NOVEMBER COMPETITION!
We all know how difficult it can be to stay motivated when learning languages, so this month, English In A Teacup is holding a little competition for its listeners. The winners of the competition will get a personal shout out on the podcast and will also get to decide the next topic for Season 2 of my podcast coming out in December. 
To join, send me a message on italki and I will send you the form to fill in. 
In this week's episode of English In A Teacup, we will be continuing with the topic of inversions as well as learning how to write letters.  For students preparing for advanced-level exams (CAE, CPE, IELTS, etc.), it is important to know about inversion and how to use it in the writing sections. To help us with the subject is our fine English lady, Miss Finesstocrat, who will be writing her own letter to a travel agency to complain about her holiday from hell. How did she get on? Let’s put the kettle on and find out!

ENGLISH IN A TEACUP

EP7: MAKING A COMPLAINT (B2-C2)

How long does it take to master English? 🕒 Discover the real timeline to achieve fluency in English!
In this podcast, I’ll break down the key factors that determine your speed in mastering English, such as:
Daily practice: 📝 How much time you need to invest.
Immersion strategies: 🌍 How living in an English-speaking environment impacts your learning.
Learning methods: 📚 What techniques speed up or slow down your progress.
Whether you're a beginner or advanced learner, this podcast provides expert tips to help you stay motivated, set realistic goals, and fast-track your English fluency. 🚀

❗Listen now to find out:
✔ How long it takes to become fluent in English. ⏳
✔ The best practices to improve your English faster. 💡
✔ Proven strategies to accelerate your path to mastering English. 🏆

#LearnEnglish #FluentEnglish

English with Hamed

How long does it REALLY take to master English?

it's all Greek to me!

Verb to go 

全家福

今年，我们拍了一张全家福。我们一家人，爷爷、奶奶、爸爸、妈妈、哥哥、姐姐、弟弟和妹妹都在照片里。还有我们的两个孩子，一个儿子，一个女儿。猫和狗也在照片里。

照片中，爷爷和奶奶坐在椅子上，爸爸和妈妈站在他们的后面。哥哥和弟弟站在左边，姐姐和妹妹站在右边。拍照的时候，大家都很开心。

坐          zuò              Sit
椅子      yǐ zi              Chair
站         zhàn             Stand
后面     hòu miàn    Behind
左边     zuǒ bian      Left side
右边     yòu bian      Right side
开心     kāi xīn          Happy

1.今年，他们拍了一张什么照片？
a) 风景照
b) 全家福
c) 朋友合影
d) 个人照
2.照片里有几个人？
a) 6个人
b) 8个人
c) 10个人
d) 12个人
3.照片里坐在椅子上的人是谁？
a) 爸爸和妈妈
b) 哥哥和姐姐
c) 爷爷和奶奶
d) 弟弟和妹妹
4.照片中，站在爷爷奶奶后面的是谁？
a) 哥哥和弟弟
b) 爸爸和妈妈
c) 姐姐和妹妹
d) 儿子和女儿

开口说汉语    "Chinese Chit-Chat"

全家福 Family portrait

오늘은 한국 회사에서 정말 자주 쓰이는 표현, ‘확인 부탁드립니다’에 대해 배워볼게요.

‘확인하다’는 무언가를 다시 살펴보고, 문제가 없는지 또는 필요한 내용이 빠지지 않았는지를 점검하는 것을 말해요. 영어로는 check 또는 confirm이라는 뜻이죠.

그리고 여기서 ‘부탁드립니다’는 영어로 말하면 ‘please’와 같은 표현이에요.
공손하게 무언가를 요청할 때 쓰는 말이죠. 그래서 ‘확인 부탁드립니다’는 결국
→ “Please check” 또는 “Kindly confirm”이라는 뜻이 되는 거예요.

예를 들어, 어떤 파일을 이메일로 보낸 뒤에는 이렇게 말할 수 있어요.
👉 “첨부한 문서 확인 부탁드립니다.”
이 문장은 “이거 잘 받으셨는지, 내용에 이상은 없는지 한번 봐주세요”라는 의미를 담고 있어요.
상대방에게 부담을 주지 않으면서 자연스럽게 확인을 요청할 수 있는 표현입니다.

