Learning show: Ask Misterduncan - 1

Learning English

Словарь урока

edition [ɪ'dɪʃ(ə)n] – выпуск, издание
first ever edition – первый выпуск
feature ['fiːʧə] – отличать, характеризовать, обрисовывать, фигурировать; особенность, признак, свойство
to read out – зачитывать, оглашать, считывать
instead [ɪn'sted] – взамен, вместо
vivid ['vɪvɪd] – живой, яркий, ясный, четкий
fun way – интересный способ
improve [ɪm'pruːv] – улучшаться, совершенствоваться
common ['kɔmən] – общий, распространенный, обыкновенный, простой
shared ['ʃeəd] – обший, совместный, коллективно используемый
enough [ɪ'nʌf], [ə-] – достаточный, довольно, достаточно
pace [peɪs] – скорость, темп, шаг; задавать темп, вести
confident ['kɔnfɪd(ə)nt] – уверенный,
confidently – уверенно
ability [ə'bɪlətɪ] – способность, возможность, умение
shyness ['ʃaɪnəs] – застенчивость, робость, скромность
fade [feɪd] – вянуть, выгорать, тускнеть, ослабевать, стихать
allow [ə'lau] – позволять, разрешать
instance ['ɪn(t)stən(t)s] – пример, случай
foreign ['fɔrɪn] – иностранный, зарубежный
very few - очень немногие, совсем незначительное количество
able ['eɪbl] – способный
to be able - мочь, уметь, быть в состоянии
out loud – вслух, в открытую,
available [ə'veɪləbl] – доступный, имеющийся в наличии
cost [kɔst] – стоить; цена
reason ['riːz(ə)n] – причина, повод, основание
access ['ækses] – иметь,- получить доступ
benefit ['benɪfɪt] – помогать, приносить пользу
hopefully ['həupf(ə)lɪ], [-fulɪ] – с надеждой, надо надеяться, будем надеяться
main feature – главная характерная черта
carry ['kærɪ] – содержать, заключать, нести
environment [ɪn'vaɪər(ə)nmənt], [en-] – окружение, окружающая обстановка
unsure [ʌn'ʃuə], [-'ʃɔː] - неуверенный
exception [ɪk'sepʃ(ə)n], [ek-] – исключение, отклонение от нормы
almost ['ɔːlməust] – почти, едва не
first-ever [ˌfɜːst'evə] – начальный, первый
forget [fə'get] – забывать о, пренебрегать, игнорировать

Learning show: Speak English With Misterduncan - Lesson One

1. Introduction

Misterduncan from England

Text lesson

Hi everybody this is Misterduncan in England.
How are you today?
Are you okay?...I hope so.
Are you happy?...I hope so.

Welcome to the very first episode of my series of English teaching videos Before I begin we will take a look at some of the common questions that often arise when talking about learning the English language. and more importantly, learning it as a second language.
So, the first question must be... "Why do we need to learn English?"

Of course one of the reasons why we need to be able to speak English nowadays is because the world is becoming smaller. Thanks to the internet and our developing global economy,more and more people are using English as a common way to communicate with each other. So now it has become unavoidable that companies and large businesses will need to employ people.who can speak more than their own native language, that is where English comes in.

It is now officially considered as an international language.

Of course learning anything is difficult and English is no exception. However, there are ways to make the situation easier. I have come up with my own list of general rules for learning English Do you want to hear them?
Do you want to know what they are?
Ok...let's go!

Learning English takes time and patience.
It cannot be rushed
Try to relax and take it easy
The most important thing you need at the beginning is a good vocabulary
Without words, you have nothing to work with
You must start with a strong foundation or base,
and slowly build on it, day by day!
You must view English as a part of your body...
just as you would an arm or leg
It must become a part of your everyday life.
Daily practise is very important.
Do not worry about making mistakes...
in fact the more mistakes you make...
The more you will learn from them
just like learning to ride a bike
sometimes you fall off.
So what do you do?
You get back on and try again.
Do not look at English as just another subject

Your attitude to English and the way you view it will decide how well you progress.
just as we say in English "No pain...no gain" The two most important words to remember
when learning English are...practise and confidence. Practise English everyday and be confident.
You will find that the more you use English...the better your English will become.
and the more confident you become...then the more you will want to use it.
Make it a rule to tell yourself...I can do it...I can do it...I can do it !

Please remember, my lessons are aimed at everyone, so hopefully you will find something useful in each one.
Maybe you will find some of the words I use very easy. But you will also see some words that may be new to you.
Remember...my lessons are aimed at everyone.
Even teachers are very welcome to join in.

Learning English should be a fun experience and I hope with the help of my videos lessons
you will discover just how much fun it can be. I hope you've enjoyed my first lesson.
This is Misterduncan in England saying Thanks for watching and bye-bye for now.

