# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Dialogue 2 teething and teasing FULL B2C1

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Liveworksheets transforms your traditional printable worksheets into self-correcting interactive exercises that the students can do online and send to the teacher.

# data[].attributes.body
1. Why do the Brits have washing machines in the kitchen?
2. How do you switch on the light and why are there no sockets in the bathroom?
3. What do you need to do when you say you need to spend the penny?
4. Why do the Brits have separate taps?
5. In what way are English sockets different from other sockets?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Confusing Things About British Homes - Anglophenia Ep 28

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
cefr pet- free reading practice  exam practice english language elt efl grammar writing structure cambridge business exercises a2

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to a news report about eco-homes. Choose the correct answer.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Falling Intonation - English Pronunciation with JenniferESL

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
CAE (Advanced Exam) Listening Test 1 Part 1

Part 1

You will hear four different speakers. Choose the answer ( A, B or C) which fits best according to what you hear. There are two questions for each speaker.

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Speaker 1

1 How did the speaker feel during the move?
A He felt it might be impossible to downsize.
B He found the experience very exciting.
C He was relieved to get rid of so many things.
2 How does he feel about his new flat?
A He hates the uncluttered space.
B It can seem very enclosed and cramped.
C He enjoys spending time in it.

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Speaker 2

3 How did the speaker feel about her dream home?
A She had nightmarish dreams about it.
B She was horrified by the size.
C It made her feel nervous at times.
4 What is the best thing about the house for the speaker?

A being able to accommodate some heirlooms
B being able to get rid of some of the larger furniture she owned
C having the room to store away larger possessions

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Speaker 3

5 What is the speaker's opinion about city centre living?
A It can be unexpectedly quiet.
B He loves the hustle and bustle.
C He can't wait to escape from it.
6 What does he say about his partner?

A She feels trapped by the proximity of other buildings.
B She misses not having an outside space.
C She finds city living far too expensive.

Your browser does not support the audio element.

Speaker 4

7 What does the speaker say about her home?
A It has very limited space.
B She spends a lot of time in the kitchen.
C It cost more than she planned.
8 What does she say about the local cafés?
A There are very few good ones.
B There are too many of them.
C It's a good place to meet neighbours.

KEY

SCRIPT

Narrator: One.
Speaker 1: When I was in the process of moving, I began to wonder if it was really feasible to live in such a small space. I mean, I've always had lots of stuff, so whittling it down has been a pretty daunting task. I'm still working on it, actually. It's hard to part with some things but the payoff is that there's less and less clutter and a lot less dusting and tidying to do than in my old flat. I spend more time outside, of course, because you can feel pretty hemmed in in such a small space and that can be too much at times. I was stuck inside for a couple of days last week in all that heavy rain and I really did begin to feel that I was going to go crazy.
[pause]
Narrator: 2
Speaker 2: This was to be our dream home but in some ways it's turned out to be a complete nightmare. I'd always lived in flats where I could pretty much see into every room, so I had no idea how edgy I was going to feel in a large house like this. I have to be careful not to watch horror films on TV because I start to imagine every creak and groan from the rafters is actually someone lurking in one of the other rooms. Of course, it's glorious to have so much space after years of living in poky flats. I've finally been able to take my grandfather's grand piano and a beautiful old sideboard out of storage. I would never have got them into my old place.
[pause]
Narrator: 3
Speaker 3: I used to think it would be good to move out of the centre of the city but, really, we've got it all right here. Apart from the usual shops, there's a cinema, some rather pleasant cafés and even a really great arts centre with a theatre where they show excellent movies. If we lived out of town, we'd both really miss all that. Sue is always on about how much she would love a big house with a garden but I think in her heart of hearts she would never be able to justify the expense. A nice balcony with a few pot plants is enough, though I must admit here we're walled in by other buildings on all sides and that gets to me sometimes.
[pause]
2
Narrator: 4
Speaker 4: I tried to find something a bit bigger but everything I looked at was way outside my price range. I've had to put some of my things into storage but perhaps one day when I have my dream home I'll have space for more than a sofa bed and a desk! I tend to go out to eat - even for breakfast. The kitchenette is so tiny there's barely room to chop a carrot and it's difficult to get rid of the cooking smells afterwards. There are loads of cafés on this street anyway, so I'm spoilt for choice in terms of places to eat. A lot of my neighbours hang out there in the mornings as well, so I've got to know them. There's a real sense of community here.
[pause]

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
CAE (Advanced Exam) Listening Test 1 Part 1 Part 1 You will hear four different speakers. Choose the answer ( A, B or C) which fits best according to what you hear. There are two questions for each speaker. Your browser does not support the audio element.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
👄 Short Vowel - /ɒ/ - ‘lot’, ‘odd’ & ‘wash’ - English Pronunciation Tips

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BBC Learning English - Pronunciation / The Sounds of English: Long Vowels - 4

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
This is the fourth long vowel programme in our series of 45 pronunciation videos that explore the sounds of English.