💎BUSINESS KOREAN💎

2_확인 부탁드립니다

Между человеком и его домашним питомцем есть особая связь. Как иначе объяснить то, что владельцы четвероногих друзей чувствуют себя менее одинокими, легче справляются со стрессом и реже болеют? Так или иначе влияние тех, кого мы приручили, ощутимое — как на психическое, так и на физическое здоровье. 
Одно только поглаживание питомца снижает уровень гормона стресса — кортизола и, наоборот, повышает уровень окситоцина. Учёные установили, что одинокие люди, которые содержат дома собаку, меньше подвержены депрессии. А у детей, вопреки мифам, контакт с животным может снизить вероятность развития астмы или аллергии.
Пет-терапия с собаками, кошками, лошадьми, пернатыми и даже рептилиями положительно действует на людей с аутизмом, неврозами, зависимостями, депрессиями, посттравматическим стрессовым расстройством и даже шизофренией. Животные помогают стабилизировать эмоции: контакт с ними способен расслабить и успокоить, развить доверие к окружающим, улучшить навыки общения и саморегуляции.
Завести домашнее животное — смелый шаг, и не каждый к нему готов: из-за ненормированного рабочего графика, маленького размера жилой площади, бюджета или аллергии у родственников. Если вы уже завели четвероногого друга, то оставлять его на улице из-за возникающих проблем точно не стоит. 
Если к животным тянет, но на большую ответственность вы пока не готовы, общаться с ними можно и вне дома. Например, в приютах и с помощью сервисов выгула и передержки. Это поможет не только вам, но и животным: общение для них тоже важно. Например, щенкам социализация позволяет избежать агрессии в дальнейшей жизни. 
А есть ли у Вас домашние животные и как Вы относитесь к ним? 

(B1-C2) Podcasts - Daily Life (by M.Kuznetsova) 

Podcast 1 (B2-C1) Почему общение с животными пойдёт Вам на пользу? 

Now that banking is done more and more online, cash is disappearing. Not that I ever had much!
Also, an explanation of the difference between rob and steal.

The Social Evolutionary

What's the most MONEY you have ever had in your hand?

On January 1, music magazine Rolling Stone released its list of "The 200 Greatest Singers of All Time," including famous musicians such as Frank Sinatra, Freddie Mercury, and many more.

Rolling Stone first released a list of its "100 Greatest Singers of All Time" in 2008, and has added 100 more artists for 2023.

Aretha Franklin is again number one on the list, with Rolling Stone calling her singing "the most magnificent sound" to ever come out of America.

Next is Whitney Houston at number two, while soul singer Sam Cooke is number three. Jazz singer Billie Holiday is fourth, while pop star Mariah Carey is fifth.



However, some music fans are unhappy that their favorite artists are very low on the list, or aren't included at all.

For example, some Twitter users are angry that Michael Jackson is number 86, while Beyoncé is in the top 10.

Rolling Stone seemed to expect mixed reactions, writing that people should remember that this is the "Greatest Singers" list, not the "Greatest Voices" list.

The magazine said it was looking at things like originality, how many songs someone made and how much they changed music, not just how well they could sing.

Many Twitter users are also angry that Céline Dion was not included on the list — with more than one calling it "a crime against humanity."

The Canadian singer is one of the best-selling artists of all time, with many Grammy awards and even several Oscars for her songs from films, including Titanic and Beauty and the Beast.

Madonna and Justin Bieber are also not on the list, while Ariana Grande and Bob Dylan are.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Rolling Stone Names '200 Greatest Singers of All Time'

When the end of the working week arrives, it can be a little harder to keep going.

If you work from Monday to Friday, you might find yourself thinking about the weekend as your brain and body get ready to rest. You may feel that you're getting less work done.

You might even feel this way near the end of each work day.

And a study from the US has found that yes, it's true — we aren't as productive and we make more mistakes in the afternoons, especially on Fridays.

While most of us could probably have guessed that result, the researchers said most studies in the past have just asked workers about their feelings related to their productivity.

But this one actually used data based on computer use, including how fast people typed and the numbers of typos they made.

The researchers, from Texas A&M University, looked at the computer use of 789 employees working from the office of a big company in Texas.

They studied them for two years and looked at their computer use at different times of the day and week.

And they found that computer use "dropped significantly" on Fridays.

One of the researchers, Taehyun Roh, said: "Employees were less active in the afternoons, and made more typos in the afternoons — especially on Fridays."

The authors added that results like this should encourage bosses to think about flexible working arrangements or four-day working weeks to get the best from their employees.