This is an All Ears English podcast episode 1089.
Focus on fluency with two easy steps.
Welcome to the All Ears English podcast, downloaded more than 50 million times.
We believe in connection, not perfection.
With your American hosts Lindsay McMahon, the English adventurer, and Michelle Kaplan, the New York radio girl, coming to you from Boston and New York City, USA.
And to get your transcripts delivered by email every week, go to allearsenglishcom.
Forward slash subscribe.
Today, our listener asks us how he should use the transcripts to learn with native English.
Get our best advice for how to do this as a self-guided English learner today.
Do you ever feel like your English is good but not quite where you want it to be?
Maybe you can have conversations, but you still hesitate when expressing complex ideas.
Maybe you know what you want to say. but you can't always say it naturally.
If that sounds familiar, our B2 English fluency course was designed for you.
You'll learn how to speak more naturally, express yourself with confidence and finally stop feeling stuck at the intermediate level.
This week, you can save $50 on our basic plan or save $100 on our personal coach plan.
Go to allearsenglish.com slash B2.
That's allearsenglish.com slash letter B number two.
Hey, Jessica, how are you doing on this Thursday in January?
Oh, it's a Thursday in January.
I'm fantastic.
I'm looking forward to my birthday.
That's what's happening.
Wait, which date is your birthday?
January 16th, everyone.
So send your birthday cards digitally to Jessica at allearsenglish.com.
Awesome.
Hey, well, happy birthday.
So your birthday would have been yesterday.
This is coming out on January 17th.
I hope it was a good day.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, I'm sure I did.
I'm sure it was fabulous.
At this stage, I don't know what I'm doing, but I'll do something grand.
Do something awesome.
I think like one of my favorite things about growing up with my mom was that she took any reason to celebrate.
I think I've mentioned this before, but like I even had half birthdays, right?
So she just like any reason, just to like go out in the world and do something cool, or like celebrate with family and friends.
She just like seizes it.
Yeah.
Oh, that is so cool.
That is so cool.
So yeah, you should make your birthday grand this year.
Go out and do something awesome.
We're excited to hear about it when you come back.
Oh, I'll give you updates.
Don't worry.
It's gonna be amazing.
How are you?
Well, I am really good.
I'm so excited because we're in January now and we are starting to think about the Power.
Tokyo English weekend.
So excited to go to Japan and meet our listeners.
Oh, my gosh.
I can't wait.
Just remembering last year just fills me with like a little – that like positive butterflies feeling right.
Like that super tingly anticipation because it was so – transformative.
The motivation and the confidence that these students came out with last year, it's inspiring.
I can't wait to experience that again.
I love it.
I mean the fact that our students can go through a power immersion weekend like that and then come out and be able to drop their fear or reduce their fear when they speak with natives or when they speak with other learners.
It's amazing the fact that that's possible and we know how to do it.
It's through our method, right?
Exactly.
Oh man, it is.
So if you're looking for positive forward momentum, like in any area of your life, this is the experience you need.
Right.
Just it's like how we rewire our brains.
This is how we practice what we want to live.
Right.
So just living the three days like this and experiencing how much you can do, how much you can change in your own self in just the short amount of time it transfers into everything else.
I love it.
It's so awesome.
So guys, make sure you listen next week, because next week we are going to open sales and there are only limited number of spots available.
Jessica, I mean our listeners have to hurry next week when we do open the sales because again we only have a limited number of spots.
They're going to go quick.
Exactly.
Oh my gosh, guys, you got to get in there.
I mean, we have the classroom set, right?
There's a limited number of students that can fit into this amazing weekend with us.
And especially like when we go to Izakaya.
We can't have like 100 people.
So these are small, intimate gatherings, which means you get the attention you need from us, from native speakers.
And the only way we can do that is to keep spots limited.
So definitely get in there immediately to reserve your spot.
Yeah, exactly, guys.
So listen to the podcast for a special bonus episode at the beginning of next week where we will announce that sales will be open, and make sure you don't miss it.
You want to jump on it right away.
Awesome.
So what are we talking about today?
Do we have a great student question to answer?
We do.
We got a lovely email from Mr. Alareza.
Alareza.
Alareza.
I got it.
Okay.
So I'm going to read a bit of his email.
It's lovely.
Okay.
Let's see.
See so, as I'm listening to your previous episodes in which you've interviewed teachers, some of them recommend to read a lot to improve vocabulary.
My question is that if reading a transcript like your transcript for each episode, three or more times out loud,
Would that help me improve my speaking too?