# data[].attributes.body
to dorgiz@interia.pl when you finish

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Liveworksheets transforms your traditional printable worksheets into self-correcting interactive exercises that the students can do online and send to the teacher.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Pronounce /æ/ (and /e/ - "bad" vs "bed")

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How to Pronounce 'R' in British English **When is the R silent?**

# data[].attributes.headline
Ze względu na to, że nie działają nagrania zmieniamy temat na FEAR z następnej kolumny

# data[].attributes.subject
Ze względu na to, że nie działają nagrania zmieniamy temat na FEAR z następnej kolumny

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
5 Days of tips and challenges to help you improve your pronunciation

Welcome to Day 1 - Today's challenges

Tim set two challenges for you today:

1. How many sounds are there in English?

2. What are the main things to focus on when improving pronunciation?

You can find the answers to these questions by following this link:
>> FOLLOW THIS LINK TO FIND THE ANSWERS
Look for episodes of the series Sounds of English and watch the Introduction video at the top of the page.

Tim's Tip

You can watch a video that demonstrates each of the sounds of English. A useful way to improve your pronunication is to practise the sounds yourself in front of a mirror and also record yourself to compare with the model from the video.

Tim's homework

If you would like to learn more about the sounds of English and try an exercise, you can download this task sheet. The answers are included!

>> DOWNLOAD SOUNDS OF ENGLISH EXERCISE

Next

Let us know what you think of '5 days to improve your pronunciation' at learningenglish@bbc.co.uk

Don't forget to come back tomorrow to find out the answer to Tim's question. For more pronunciation practice, try Tim's Pronunciation Workshop.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BBC Learning English - 5 days to improve your pronunciation / Day 1. What's Tim's tip?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tim set two challenges for you today: How many sounds are there in English? What are the main things to focus on when improving pronunciation? You can find the answers to these questions by following this link: >> FOLLOW THIS LINK TO FIND THE ANSWERS Look for episodes of the series Sounds of English and watch the Introduction video at the top of the page.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Learning English Pronunciation | Lesson 3 | /uː/ vs /ʊ/ | English Marathon

# data[].attributes.body
u/u:

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
English with Ronnie · EnglishLessons4U with engVid

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
This Couple Lives In A Bus To Escape Chicago's High Cost Of Living

# data[].attributes.body
Listening 1

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to the classroom conversation about the benefits of sport and do the exercises to practise and improve your listening skills.

# data[].attributes.body
Below I summarized the most useful tips I used to reduce my accent.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Record yourself.

Recording yourself is also an important part of your plan. Every once in a while, choose a short speech or passage from a book. If possible, choose something that you can listen to first in the accent you're trying to accomplish. Use our voice recording and say the passage out loud. Then listen to the native accent, compare it with yours and identify sounds and words you can improve.

Go to online voice recorder

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Record yourself. Recording yourself is also an important part of your plan. Every once in a while, choose a short speech or passage from a book. If possible, choose something that you can listen to first in the accent you're trying to accomplish. Use our voice recording and say the passage out loud.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
How Now, Brown Cow A course in the pronunciation of English, with exercises and dialogues by Mimi Ponsonby (z-lib.org)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
On the internet there are quite a lot of speech videos made with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). But I often find that students and teachers of English pronunciation have never seen one, or looked at one carefully. So today I'm posting this short video introduction to the inner workings of speech:

Since the topic is so visual, I'll leave the video to talk for itself. I hope it provides an entertaining reality check on the miraculous complexity, rapidity and fluidity of actual speech. Although the sound quality of the MRI video is a bit weird - the noise of the scanner has to be filtered out - there's nothing weird about the speech. Everything you see here happens inside you whenever you speak.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
What happens inside you when you speak: MRI | english speech services %

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
On the internet there are quite a lot of speech videos made with magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). But I often find that students and teachers of English pronunciation have never seen one, or looked at one carefully.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Reading practice to help you understand texts with a wide vocabulary where you may need to consider the writer's opinion. Texts include articles, reports, messages, short stories and reviews.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
ielts  exam practice english language elt efl grammar listening structure cambridge business exercises

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
IELTS Listening test, part 4 - Free practice

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to a talk about superstitions and answer the questions

# data[].attributes.body
Listening 3

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CAE Listening Practice Test 10 - EngExam.info

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The old, print-friendly test CAE Listening Part 1 You will hear three different extracts. For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, В or C) which fits best

# data[].attributes.body
Unit 29

# data[].attributes.headline
St. Patrick's Day - do wydrukowania na 19 Marca

# data[].attributes.subject
St. Patrick's Day - do wydrukowania na 19 Marca

# data[].attributes.headline
FIRST CLASS Adrian Underhill pronunciation workshop

# data[].attributes.subject
FIRST CLASS Adrian Underhill pronunciation workshop

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
In this 39 video series about pronunciation skills Adrian Underhill demonstrates why it's important for native and non-native teachers to take a practical approach to teaching pronunciation.

