,” “stolen jewellery,” and “armed robbery.”

The pronunciation was clear, but some words with many consonants were hard to catch. I knew I didn’t understand everything, but I focused on the main points: they explained that the crime happened during Paris Fashion Week in 2016, that Kim Kardashian was tied up and threatened with a gun, and that the robbers were older men called “grandpa robbers.”

Even though I found the topic shocking and sad, I felt that the video was very educational. I learned how journalists talk about trials, testimonies, and legal consequences. I also learned new vocabulary like “remorse,” “verdict,” and “testimony.”

In the end, I felt challenged because I needed to concentrate a lot to follow the content, but also motivated because I saw that I can understand serious news—even with new vocabulary. The video showed me the importance of pausing, writing down new words, and reviewing later to learn better.

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Gang guilty of Kim Kardashian heist in Paris | BBC News

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On May 31th, 2025, I spent around 15 minutes watching a video from the BBC CrowdScience channel called "Why do we lie?" I chose this video because the topic caught my attention and I thought it would be interesting to practice listening with something different from hard news or politics.

The listening resource was a documentary-style program, with interviews, narration, and real-life examples. The main speaker was British, but there were also other speakers from different countries, like the United States and the Netherlands.

At the beginning, I noticed that the British accent was very clear and the speaker used a friendly tone. However, when some of the interviewees spoke, I found it a bit more difficult to understand, especially the Dutch and American speakers because of their different pronunciation and speed.

The grammar was not too complicated, but there were some academic terms and expressions that were new for me, especially vocabulary from psychology and science, like "magnetic resonance imaging" and "behavior patterns". There were also some idiomatic expressions and humor, especially when the program talked about the liar contest and the Dutch comedian.

Sometimes, I had to pause the video or go back to catch the meaning of longer sentences. But I liked the experience because the topic was fun and educational at the same time. It made me think about how lying is part of human behavior and how our brain reacts to it.

This video helped me not only to practice my listening but also to learn new words and cultural references. I think that using documentary content like this is a good way to improve vocabulary and listening comprehension.

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Why do we lie? - CrowdScience podcast, BBC World Service

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On June 07th, 2025, I spent about 15 minutes watching a video from BBC News. I chose this resource because I wanted to practice listening to British English and get used to their accent.

The video was a news report about political and economic issues. The speaker was British, and I noticed that the grammar was very formal and clear. However, the vocabulary was a bit challenging for me because there were many new words related to politics and economics.

At first, the pronunciation seemed a little fast, and I had trouble understanding some parts. But after a few minutes of listening, I started to get used to the speed and rhythm of the speech. I also realized that British English uses some different words compared to American English, which I usually hear more often.

There was no sarcasm or irony in the report. The information was objective and direct, which helped me focus on understanding the content. Overall, I think this was a very good exercise to improve my listening skills and expand my vocabulary.

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2025 June 10 BBC 2-minute World News Audio

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On June 14th, 2025, I spent about 15 minutes watching a video from DW News (Deutsche Welle). I chose this listening resource because I wanted to hear a different English accent and get an international perspective on current events.

The video was an interview with a political analyst. There were two main speakers: one German and one British. I found the pronunciation of the German speaker a bit challenging because of the strong accent, but the British interviewer spoke very clearly, which helped me understand better.

The vocabulary used was more advanced than usual, especially with many political and diplomatic terms. There were also some metaphors and idiomatic expressions that I didn’t understand at first, which made me realize how important context is when listening to English.

Overall, this video was a good listening exercise. It helped me practice understanding different accents and exposed me to more complex language, which I think will improve my skills over time.

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'New sheriff in town': Is the US trying to intervene in European politics? | DW News