Listening texts about the family
Level A1
نُصُوصُ اِسْتِمَاعٍ عَنِ الأُسْرَةِ

Listening for beginners

الأسرة -7- The family

Strop. Codswallop. Knackered. Just like the picture of a chair in the street above (no, we don’t get it either), we Brits do say some strange things sometimes – usually because they evolved from the many, many (many) vastly different regional dialects that exist across the UK (or the strange and very long history of the English language.) Unfortunately, that doesn’t help if you’re learning English in Britain and can’t understand half of what people are saying!

Engine English

6 British English phrases that make no sense

３月といえば、出会いと別れの季節です。
日本では４月に新年度が始まり、３月に終わるので、春は入学・入社祝いなどで贈り物をすることがよくあります。
今回は、アヤが中国人の生徒に聞いた贈り物のタブーについて話します。

March is the season of encounters and partings. 
In Japan, the new academic and fiscal year begins in April and ends in March, so we often give gifts in the spring to celebrate someone’s enrollment or joining the company. 
This time, Aya talks about the taboo of gifts that she heard from her student from China.

♤ キーワード
・年度（ねんど：academic and fiscal year）
・節目（ふしめ：milestone）
・弔う（とむらう：mourn）
・喪服（もふく：mourning dress）
・心機一転（しんきいってん： get a fresh start）

♧ 理解度チェッククイズ 
1. 中国でタブーとされている贈り物は？ 
2. それをプレゼントとしてあげるのは、どのくらい失礼？

♢ 前回のクイズの答え
1. フミが春を感じるのはいつ？
→ 札幌雪まつりが終わる頃
2. 日本の気候について、二人が子どものときと比べて変わったことは？
→ 四季がはっきり感じられなくなった

BGM special thanks：MusMus

アヤさんとフミさんの日本語雑談（Aya and Fumi’s Japanese Chit-Chat）

Episode 25：贈り物のタブー

You just got into bed after a long day, and you're exhausted. You plan to spend a few minutes on your phone — maybe scrolling Instagram or TikTok — and then sleep.

But when you try to sleep, it's not as easy as you thought it would be. You were so tired — what happened?

According to a new study, your phone may be the problem.

The study, done by researchers at New Zealand's University of Otago, involved 85 kids aged 11 to 14. They each spent a week wearing a body camera on their chest starting from three hours before they got into bed.

A second camera was also placed in their bedrooms to monitor their phone use once they were in bed. They also wore a device that tracked their sleep.

The researchers found that 99% of the participants used their phones in the two hours before bed. More than half used their phones while they were in bed, and about a third used their phones after trying to go to sleep.

The results showed that screen time in bed affected participants' sleep — it stopped them from going to sleep for about half an hour, and also reduced the amount of sleep they got.

The impact was larger when participants had a more interactive experience — such as playing a game — or if they used more than one screen. For every additional 10 minutes of this type of screen time, sleep time was reduced by the same amount.

Interestingly, phone use in the two hours before bed had little impact on sleep.

According to lead researcher Bradley Brosnan, the results suggest that, while current guidelines recommend no screen time in the hour or two before bed, keeping phones out of the bedroom might be enough for a better night's sleep.

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Keep Screens Out of Bed for Better Sleep

14_Selbstfahrende Autos

(A)  Ob es uns gefällt oder nicht: Selbstfahrende Autos werden kommen. Für die meisten Menschen ist es eine EIGENARTIGE Vorstellung, in so einem Auto zu sitzen. Man hat das Gefühl des Kontrollverlusts und das ist den wenigsten Leuten angenehm. Dabei sagt eine STUDIE, es könnten 90% der tödlichen Unfälle vermieden werden, wenn keine Menschen am Steuer säßen. 
(B)  Was aber soll man in einem computergesteuerten Auto tun? Nun ja, man könnte sich entspannen, man könnte in Ruhe lesen, man könnte PLAUDERN, man könnte sogar am Laptop arbeiten. Bei einem hohen Anteil von selbstfahrenden Autos wäre auch der Verkehr besser zu kontrollieren und damit würden die LEIDIGEN Staus der Vergangenheit angehören. 
(C)  „Ja, aber was ist, wenn die Technik ausfällt?“, fragen die Kritiker. Und immer wieder kommt die Frage mit dem Kindergarten-Ausflug und dem Spaziergang der Bewohner eines Seniorenheims: Gegen wen sollte sich ein selbstfahrendes Auto entscheiden, wenn eine Kollision unvermeidlich ist? Aber so weit sind wir noch lange nicht. Und man könnte alle Kritiker darauf hinweisen, dass Flugzeuge schon längst autonom fliegen.

LearnGermanToday

14_Selbstfahrende Autos

Why are we happy to sing in the shower and not in public?
Check out my teacher's profile for classes for singers, (song translation and pronunciation help).

The Social Evolutionary

Singing in the shower: why do we do it?

Join the adventure with Sam, as he tries something new.

I Love Stories!

Green Eggs and Ham

Are you a fan of spooky stories and unexplained phenomena? In this episode of The Real English Conversations Podcast on italki, Canadian italki English teachers Amy and Curtis share their own personal experiences with UFOs, ghosts, and haunted houses - all while improving your English listening skills! Whether you're a believer in the supernatural or simply enjoy a good scare, this episode is sure to entertain and intrigue you. 

And if you're looking to improve your English even further, book a lesson with Curtis on italki today! Follow this link to book your lesson now: https://www.italki.com/teacher/4672521/english

Real English Conversations Podcast

Spooky English Stories: UFOs, Ghosts, and Haunted Houses Real English Conversations Podcast On Italki

https://drive.google.com/file/d/16DR_AEw9kjAfWyse3gajtsu7fTcFqoTO/view?usp=drivesdk