This series examines in detail the Phonemic chart, the three levels of pronunciation, the physicality of pronunciation and the 'muscle buttons'. We then have some recommendations for native and non-native pronunciation teachers and the best way to help English students with unfamiliar sounds. Following up we have a series of videos on using the Phonemic chart to teach pronunciation of particular sounds in a very interactive and engaging way.

Start watching now to learn more about the Phonemic Chart, explore the physicality of pronunciation, and find tips to effectively teach pronunciation in your language classes.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
In this 39 video series about pronunciation skills Adrian Underhill demonstrates why it's important for native and non-native teachers to take a practical approach to teaching pronunciation. This series examines in detail the Phonemic chart, the three levels of pronunciation, the physicality of pronunciation and the 'muscle buttons'.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
CAE Listening Practice Test 7 - EngExam.info

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The old, print-friendly test CAE Listening Part 1 You will hear three different extracts. For questions 1-6, choose the answer (A, В or C) which fits best

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Elora Hardy: Magical houses, made of bamboo

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
You've never seen buildings like this. The stunning bamboo homes built by Elora Hardy and her team in Bali twist, curve and surprise at every turn. They defy convention because the bamboo itself is so enigmatic. No two poles of bamboo are alike, so every home, bridge and bathroom is exquisitely unique.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
cefr pet- free reading practice  exam practice english language elt efl grammar writing structure cambridge business exercises a2

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to a radio show about the value of a university education. Choose the statement that best represents the opinions of the callers.

# data[].attributes.body
Sounds English

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Part 3 | Exercise 2

Instructions:
You are given five pieces of audio corresponding to five different speakers. You are also given 8 pieces of information ( A-H ). Identify which piece of information corresponds to which speaker. Use the letters only once, and there are three letters which you do not need to use.
Once all the questions have been answered, click on the check button.

Correct answers will appear in green, incorrect answers in red.

Your mark will be given as a percentage.

The pass mark for this exam is 60%, and you will hear the audio twice.

You hear some people speaking about their relationships with their motorbikes. Chooses from the list what each speaker says.

A - Learning to ride a motorbike helped me pay the bills.

B - Don't get on a bike without having classes.

C - My bike was too big for me.

D - My bike helps me relax.

E - My bike means the world to me.

F - A bike can affect the way you look at yourself.

G - My bike helped me bond with a parent.

H - I miss my first bike.

Privacy policy
© englishaula.com - All rights reserved

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
www.englishaula.com is the webiste where you will find anything to do with Official English exams and online English learning, exercises, videos, courses, Cambridge First Certificate, TOEFL, Cambridge Certificate in Advanced English, Certificate in Prficiency English, Business English. You can also find Business concepts, grammar, Use Of English, Speaking elements, Street talk.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Pronunciation Skills: Consonants part 10 The three nasal consonants /m/  /n/  /ŋ/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
FCE Listening part 4

Difficulty level: B2 /Upper Intermediate

In this part, you listen to a monologue or text involving interacting speakers and lasting approximately 3 minutes. There are seven multiple-choice questions. You should listen to the audio twice.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
fce exam practice english language elt efl grammar writing structure cambridge business exercises esol

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Cambridge English First (FCE) Listening Part 4 - free practice test

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
FCE Listening part 4 Difficulty level: B2 /Upper Intermediate In this part, you listen to a monologue or text involving interacting speakers and lasting approximately 3 minutes. There are seven multiple-choice questions. You should listen to the audio twice.

# data[].attributes.headline
prof. David Crystal on different EnglishES

# data[].attributes.subject
prof. David Crystal on different EnglishES

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ross Thorburn: Welcome back to the TEFL Training Institute Podcast. This episode, we have Professor David Crystal ‑‑ linguist, writer, editor, lecturer, and broadcaster. In this episode, I asked David Crystal about standard English. Why does standard English exist? How is it changing? What type of English or Englishes should teachers teach?

We talked about pronunciation and also the role that culture plays in language teaching. I hope you enjoy the interview.

David Crystal, welcome to the podcast. Can you start off by telling us, when did the idea of standard English first start? Is it something that also came into play in the 18th century along with things like prescriptive grammar and Samuel Johnson and the first dictionary, etc., or was it something that started earlier than that?

