Hi, everybody.
My name is Shauna and this is the American English Podcast.
My goal here is to teach you the English spoken in the United States.
Through common expressions, pronunciation tips and interesting cultural snippets or stories.
I hope to keep this fun, useful and interesting.
Let's do it.
Hello and welcome back.
In today's episode, we're going to be talking about springtime in the U.S.
This is a feature episode, so it's an episode from the past that I've brought back because it's springtime.
And the vocabulary in this lesson will be incredibly useful if you meet native speakers and you want to chat about the weather, the plants, what's happening at this time of the year?
So if you're new, five-minute English episodes are episodes with a lot of vocabulary.
They're designed to teach you everything you need to know to talk about a topic in English.
So in just five minutes you'll hear a high concentration of vocabulary expressions, phrasal verbs, collocations everything that's useful to have in your head before having a conversation.
I call this method fluency one topic at a time.
So by the end of this episode, if you learn and internalize the key vocabulary, you should feel more confident talking about this topic with a native speaker.
These episodes are a bit more advanced, so it helps to listen actively.
You.
But if you don't want to do that, you can also let me guide you step by step with the transcript, key vocabulary, exercises and quizzes.
You can find all of the bonus material for 5-Minute English episodes inside the Academy.
You can sign up at AmericanEnglishPodcast.com or head to the show notes and click on the link.
Without further ado, let's begin.
There are four seasons in the year, spring, summer, fall, and winter.
Some people in the US may call fall autumn, although autumn is more commonly used in British English.
Unlike in fall, when leaves fall from the trees and our clocks fall back one hour, in spring or in springtime, we see buds emerge from branches and our clocks spring forward one hour.
We call this daylight savings time, and it gives us longer daylight hours between March and November every year.
Although many Americans think of spring as the time frame between March to late May or early June, Some ecologists prefer to categorize it as two seasons prevernal spring, which is early spring, and vernal spring, which is late spring.
These two seasons have different biological and environmental characteristics.
For example, in early spring, snow may still cover the ground in some areas, but it's beginning to turn to slush.
Icicles start melting from shingles on homes, and sidewalks may become icy and dangerous to walk on.
Despite chilly breezes and occasional rain and snowfall, hardy plants and trees can be seen sprouting.
In these early spring months, some animals come out of hibernation.
Across the U.S., groundhogs come out of hibernation.
They come out of their burrows.
Bears come out of their dens.
You may hear birds start chirping as they gather twigs and mud to build their nests.
Mating season for birds and just like many other types of expectant reptiles, amphibians and fish, a safe shelter is needed before eggs are laid and hatched.
In early spring, some of us us humans may have the blues or cabin fever, after spending so many winter months cooped up inside.
Although the changing of seasons can make us anxious to go out, the weather in April is unpredictable.
In order to be extra prepared, it might be smart to dress in layers, bundle up or even bring an umbrella.
In fact, there's a common old saying, April showers bring May flowers.
Like many countries in the northern hemisphere, many US states have to endure rainy days early on to have beautiful blossoms in late spring.
That's when the skies are clear and the sun is shining.
By then, seeds will have sprouted and colorful roses lilies, tulips and daisies will have filled flower boxes and flower beds.
K-pop demon hunters Saja Boy's breakfast meal and Huntrix meal have just dropped at McDonald's.
They're calling this a battle for the fans.
What do you say to that, roomie?
It's not a battle.
So glad the Saja Boys could take breakfast and give our meal the rest of the day.
It is an honor to share.
No, it's our honor.
It is our larger honor.
No, really.
Stop.
You can really feel the respect in this battle.
Pick a meal to pick a side.
When flowers are in full bloom, there aren't only bees ready to pollinate, but there's likely pollen in the air.
So if you suffer from seasonal allergies, you might end up with itchy or watery eyes, a runny nose and the urge to sneeze a lot.
People in the US who are not affected by allergy season take advantage of the warming weather to get some fresh air.
In parks and on riverbanks.
You'll see families and friends playing frisbee, going on bike rides, going on walks and having barbecues.
Others may be on a picnic, sitting atop patterned picnic blankets, with food sprawled out in front of them.
Apart from fresh baguettes cheese, cold cuts and finger food, fresh seasonal fruit is a must at a picnic in spring.
As of mid-May, berries such as blackberries blueberries, raspberries and strawberries are juicy, sweet and ready to eat.
Around the same time, stone fruit such as nectarines peaches, apricots and cherries are also in season.
Stone fruits have a pit in the center.
If you ask someone from the States what comes to mind when they think of spring…
Their answers may vary based on their interests and personality.
For a fashionista you might hear floral prints and pastel colors, whereas a kid might mention something simple like jumping in puddles.
Others may mention Easter, rebirth, and rejuvenation.
I asked my parents their thoughts on spring, and here was their response.
Flowers, everything blooming and turning green.
Going outside, getting fresh air exercising, getting out of the house finally after a long winter being inside.
That's what I think of.
And I think of like when the cherry blossoms come out.
You know in your mind that all the fresh fruit and apricots and all that is not far off.
And also baseball?
Baseball starts off in the spring.
They call it spring training.
I haven't really been to spring training.
They do all that down in the warmer states down below.
But in this area all the little league teams and the kids are starting to play and all the baseball fields across town are all full of kids and it's pretty active.
And normally, well, kids are in high school.
It's prom time and it's senior year when the senior trip comes and you're looking forward to the end of school.
Actually, all the kids are looking forward to the end of school.
It's almost time for summer vacation.
And spring break also.
Spring break.
You mentioned that earlier.
College spring break is, you know, where are we going to go?
And usually spend a week off somewhere partying, just enjoying your freedom, before you have to go back and do finals and all that.
Since the US is so expansive, temperature can vary greatly between states, especially between early and late spring.
The average lowest temperature during spring is in Alaska at 247 degrees Fahrenheit, and the highest average is in Florida at 699.
So that's it for this episode.
I hope you're enjoying the weather wherever you are.
Is it spring?
Is it fall?
I have to say I'm very excited it's finally spring.
I'm ready to go outside.
I'm ready to do yard work. take Milo on a walk, go play with the girls.
It's been a long winter.
So, yeah, let's all go outside.
As my mom always says, take time to smell the roses.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this episode.
Once again, if you want to dive deeper into your listening experience and actively use the vocabulary you hear, then be sure to sign up for the Academy.
You can find the link in the episode notes.
There is a ton of bonus material for every episode in this podcast, which is a fantastic way to dive deeper into each episode, test what you've learned and make sure you're retaining information well.
I hope you enjoy the rest of your week and until next time, bye.
It's my goal here to not only help you improve your listening comprehension, but to show you how to speak like someone from the States.
Thanks and hope to see you soon.
