Hi, I'm Georgiana and I'm back with a new episode.
I'm here to help you speak English fluently.
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Thanks.
Before we start, get the transcript.
Visit speakenglishpodcast.com slash podcast.
Okay, let's start.
Hi, are we meeting at 5 p.m. to go to the movies?
Yes, of course.
No problem.
I'll see you then at 5 p.m. sharp.
Just be punctual this time.
The movie starts on time.
This would be a typical conversation between two friends.
Unfortunately for some people, punctuality is something, let's say, flexible.
I particularly like to be very punctual, and if I meet with a friend I always arrive a few minutes early.
Punctuality, it's when we arrive somewhere on time.
Someone unpunctual doesn't arrive on time.
And sharp means exactly on time.
If you hang out with friends, it's okay if you're five minutes late.
It's best if you arrive exactly on time, but very few people arrive exactly on time.
Besides, it's not the same whether someone is waiting for you outdoors or in a coffee shop.
Of course, if you have a meeting with a client or it's business related, it's better to be punctual.
When you are late, it's best to inform people that you won't be there on time, so send a message or just call.
By the way, this is the typical phrase used by people who are late.
Have you been waiting long?
Here the honest answer should be, I've been waiting since the time we agreed to meet.
Talking about unpunctuality, I have an incredibly unpunctual friend.
I remember that one day we met at 8 p.m. to have dinner at a new fancy restaurant.
I knew she wouldn't be there on time, so I made a reservation half an hour later.
After waiting for about one hour...
I decided to give her a call to find out if she was on her way.
Guess what?
She was still about 40 miles away, so she couldn't make it in time for dinner.
That night, I ended up having dinner alone.
Luckily, the food was absolutely delicious.
Great!
Now you can practice.
With a mini story, you'll be able to go over the vocabulary we saw in the first section.
A mini-story is very simple.
I give you information using phrases and then I ask you questions.
I recommend that you listen several times until it's easy to answer.
Just relax and enjoy.
Let's start.
Brian wasn't punctual because he was always late.
Was Brian punctual?
No, Brian wasn't punctual.
He was always late.
Was Brian sometimes late?
No, Brian wasn't sometimes late.
He was always late.
Was Brian unpunctual?
Yes, he was.
He was unpunctual.
Was Brian late?
Yes, he was late.
Why was Brian unpunctual?
Because he was late.
Who was late?
Brian.
Brian was late.
He was very unpunctual.
Brian was always seven hours late.
Was Brian late?
Yes, he was late.
Was he five hours late?
No, he wasn't five hours late.
He was seven hours late.
Why was Brian unpunctual?
Because he was seven hours late.
He was unpunctual because he was seven hours late.
Was Brian always seven hours late?
Yes, he was always seven hours late.
Brian's friends were very angry because he was late.
Did Brian's friends get angry?
Yes, they got very angry.
They were angry because Brian was late.
Did Brian's friends get very angry?
Yes, Brian's friends were very angry.
They got very angry.
Whose friends got angry?
Brian's friends got very angry.
Why did they get angry?
Because Brian was late.
That's why they got angry.
Brian always said, Have you been waiting long?
Did Brian say, Have you been waiting for a short time?
No, he didn't say that.
Brian didn't say that.
He said, Have you been waiting long?
Who said that?
Brian.
Brian said that.
Who did Brian say that to?
His friends?
Yes, to his friends.
He said that to his friends.
Brian was always late and said that.
Did Brian say that to his enemies?
No, not to his enemies, to his friends.
He said that to his friends.
Brian's friends solved the problem by also arriving 7 hours late.
Did Brian's friends solve the problem?
Yes, they solved the problem.
What did they solve?
The problem.
Brian's friends solved the problem by also arriving seven hours late.
Did they solve the problem by arriving sooner?
No, they didn't solve the problem by arriving sooner.
They solved the problem by arriving seven hours late.
How many hours?
Seven.
By arriving seven hours late.
Perfect.
This is the end of the story.
Brian was always seven hours late.
Always.
Then his friends solved the problem by arriving seven hours late too.
This way, everyone arrived at the same time.
Let's continue with the next and last section of this episode.
In this last part I'll explain the benefits of reading and listening and the relationship among reading writing, speaking and listening.
As a language student, the main activities to learn a new language are reading writing, listening and speaking.
This is what we naturally do in our mother tongue.
One key aspect to keep in mind is that we can categorize these activities as input and output.
As you may guess, listening and reading are input activities, and writing and speaking are output activities.
In other words, when you're listening or reading, you are being exposed to the language.
And when you're writing and speaking, you are producing the language.
The traditional approach tells you that the more you write and speak, the better.
That's why language schools insist on writing a lot and practicing your speaking with other students, sometimes in groups.
This seems reasonable, but it's not effective.
There's a lot of research that points out the contrary.
Basically, in order to develop your English, you need to do input activities most of the time.
Why is that?
Because you can't produce the language if you haven't previously learned it.
And the way to learn it is through comprehensible input, as simple as that.
But then is speaking and writing a waste of time?
No, I didn't say that.
When you speak in a conversation, you see what areas of the language you need to improve.
Then when you listen again, you will naturally pay more attention to those areas.
For example, If you're in a conversation and you have to describe something in the past tense, when you try to do it, you see that you make some mistakes.
The next day when you listen to your materials again, I bet you'll pay more attention to the past.
A good schedule may be listening one hour a day a course, a podcast, etc.
And practicing your speaking with a tutor or friend a couple of times a week.
You will improve a lot.
Last but not least, there's an interesting consequence when you listen and when you read.
Listening will naturally help you with your speaking, and reading will naturally help you with your writing.
So if you are interested in developing your speaking, your fluency, you will need to listen a lot.
Then you can practice with a friend or tutor.
The same thing happens with reading and writing.
You can use this podcast and my English courses to improve your listening comprehension and your speaking.
Visit pronunciation course dot com and get it now for a special price.
I repeat pronunciation course dot com.