David Crystal: One has to ask the question, what is a standard for? A standard is to guarantee intelligibility amongst lots of people, because if you carry on writing in your regional dialect, eventually you won't understand each other.

The first signs of standard English come in the Middle Ages when England becomes a nation rather than a set of independent kingdoms and there is a national civil service evolving, and a national parliament and all these things and English is becoming the language of the nation.

Then it became essential to get rid of some of these variations, and all sorts of influences caused the evolution of standard English ‑‑ civil service scribes, for instance, individual authors like Chaucer, the influence of the Bible ‑‑ many, many different variations, but the point is that between 1400 and 1800, standard English as we know it today evolves.

By 1800, virtually everybody was writing, and this is the point. Writing standard English is essentially a written form of English, not a spoken form. Even today, only a tiny proportion of the world's English‑language users speak standard English naturally at home as a first language. Most people learn standard English in school, and I'm talking not just about foreign language learners. I'm talking about native speakers as well.

Only about four or five percent ‑‑ maybe even that's an exaggeration ‑‑ of people in England speak standard English as a natural home language. Most people speak regional variations. Most people say, "I ain't got this. We ain't got no nothing" and things of that sort. Double negatives, all non‑standard features ‑‑ that's how they normally speak.

Then they go to school and they learn that, "That's not correct, dear boy. You have to say it this way," and you learn standard English. That's very useful, as long as you don't then your local accent and dialect demeaned in the process, which of course used to be the case.

Anyway, around about 1800, standard English in this sense of a universal, pretty unified form of writing had emerged, thanks to Dr. Johnson, with his dictionary. People like Lindley Murray and Bishop Lowth with their grammars, people like John Walker with their pronunciation dictionary and so on and so forth.

There's still a certain amount of variation, but on the whole, it's pretty standard. Then along comes Noah Webster in America and messes everything up, saying, "We don't want that standard anymore. We want a different sort of standard for a new nation," so he develops different standards for American English.

Again, only about five percent of American English is different from British English in terms of spelling, punctuation, vocabulary, grammar, and so on, but it's a pretty significant five percent, nonetheless. Suddenly there are two standards in the world, British and American.

Then that opened the floodgates, doesn't it, because any other country now who comes along and wants to use English. As soon as they adopt English they immediately feel they need to adapt it to express the identity of their own milieu.

This is where non‑standard comes into play, because what non‑standard does is it expresses identity rather than intelligibility. You and I are speaking now non‑standard English to each other. We're not going to understand each other, but I'm proud of my non‑standard English and you're proud of yours.

Of course, the result could be chaos but in many parts of the world, what happens is that the two varieties are so distinct that they don't mix each other up. I use standard English on some occasions. I use non‑standard English on other occasions.

Ross: Presumably, now, then, most people recognize that one version of English isn't necessarily superior to the other. It's just that they get used at different times and in different situations, I suppose.

David: Yeah. In other words, it's a notion of appropriateness rather than a notion of correctness. The 18th‑century notion was that only standard English was correct. Everything else was incorrect and rubbish and should never be used. You'll be punished if you use it.

These days it's a notion of appropriateness ‑‑ that standard English is appropriate for some kinds of functions, non‑standard appropriate for other kinds of functions. This is where it gets relevant to all countries. We're not just talking about British and American and Australian and Indian or the old colonial territories. We're talking about Chinese English and Japanese English and so on.

What is Chinese English for me? Chinese English is not somebody learning English from China and getting it wrong.

No, it's somebody learning English from China who is now developing a good command of English but using it to express Chinese concepts and Chinese culture in a way that I would not necessarily understand, because I don't understand Chinese culture, coming from outside it.

All over the world now, we see these "new Englishes," as they're called, being very different from traditional standard British English and traditional standard American English.

What they're doing is they're allowing the expression of their local identity to become institutionalized in dictionaries and in novels, you see, and plays and poetry and grammars and things like this, so that we now have to respect the identity of whatever it might be ‑‑ Indian English, Nigerian English, Chinese English, by which I mean, English written by Chinese authors expressing a Chinese milieu but with a competent command of English, so that one can't just say, "Hey, that's a mistake."

That is a genuine, shared expression of some section that's coming from China.

Ross: Given all that, then, it really complicates the job of English‑language teachers, doesn't it? What's acceptable to teach and what is it acceptable to leave out? It's a lot more difficult, I guess, than it used to be, isn't it?

David: Oh, gosh, it does, doesn't it? It is a fact that English‑language teaching has become more difficult because of the evolution of English in this way. It isn't a simple, "Oh, there's British and American English. As long as you know those two, you're home and dry."

