A typical Chinese new year tradition is to give the best wishes to others. In China, we call it "拜年". Come and learn how to say it with 唐帅! 


胡言乱语 Hoo's Talk

新年吉祥话greetings in Chinese new year

In this episode we talk about one of my favorite language study methods for improving speaking ability and listening comprehension. 



You can read the transcript here: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1233_neteiMB3XE4NNvYG9-da2ADzSmtK/view?usp=sharing

My teacher profile on iTalki: www.italki.com/teacher/2889545

My Twitter Profile: https://twitter.com/TEA_Time_Tayvin

T.E.A. Time with Tayvin Bayless 

Episode 4: The Shadowing Technique

WAITER: Hello, I’ll be your waiter today. Can I start you off with
something to drink?
RALPH: Yes. I’ll have iced tea, please.
ANNA: And I’ll have lemonade.
WAITER: OK. Are you ready to order, or do you need a few minutes?
RALPH: I think we’re ready. I’ll have the tomato soup to start, and the
roast beef with mashed potatoes and peas.
WAITER: How do you want the beef — rare, medium, or well done?
RALPH: Well done, please.
ANNA: And I’ll just have the fish, with potatoes and a salad.


LANGUAGE NOTES
• Can I start you off with something to drink? Notice how the question starts with 
“Can.” Since this is a yes/no question, the intonation rises at the end.
• And I’ll have lemonade. Notice how Anna stresses “I’ll” and “lemonade” to 
emphasize her choice.
• Are you ready to order, or do you need a few minutes? The word “or” signals 
a choice here. Notice the rising intonation on order, and the falling intonation on 
minutes (the first choice is “Are you ready to order?” and the second choice is “Do 
you need a few minutes?”).
• I’ll have the tomato soup to start, and the roast beef with mashed potatoes and
peas. Notice that “tomato soup,” “roast beef,” “mashed potatoes” and “peas” are 
stressed because the food order is the important information here. Notice also that 
“tomato soup,” “roast beef” and “mashed potatoes” are compound words. The stress 
falls on the second word in each phrase.
• Well done, please. Notice that the subject and verb are omitted in the response; only 
the necessary information is given.
• I’ll just have the fish. Anna says “just” here to mean that she does not want a starter.

English Conversation practice (30-day challenge)

Day 10: 

Tre ragazze si presentano al signor Cristi, dichiarando di essere la figlia che non vede da vent'anni. Il signor Cristi chiede allora aiuto all'ispettore Malvisi che escogita un metodo per riuscire a scoprire la vera Agata Cristi, vale a dire la figlia del signor Cristi e per farlo ricorrerà all'aiuto di Agatha Christie, la grande scrittrice inglese.  

Se io fossi Sherlock Holmes

Chi è Agata Cristi?

This podcast is about the misconceptions that many English learners may have about the present continuous tense. Many think that it's only used for actions occurring in the moment but there's more to it than that. 

Nit-Picky English with Nika 

The Present Continuous Tense: It's more complex than it seems.

好聽的中文故事 | 好听的中文故事✨ 

明明通過賣檸檬汁掙了多少錢呢？一起來聽聽看！
明明通过卖柠檬汁挣了多少钱呢？一起来听听看！


好听的中文故事 | 好聽的中文故事 | Great Chinese Stories

檸檬汁和小鳥 | 柠檬汁和小鸟🐦

Whether you're going on vacation, a business trip or to see friends or family for the weekend there is one thing you can't avoid — packing. And many of us pack too much, which might mean heavy bags, paying extra for flights and lots of unpacking.

So, here are a few ideas for how to pack light.

Make a list
This might be the most important thing. Think about what you really need to take — and if you're flying, how much luggage you're allowed.

Make a list, then see if you can make it shorter, and shorter. This should also make packing quicker, as long as you stick to your list!

Pack small
Do this by rolling up clothes, or you can buy compression bags that squash things into a smaller space inside your luggage. Packing cubes can also help — they're little bags you can use to organize your suitcase.

Forget the "just in case" things
Unless you're going to a place that doesn't have any shops, you don't need to take too much "just in case" stuff. If you find you need something extra, you might even get a good deal in a local market.

Be ready to do some washing
Okay, so this isn't the most exciting idea, but it could save you space. Most hotels offer laundry services or you could even wash your clothes by hand in the bathroom sink if you run out of things to wear!

Wear what you can
If you have big walking boots, wear them on the journey, along with any big jackets that will only waste space in your bag. And don't forget that you'll have to repack everything before returning home!

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

Lighten Your Load: How to Pack Light for Travel

Aprende a hablar de diferentes tipos de espectáculos! Vocabulario y expresiones prácticas y explicaciones claras para el estudiante de español.



Super Basic Spanish

Learn Spanish: Televisión, Cine, Teatro, y Música (TV, Movies, Theatre, and Music)

El español, como todos los idiomas tiene un montón de palabras, y cada vez aparecen nuevas para describir diferentes cosas y adaptarse a los nuevos tiempos. Muchas veces estas palabras no son las palabras típicas, o convencionales que aprendes en los libros de texto, pero son muy usadas en el día a día por los nativos. En este episodio te hablo de algunas palabras coloquiales en español que no encuentras en los libros de texto, y que además de ser muy usadas son bastante graciosas.

Después de escuchar el episodio dime:

-¿Conocías estas palabras?

-¿Cuál de las palabras te ha parecido más graciosa?