I found it very useful for improving my fast reading, and I read somewhere that reading aloud would help us in speaking as well.
Is that true?
True.
Good question.
Yeah, such a good question.
I love that this listener is really thinking about how to use the transcripts in a smart way.
And coming up in January.
Right here, you know this quarter.
Right here guys, you are going to be able to see the transcripts inside the app, right?
Oh, awesome.
It's going to be so cool.
It is going to be a game changer for our listeners who don't have enough time to review the transcripts at home.
So guys, if you're not listening inside the app, go to allearsenglishcom forward, slash bonuses and get the app on your phone.
Okay, so good.
So good.
But yeah, so how can so let's let's see what we can offer to Mr. Ali Reza.
What can we say to him?
Yeah.
So yeah, definitely.
The answer is yes, hands down.
It can definitely improve your speaking.
So we kind of thought of three specific ways that it does help, right?
And then we have a suggestion for a process or an activity to make this more beneficial, as efficiently beneficial as possible.
Yeah, for sure.
Like reading out loud helps your fluency in so many ways.
I recommend this on the IELTS side a lot, especially to my personal coach students, because people get so – and it's not just for IELTS, but people get so anxious about speaking right.
Because they're trying to think of so many things at once. grammar, vocabulary, ideas.
And that's what really interrupts our spontaneous sort of fluid ability to communicate.
So when we can take away those extra anxieties, right?
If you're reading out loud, you're not thinking about vocab and grammar.
You're simply practicing fluency and confidence.
So that is the number one way it helps.
Yeah, so the idea is to kind of isolate right different aspects of our of our abilities here.
So i love that.
It's true, jessica.
I mean, when we're panicking, we're worried about forgetting something, we're not, we're not able to work on all the skills at one time right, so just focusing on the fluency piece first is really good, and how else could it help us?
Well, pronunciation.
I mean, if it's like if you're reading just a book out loud right, that's not going to help this piece.
But if you're reading a transcript, like for these podcasts, that is fantastic, because then you hear how native speakers talk, where we pause, where we stress, where our voice goes up and down.
And then you can copy that with the words in front of you.
That's like, that's perfect. to download the app and get started now.
See you there.
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It's huge, and we have gotten so many emails over the years from students who say that they've really really, really genuinely improved by just listening to the show, and a lot of it is the pronunciation right.
It's the listening, but it's also the pronunciation, because they do do these repetition activities on their own.
Just hearing our natural pronunciation four days a week makes a huge difference.
Oh, for sure.
And I remember like that just it just brought to mind a Three Keys student.
She was on the other podcast, the IELTS Energy podcast, and she got a super high score in speaking.
And she said this was one of the activities she like invented for herself was listening to the podcast and then mimicking and then doing that for like.
Every episode she heard that week.
So I mean, look like, if you want to improve something, say you want to improve speaking.
You can't just say I want to get better at speaking because there's just too many things in there.
So, we have to isolate the skills like this.
You guys are adults, right?
If you keep in mind the motivation, the goal, the target, then that helps you to focus and improve like one thing at a time.
And that's all we can do.
Just one step at a time.
You're not going to become fluent in like a day just by doing one thing, right?
Like you have to isolate like this.
Exactly.
And as adult learners, you guys can do that.
You can be conscious about how you're learning.
Right.
So when we're kids, we're in school.
I mean, our teachers kind of tell us what to do and we don't really second guess it.
Right.
But when we're adults, we can create our own learning plan.
And especially you guys as listeners, you guys are independent learners.
Right.
You found the podcast yourself.
And so it's up to you to take it to that next step.
What can you do with it?
Totally.
As a side note though, I think kids having a healthy skepticism or cynicism from an early age is kind of positive.
I encourage that in my son.
Maybe there's advantages and disadvantages.
Anyway, that's another topic.
Yeah.
I think you got to find that balance, right?
Like, oh, that's a tough one.
That's a tough one because kids should have some skepticism and they should have some trust.
They should have a little bit of both, I think.
Yeah, yeah.
It's a fine balance I'm trying to craft.
But we should do a whole episode about that.
Okay.
Yeah.
And so, the third way that this helps, of course, is vocabulary.
So, guys, I mean, how do we learn new vocab?
We learn it by using it.
That is the only way.
So, in this activity, listening, reading out loud…
You are using the vocabulary in a number of ways.
It's not just like writing it down and then forgetting about it, right?
So if we're actually making ourselves hear it and then say it out loud, that is so good for cementing this new word in our brains.
Yeah, I love it.
I love it.
It is such a good way to do it.
You have to do that, right?