It's not the case anymore. Everything I've said, mind you, is really only relevant for language comprehension, not so much for language production. After all, if you're used to teaching standard British English in Received Pronunciation, as many teachers are and in any case as many exam boards expect and as a lot of materials expect anyway, then fine. Carry on.

Standard British English is a good thing. RP is a good accent, etc., etc. But when it comes to listening comprehension and reading comprehension, if one restricts one's ability only to British English and RP, then you miss out Heaven knows how many percent ‑‑ probably most of the English language around the world.

How many people speak traditionally British English in an RP accent? We're talking about, what, a couple of percent of the world's population. It's a very useful accent still. No question about that.

Standard British is still a very useful dialect, but nonetheless, from a comprehension point of view, how often are you going to encounter it in the street, in literature, and so on? Only a minority of the time.

It's an increasing gap, it seems to me, between production and comprehension when it comes to teaching. That's me finished now, Ross, because now it's your problem to decide how to implement this in terms of syllabus design and at what point in the teaching process do you introduce these variations? I have the easy job here.

[laughter]

Ross: That's a pity, because that was actually my next question.

David: [laughs]

Ross: What do you think? Should teachers and course books and writers be trying to work in examples of non‑standard English and non‑standard accents from all around the world into their lessons and in their course books?

It seems that even, for example, native speakers might even need help with their listening skills in developing an ear from accents from parts of the world that they're maybe traveling to that they haven't been before. Presumably the same is true for non‑native speakers as well.

David: Absolutely. These days there is no difference, essentially, between a native and a non‑native speaker of English in this respect. I go to another part of the world just like a second‑language learner goes to the same part of the world and we're both equally foxed by the local identity of the language.

I have this all the time. I go to places. I don't know what the heck is going on, because I just don't understand the local words, the local expressions, the local nicknames of the politicians. All these cultural identity things are everywhere now. It's a problem for me as much as for the other.

As far as materials are concerned, yes I think one should build in right from the very beginning an awareness of variation. Some programs do this. Global, for example, does this to a certain extent. I think it's more general than that. All the materials, of course, have always had a certain cultural input.

You teach the present tense by for example saying, "Let us go for a walk down Oxford Street. Let's buy some things," and we'll use the present tense for that. It's drama driving the content.

You can also at the same time let culture help to drive the content. Not only do you have a vocabulary list at the end of the chapter which says what's going on or explains what's going on, but you have a culture list as well.

For example, we've done Oxford Street. When somebody says, "Let's look at your watch," and you say, "Oh, it's a nice watch," and the person says, "Yes, but it's not actually Bond Street. It's Portobello Road."

That's the kind of comment that anybody might make ‑‑ completely unintelligible to most foreigners until they know that Bond Street is the posh street and Portobello Road is the street market.

You could easily imagine how going into a shop to buy a watch to drill the present tense or whatever might also be supplemented by a little cultural panel somewhere or other which says, "Here ‑‑ this is a posh place to buy. This is not a posh place to buy." You gradually build up a sense of the cultural identity of the place.

I'll put it another way. If I go to Beijing, how do you translate Bond Street and Portobello Road into Beijing or wherever? How would you do it? If a Chinese person said that sentence to me in English ‑‑ "Go to this part of..." ‑‑ I would not know what it meant until it was explained, which, you know what I mean by saying it's a very general issue.

Ross: I also wanted to ask you a bit about how new meanings come about, because obviously that's something that happens, I think, both in standard and non‑standard English. I think you mention in "A Little Book of Language" about encouraging people to look up word meanings in dictionaries.

Is it also the case that words often only really take on new meanings when people misuse them? Can you tell us a bit about how new meanings come about, or maybe how first they might be non‑standard or maybe even just considered to be wrong?

David: To begin with, some people would say that any new meaning was a wrong use. There are always pedants around who will say that any change is an error to begin with. Then gradually usage grows and people forget that was ever a problem. They focus on new things that are taking place. This has routinely happened.

It's only happened since the 18th century. Before that, change just took place...People did object to it. Some people tried to stop it, people like Dryden and Swift and, to begin with, Johnson, said, "We must stop language change. Look, the French have done this with their Academy. They've stopped..." Of course they hadn't. But they tried and thought they were doing so.

Johnson himself recognizes this eventually and says, "Even the French haven't managed to stop language change. That's why we don't want an academy over here."

Change takes place. It will always get reactions. It's a very natural process, very subtle process. Most of the semantic changes that affect vocabulary take place without anybody noticing them happening at all until they become established, they get a new the dictionary, a new sense comes along, and people say, "Oh yeah. Of course. We've been saying that for years. We just haven't noticed it happening."