Conversation: London Native English Speaker Interviews Part 1

This is part 1 of a series of videos for people learning English.
I went into central London recently and asked people "What's London really like?"
These are their responses.
Use the video to practise listening and to learn about English culture.

Transcripts & definitions

London! Capital of Great Britain. Home to over 7 million people, including: The Queen, The Prime Minister, Sherlock Holmes, James Bond and Mr Bean.
Considered by some to be the home of the English language, it’s also one of the biggest and more important financial and cultural centres in the world. It has a rich cultural history, a diverse population and loads of cool stuff to do at the weekends.

But what is London really like for the people who live there?

Hi, well, I’ve got a video camera, I’ve got an Oyster card and I’ve got the day off, so I’m going to go into the centre of London, meet some real Londoners and ask them, “what’s London really like?” Why don’t you join me? Come on, let’s go shall we?

Buckingham Palace:

This man is from somewhere in the south of England, possibly in London or near London. He has a southern English accent.
Luke: So, um, what do you think of London? What’s it really like?
Man: London’s a very nice place to be, yeah.
Luke: Yeah?
Man: Yeah.
Luke: What’s the best thing about it?
Man: The best thing is the architecture, the old stuff…
Luke: Yeah, yeah. Like Buckingham Palace
Man: Like Buckingham Palace, yeah
Luke: What about…
Man: Anything else, yeah?
Luke: What about the worst thing?
Man: The worst thing is… all the rest, I’m afraid.
Luke: Everything else?
Man: Everything else, gone to the dogs.
Luke: Really, it’s all gone to the dogs?
Man: With the country.
Luke: Ok. Alright, thank you very much. Cheers.
Man: Thank you.

These girls are from Hull, which is in Yorkshire in the north of England. They’re in London on holiday. They have Yorkshire accents.
Luke: Hello
Girls: Hi!
Luke: So, where are you from?
Girls: Erm, Hull.
Luke: Hull? Ok, so how long have you been in London?
Blonde girl: We came yesterday
Luke: Ok, what do you think? What’s London like?
Redhead girl: Really good!
Blonde girl: It’s a bit busy
Brunette girl: busy
Luke: Right, okay. What’s, err, what’s the best thing about it?
Redhead girl: The weather, the last couple of days
Blonde girl: Yeah, it’s been hotter than it is back home
Redhead girl: It’s been really nice, yeah.
Luke: So it’s better here than it is in Hull, is it?
Redhead girl: It is
Blonde girl: Yeah, but we couldn’t live here all the time
Redhead girl: The worst thing about it is the tube, the underground
Luke: Why? What’s wrong with the tube?
Redhead girl: It’s too stressful
Brunette girl: It’s too hot and busy
Redhead girl: and grimy
Luke: Busy, grimy, stressful… ok. Anything else to say to the people of the world?
Blonde girl: Come to London!
Redhead girl: Hiiii! Come to Hull to go out with us
Blonde girl: Come to Hull
Redhead girl: We’ll have lots of fun
Luke: Great, thank you very much

This couple are from New York City in USA. They have New York accents.
Luke: Hello. So, where are you from?
American man: We’re from the good old USA, the biggest city in the world, New York…
Luke: Oh, amazing
American man: …which cannot compare to London.
Luke: Really?
USA man: I wanna just express our love for England, the people, and especially the British Airway[s] that brought us here. They were so polite and extended themselves to the best airline that I travelled [on] all over the world.
Luke: Great
USA Man: Now coming to England, we stayed at the Holiday Inn, and the people and the experience at the Holiday Inn was super.
Luke: Excellent
USA Man: We just came from the Holiday Inn to see the Buckingham Palace and now we’re going to from here to Picadilly Square [Circus]. Yeah, great.
Luke: Great!
USA man: Thank you
USA woman: A wonderful experience
USA man: A wonderful experience
Luke: I’m very glad, that’s great.
USA man: And where is this going?
Luke: This is going on a website for people who are learning English as a foreign language, so it’s just going to be on, err… I work for this school, The London School of English and also I’m going to put it on a kind of podcast website for people all over the world, so, that’s great.
USA man: Now, what is that over there? (pointing at the Queen Victoria Memorial)
Luke: That? Err, I’m not sure to be honest. Err, it’s…
USA woman: It’s a nice statue.
Luke: It’s a lovely statue, covered in gold.
USA man: Uh huh, okay
Luke: Err, it… I don’t really know who all these people are, to be honest with you.
USA man: Well, I’m gonna take a picture
Luke: Exactly. It’s big and it’s shiny, so just take a picture of it.

