Alex
What's the best way to improve my listening skills in english?
Aug 28, 2015 3:31 PM
Answers · 3
Here's a path you can take, which might improve your listening in about a year. 1) Find a book, a good teacher, or a website that explains English phonetics very well. Learn the nuts and bolts of English's sounds thoroughly. For example, do it until you can hear and pronounce "word" vs "world", "bit" vs "beat", and all such tricky sounds distinctly and comfortably. 2) Find sources of good text and audio material. Read, read, read, and read, And mix in some listening on the side, especially news casts. You do it until you can read Economist, Time, and other magazines and literary books comfortably. Once you can do this, your listening and speaking will have improved remarkably. The rational is simple. There is no way you can readily understand something you've never seen before. The only way to listen and speak is for you to have already accumulated those vocabulary beforehand. And reading is the fastest way to absorb such a large set of vocabulary.
August 29, 2015
I haven't used it for long enough to say whether it's helpful, but my Spanish teacher suggested a website called lyricstraining.com . They show you a music video, and they show you the text of the lyrics with gaps, and you have to fill in the gaps quickly from listening and context. They offer several languages, including English. It doesn't cost anything. It's something different, and it has something to do with building listening skills.
August 28, 2015
There are plenty of course books with audio CDs. You can take a free level test online, buy a suitable course book and CD, and follow the book. You could also find short video clips on YouTube etc which you understand 60% of, the first time you listen. Listen several times and write down what you hear. If possible, then obtain an accurate transcript and study it. Then listen and read at the same time. Focus on the same material for several hours until you know it really well.
August 28, 2015
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