Ross: One more time, everyone, that was Professor David Crystal. If you'd like to know more about David's work, please visit his website at www.davidcrystal.com. I hope you enjoyed today's interview and we'll see you again next time. Goodbye.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Do We Need a "Standard" English? (With Professor David Crystal)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ross Thorburn: Welcome back to the TEFL Training Institute Podcast. This episode, we have Professor David Crystal ‑‑ linguist, writer, editor, lecturer, and broadcaster. In this episode, I asked David Crystal about standard English. Why does standard English exist? How is it changing? What type of English or Englishes should teachers teach?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Tongue Twisters are a natural and easy way to gain access to language. You don't need to be able to read, you can learn them by listening to others and speaking. That's the way they are often used by speech therapists, especially when it comes to children.
As a parent you cannot act as a substitute for a speech therapist if your child doesn't speak correctly or even doesn't start to speak. But you can use tongue twisters for kids to get them to have fun with the language and support them in speaking correctly.

Learning Letters with Tongue Twisters for Kids

As you know, children have difficulties pronouncing special sounds such as R, TH, S. We'll show you some tongue twisters for kids that train the pronunciation of these.

Tongue Twisters with R

It's not right to write Wright 'Rite', please try to write Wright right!

Cracker rapper

Great gray goats

How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?

How many berries could a bare berry carry, if a bare berry could carry berries? Well they can't carry berries (which could make you very wary) but a bare berry carried is more scary!

Real rock wall

Red lorry, yellow lorry.

Rolling red wagons

Tongue Twisters with TH

A lump of red leather, a red leather lump

Elizabeth's birthday is on the third Thursday of this month.

Fred Threlfall's thirty-five fine threads are finer threads than Fred Threlfall's thirty-five thick threads.

He threw three free throws.

This is a zither.

This is the sixth zebra snoozing thoroughly.

Three tired tigers try to throw three trees.

Tongue Twisters with S

A slimy snake slithered down the sandy Sahara.

A snake sneaks to seek a snack.

Denise sees the fleece, Denise sees the fleas. At least Denise could sneeze and feed and freeze the fleas.

I saw Esau sitting on a seesaw. I saw Esau; he saw me.

I slit a sheet, a sheet I slit, and on that slitted sheet I sit.

On a lazy laser raiser lies a laser ray eraser.

We've found a video where you can have a look an how to tell tongue twisters for kids. It's not that difficult!

Have a Tongue Twister Game with Your Kids

As tongue twisters are a very good way to practice speech, you should still bear in mind that most children prefer to play rather than learn and that you learn more easily while playing. In my childhood we played small games right after dinner, when we were all sitting around the table. We played little mind games just like counting (I was four or five back then), tongue twisters, and telling little stories. It was a small game of about 15 minutes in total and we, the children, had so much fun that my parents had to stop us.
So don't just use the tongue twisters for kids listed above, but also use some funny ones to keep your kids having fun.

Funny Tongue Twisters for Kids

Tongue Twister tried to train his tongue to twist and turn, and twit and twat, to learn the letter "T".

My mommy makes me muffins on Mondays.

Where she sits she shines, and where she shines she sits.

Willy's wooden whistle wouldn't whistle when Willy went wild.

A big black bear sat on a big black bug.

A happy hippo hopped and hiccupped.

Are Tongue Twisters a Challenge?

Of course they are. And if you want your children to know how to say tongue twisters really fast you have to know them too. See the tongue twisters used by professionals to train your tongue.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Tongue Twisters for Kids | word-grabber.com

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tongue Twisters are a natural and easy way to gain access to language. You don't need to be able to read, you can learn them by listening to others and speaking. That's the way they are often used by speech therapists, especially when it comes to children.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to the extracts from different radio programmes talking about fear and phobias, and do the exercises to practise and improve your listening skills.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.keywords[]
ielts  exam practice english language elt efl grammar listening structure cambridge business exercises

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
IELTS Listening test 2, part 4 - Free practice

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Listen to a lecture on social phobic disorders and complete the gaps in a form

# data[].attributes.body
-great podcast

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Don’t Tell Me The Score - Alex Honnold: Fear - BBC Sounds

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Want to know how to overcome fear? Free solo climbing legend Alex Honnold can explain

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Why do we fear animals that pose no threat to us? Sophie and Neil face their own phobias and discuss the reason why fear of spiders is so common.

This week's question

What's the word that describes an irrational fear of insects? Is it...

a) entomophobia?

b) thanatophobia?

c) pogonophobia?

You'll hear the answer at the end of the programme.

Vocabulary

make your flesh creep
make you feel very frightened

phobia
a strong and irrational fear

arachnophobes
a strong fear of spiders

reflexive awareness
being automatically aware of something, without thinking about it

Transcript

Note: This is not a word-for-word transcript.