St. James’s Park:

The man is from Middlesex, which is to the west of London. He has quite a posh accent. The woman is from the German/Danish border and has a German sounding accent.
Luke: So, where are you from? First of all.
Man: Well, I’m from Pinner, in Middlesex, which is near enough London, and we just come up once a week. It’s a long time ago now, I’m talking about before the war, and during the war, yes. A long time. And madam…
Woman: I’m from Schleswig Holstein [on the German/Danish border] but I love London. Love it. My son lives here and I need to go from time to time, because… it’s such a life city isn’t it?
Luke: it is
Man: Recharge your batteries
Woman: Yes, yes. And, so green too! All these lovely parks, you know? And I think it’s the most beautiful city in the world.
Man: Sounds as though she’s selling it
Luke: Is she… it does! Yes. What do you think, I mean, we, err, you think it’s the most beautiful city in the world, but, is there a, what about bad things? What’s the worst thing about London?
Man: Well, I used to work just down there in Victoria… Victoria Station House. Erm, no, I… it tends to be a little dirty, a lot of rubbish around. I have the impression that’s got a bit better lately. I don’t know whether that’s true.
Luke: Right.
Woman: I was in Rome, and I told them all that London was much more beautiful and they all shouted me down, so…
Luke: Oh really…
Woman: But when the sun shines, you know… and all these green places, and nothing drives me mad because you expect a bit of dirt and… don’t you?
Luke: Yes, in the city
Woman: Yes, yes. And it has good communication, I mean you can go everywhere, and I love it
Man: You’ll never stop her, but I must
Woman: So, shall we go now?
Luke: Great, thank you very much
Man: Not at all
Luke: Have a lovely day
Woman: You have a lovely day
Luke: Thank you
Man: Don’t you sell that
Luke: I’m not selling it, don’t worry. Alright, cheers.

The Mall:

Girl 1 is from Blackpool, which is in Lancashire in the North West of England. She has a Lancashire accent. Girl 2 is from Reading which is about 30 mins or 1 hour west of London. She has a fairly typical southern English accent.
Girl 1: Hello
Luke: Where are you from?
Girl 1: I’m from Blackpool, which is up north
Girl 2: I’m from just near Reading, just near London
Luke: Ok. So, how long have you been here?
Girl 1: I’ve lived in London for about 2 weeks so far
Girl 2: And I’ve lived in London for probably the last 4 years
Luke: OK, right so what’s London like then?
Girl 1: So far London’s quite exciting. I’ve been surprised by how many things are going on all the time, sort of, day and night. There’s always something to do, always something free to do, and so far it’s not rained!
Luke: Eyy! Great. Err, yourself?
Girl 2: Err, yeah the same, like, it’s been a good place to live. I don’t know, because I’ve been here for so long, I probably don’t really take as much advantage of it as I should do.
Luke: Yep, what’s the worst thing about London?
Girl 2: Erm… Traffic, commuting, going around, I think… Price.
Luke: Yeah, it’s very expensive. Have you discovered a worst thing yet?
Girl 1: Erm, honestly, the worst thing is it’s quite difficult to meet people, and because a lot of people live so far away, it’s quite difficult to get to them, it’s quite hard to see your friends, so it can sometimes be quite lonely.
Luke: Ok, thank you very much. Cheers.

Definitions of some vocabulary and expressions:

What’s London really like?
This question: “What is it like?” means “tell me about it” or “how is it?”. It does not mean: “What do you like about London?”
e.g. What is London like? – it’s busy
What do you like about it? – I like the theatres

It’s gone to the dogs = everything is much worse now than it was before

grimy = dirty

recharge your batteries = to give yourself some energy, by doing something pleasant and stimulating

to shout someone down = to disagree with someone loudly in order to stop them talking

to take advantage of something = to use something good which is available to you

commuting = travelling from home to work every day.

Education: Jack C. Richards Video Casts

Cambridge University Press ELT

Music: Liz Rodrigues - Why Did You Leave Me Now

Lyrics

Where did the time go
When we were young?
Laughing dancing, soaking up the sun
Never thinking what was to come
It never crossed our minds.
Oh, we were so much in love
We never thought of things to come.

Chorus:
Why did you leave me now?
Just when when they said you’re fine
Why did you leave me now,
Why did you die?

I’ll never have another chance,
To see you again.
To hold you, squeeze you, touch your hand,
It seems so unfair,
But life’s that way,
God took you away
Oh, we were so much in love,
We never thought of things to come.

Why did you leave me now?
Just when when they said you’re fine
Why did you leave me now,
Why did you die?

To all you people in the world,
Listen to my song
Life is short, enjoy the ride,
Because you’ll never know
When it will stop,
It doesn’t cross your mind,
If you ever fall in love,
You better think of things to come

Why did you leave me now?
Just when when they said you’re fine
Why did you leave me now,
Why did you die.
Why did you leave me now?
Just when when they said you’re fine
Why did you leave me now,
Why did you die?