Because I mean, that's the way we pick it up, right?
I don't necessarily learn new words as well by reading.
Maybe some people do.
But by hearing something and reading it at the same time and then speaking it out loud, that's huge.
That's huge.
Totally.
Totally.
Yeah, I don't.
Like if I'm just reading and I still come across words I don't know.
And so I'll look them up and, you know, in the dictionary or whatever.
But then I'm moving on to the next sentence.
I'm moving on with the story.
And I don't remember.
Exactly.
You're moving on.
Yes.
Because you want to know the story.
You don't want to get caught up in, you know, in the details for sure.
Right.
Exactly.
Exactly.
So, Lindsay, what do you think the best process is for using the transcripts with these episodes?
Yeah, well, we've talked about this before.
I mean, guys, it's not about really doing the entire transcript, right?
It's about taking it piece by piece.
Right.
So you're not going to overwhelm yourself because the transcripts are huge, right?
Pages and pages.
And it would be hard to really go deep with an entire transcript all at one time.
So chunk it up, right?
You're going to listen bit by bit, maybe break it into two to three minutes, right?
Where you are using those transcripts and you're following along and you are reading out loud.
Right, exactly.
I mean, it goes back to knowing your motivation, right?
Not doing something with some vague goal.
If your goal is to improve your listening, then yeah, like listen to the whole podcast and read the whole transcript at the same time.
Totally improves listening.
It won't help your speaking though.
So...
If your goal is speaking, then yeah, for sure.
Like break it up.
So listen to maybe like a minute and then pause and then read it out loud and try and copy.
Right.
Make it a small chunk so you could remember how we sound.
And then right away you want to read out loud and try and mimic exactly how we spoke.
Yeah.
So small and digestible.
I mean, the other part of being a self-guided learner is making sure you don't burn out.
Right.
So that you actually like you enjoy.
I mean, I know a lot of listeners just enjoy listening to the show for edutainment, as we call it.
Right.
Education, entertainment.
I love that term.
So make sure.
Isn't it such a great word?
Make sure it stays fun.
You know, because now that you guys are going to have the transcripts right inside the app coming very soon, it's going to be more fun because you're not going to have to pick up a piece of paper.
You're going to have it right there inside the app.
So guys make sure you're inside the app at aldersenglishcom.
Forward slash bonuses, but keep it fun.
Chunk it up.
Don't do the whole thing.
Yeah, totally.
I think that's you know, having the internet and our number of options just exploding a number.
It's a blessing and a curse right.
Sometimes it feels overwhelming because there's like too many options for improving our English or doing whatever we want to do.
And it's hard to know where to start.
And this is really important, this motivation piece, right?
So if you are doing something and it's boring, you're not learning anything.
So remember that there's always another way to go.
So that's the blessing part, that there are a lot of options.
So anyways, that's a side note.
But as the motivation, definitely, guys, this should be fun.
And I think this way of improving your speaking it's so targeted and it's so dynamic, because you're doing a lot of skills at the same time, right.
Like listening, reading, speaking.
So this is super motivational.
But again, like don't do it for an hour because that would be rough.
Too much.
It's too much.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Exactly.
Just take it bit by bit.
I love it.
And this has been a really good question from our listener, Mr. Ali Reza.
Actually Jessica.
Before we finish up, I want to say thank you to a couple of our reviewers in Apple Podcasts.
All right.
So we're going to take a quick minute to shout out to some great people.
So let's see.
Thank you to someone from Korea on December 11th, but I cannot read the name.
Thank you to Grace XING from Australia on December 12th.
Ahmed Hijazi from the U.S. on December 13th.
Nagme KH from the U.S.
Osvaldo Rioshud from Dominican Republic and Emily Wu from Taiwan.
Guys, awesome.
Thank you so much for these great reviews.
They're so good.
And guys, you know what?
You can ask us questions in the reviews as well.
And then either Lindsay or Michelle or me and Lindsay, there's so many options.
We could do an episode that's like a whole thing just about your question.
You got it.
Exactly, guys.
So leave us a review.
Let us know what you think about the show and ask your question over there.
All right, Jessica, this has been a great episode today.
Very useful.
Very edutaining.
Edutaining.
I think that is such a great term.
All right, Lindsay, well, you enjoy the rest of your day.
All right.
Take care.
Talk to you soon.
Bye.
Bye.
Thanks so much for listening to all ears English.
And if you need a seven or higher on your IELTS exam to achieve your life vision, then our insider method can get you there.
Start with our free video series masterclass.
Get video one now at allearsenglishcom.
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See you next time.