Neil
Hello and welcome to 6 Minute English. I'm Neil...

Sophie
And I'm Sophie. Neil, what are you afraid of?

Neil
I'm not keen on anything with wings, but I particularly hate moths. They're disgusting, with their fat hairy bodies and... fluttery wings!

Sophie
Oh, Neil. Moths are completely harmless. They aren't something to be scared of.

Neil
Yes, they are... They get in my face... and my hair. It makes my flesh creep just thinking about them.

If something makes your flesh creep it makes you feel very frightened. Well, I hope you're going to survive the show today, Neil, because it's all about animal phobias - and a phobia is a strong and irrational fear. That's a fear not based on reason.

Neil
OK - I'll try. Do you have any animal phobias, Sophie?

Sophie
I can't stand dogs.

Neil
Man's best friend? How can you not like dogs - they're cute and loveable. They protect you. They can do tricks!

Sophie
Look, for you it's moths - and that's pretty ridiculous, by the way - and for me it's dogs. And that isn't ridiculous. Dogs can be aggressive - they have sharp teeth, they bear their teeth and bark.

Neil
What, like this? [sound of dog growling and barking]

Sophie
Yes - and please turn that off, it's upsetting me. It's time for today's quiz question. Can you tell me, Neil, what's the word that describes an irrational fear of insects? Is it...

a) entomophobia?

b) thanatophobia?

Or c) pogonophobia?

Neil
I'll say thanatophobia.

Sophie
Well, we'll find out if you got the answer right later on in the show. But now let's listen to Dr Dean Burnett, neuroscientist at Cardiff University in the UK, talking about what causes phobic reactions in us.

Dr Dean Burnett, neuroscientist at Cardiff University, UK
The sensory information is just relayed directly into your brain. One part of it is routed into the cortex, where it's sort of thought about: 'that's that thing, I know that from last time I experienced this', and you can kind of rationalise your way through it. But it also sends a message directly to the amygdala, which immediately triggers the 'fight or flight' response - bang, fire alarm, off it goes, flood the body just in case. It's a survival mechanism.

Neil
Dr Dean Burnett there. So, the sensory information for me is a moth fluttering around, getting in my hair.

Sophie
That's right - Or for me, it's a dog getting anywhere near me! Anyway, this information goes into our brains and is processed in two different parts of the brain - the central cortex and the amygdala.

Neil
And the information sent to the central cortex triggers a rational response, like, oh it's only a harmless moth - and the stuff that goes to the amygdala triggers an instinctive reaction - the fight or flight response - like, aaarrrggghhh! It's a disgusting moth! Get away from me!

Neil
So, that's the moth flying in my face while I'm reading in bed, and I feel my heart beating so fast I think I'm going to pass out and I nearly die from anxiety.

Stephen and Reena, arachnophobes
'So when I see a spider, I feel like I've been punched in the chest.'
'Complete fear - it's absolutely paralysing. They've never been OK with me. I've always hated them.'
'I've spent a lot of time driving around in the car afraid to go home while my husband worked in London.'
'All rationality goes out the window, and it's... my emotions completely take over.'
'I just.... I just run.'

Neil
You could understand that if you were living in Australia - where a bite from a spider might kill you. But the little spiders you get here in the UK don't seem threatening at all.

Neil
I expect this awareness is to do with our ancestors. It would've been extremely useful to spot a spider as an early human on the plains of the African Savannah. A bite might kill you - or make you vulnerable to attack from other animals.

Sophie
You're right, Neil! But do you think you were right about today's quiz question? I asked: What's the word that describes an irrational fear of insects? Is it... a) entomophobia, b) thanatophobia or c) pogonophobia?

Neil
I said thanatophobia!

Sophie
That's the wrong answer. It's actually a) entomophobia. Entomophobia (also known as insectophobia) is a specific phobia characterized by an excessive or unrealistic fear of one or more classes of insect. Thanatophobia is the fear of death and pogonophobia is the fear of beards or bearded people.

Well, moths are kind of hairy... Let's remind ourselves of some of the words we heard today:
make your flesh creep
phobia
irrational
fight or flight response
pass out
arachnophobes
reflexive awareness

Sophie
And that's the end of today's 6 Minute English. Don't forget to join us again soon!

Both
Bye!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BBC Learning English - 6 Minute English / Animal phobias

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Why do we fear animals that pose no threat to us? Sophie and Neil face their own phobias and discuss the reason why fear of spiders is so common. What's the word that describes an irrational fear of insects? Is it... a) entomophobia? b) thanatophobia? c) pogonophobia?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
redacto - intensive english listening and dictation practice for language learning

# data[].attributes.body
You WILL definitely LIKE the speaker's accent:)

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
Paul Lewis: How mobile phones helped solve two murders

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Two murders sat unexplained and unsolved -- until reporter Paul Lewis starting talking to bystanders who had evidence on their mobile phones. Step by step, Lewis pieced together their evidence and their stories to find justice for the victims. It's the future of investigative journalism, powered by the crowd.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Created with Hot Potatoes by Half-Baked Software, registered to cristina.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Part 1: You will hear a radio talk about St Valentine's day. For questions 1-7, choose the correct answer A, B or C.
Part 2: You will hear part of a radio programme about the climber Annabelle Bond. Mark statements 8-15 as True or False.
You will hear each recording twice. Mark your answers while you listen.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.authors[].name
Created with Hot Potatoes by Half-Baked Software, registered to Stan Bogdanov.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Part 1: You will hear a radio talk about St Valentine's day. For questions 1-7, choose the correct answer A, B or C. Part 2: You will hear part of a radio programme about the climber Annabelle Bond. Mark statements 8-15 as True or False.You will hear each recording twice.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Try the online quiz, reading, listening, and activities on grammar, spelling and vocabulary for this lesson on Phobias. Click on the links above or see the activities below this article:

Your browser does not support this audio player.

READ

Phobias are interesting things. Some of them are very serious and can have a really negative influence on life. The most common phobias are the fear of open spaces or closed spaces and the fear of heights and flying. Doctors say all phobias are treatable. Phobias are irrational fears of something. There is no logical reason why someone is afraid of going outside or of flying. It's all inside the sufferer's head. I understand some phobias like the fear of flying, but not others. Some people are afraid of babies, or computers, and even of peanut butter sticking to the roof of your mouth. That phobia has a really long Latin name. I wonder if there's a phobia about the English language. Perhaps that's grammarphobia.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Try the online quiz, reading, listening, and activities on grammar, spelling and vocabulary for this lesson on Phobias. Click on the links above or see the activities below this article: Your browser does not support this audio player. Phobias are interesting things. Some of them are very serious and can have a really negative influence on life.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Online practice test for the CAE free sample Online practice test for the CAE free sample 2 1. Personal identification University conv...

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
View the interactive image by Authentic Teaching

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Tim
Hi. I'm Tim and this is my Pronunciation workshop. Here I'm going to show you how English is really spoken. Come on, let's go inside. Now, if you've been following my adventures in this workshop, you will know that I have had a bit of bad luck, now and then. But not half as much bad luck as this chap. Listen to what these people are saying about him.

He looks like he's had an accident.
He looks like he's had an accident.
He looks like he's had an accident.
He looks like he's had an accident.

Tim
Now, they all used the word 'he' twice. But there were two different pronunciations. Listen out for them both as you watch again.

Tim
In fluent speech, if the word 'he' comes at the beginning of a sentence or clause, then the 'h' sound /h/ is pronounced. But if it comes in the middle of a sentence or clause and after a consonant, then the 'h' sound is not usually pronounced. So /hi ː/ becomes /i ː/ and 'he looks like he's had an accident' becomes 'he looks like ' e's had an accident'. Not this change also happens with certain other words beginning with the 'h' sound, like him, his or her. Here are some more examples.

Examples
I really like his cooking.
We think he's left the country.
They let him leave early.
They offered her a promotion.

Tim
Right, so you've heard the examples, and now it's your turn. You know the drill by now. Listen and repeat.

Examples
I really like his cooking.
We think he's left the country.
They let him leave early.
They offered her a promotion.

Tim
Well done. Now remember, if you want to learn more about pronunciation, then please visit our website, bbclearningenglish.com. And that is about it from the pronunciation workshop for this week. I'll see you soon. Bye bye! Now, that man in the photograph - his head looked a bit sore - which reminds me. Saw! I love DIY! Actually, I am a bit accident-prone. But my twin Tom is very good with his hands. I think I'll give him a ring and ask for his advice. Ow! Every time!

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
BBC Learning English - The Sounds of English / Tim's Pronunciation Workshop: Elision of /h/

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Tim Hi. I'm Tim and this is my Pronunciation workshop. Here I'm going to show you how English is really spoken. Come on, let's go inside. Now, if you've been following my adventures in this workshop, you will know that I have had a bit of bad luck, now and then.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
The second deadliest day in the history of Mount Everest climbs happened in 1996 -- and Ken Kamler was the only doctor on the mountain that day. He shares the incredible story of the climbers' battle to save lives in extreme conditions, and uses brain imaging technology to map the medical miracle of one man who survived roughly 36 hours buried in the snow.