Tag: Listening

Easy Ways To Build Your Word Power Without Investing Extra Time Every Day

Boosting your vocabulary and improving your communication skills does not have to cost extra time or money.

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The best way to build your vocabulary and improve your ability to use the new words you learn is through reading. Books are magic in many ways, including their ability to expand the mind and the vocabulary simultaneously. 

Some people find that challenging for a variety of reasons: they may have limited free time due to parenting, caring or work demands, or they may have low literacy levels to start with. They might not be native English speakers, and find a whole book way too daunting. They may have limited or decreased eyesight for any number of reasons. 

The first piece of good news is that there are ways to develop and improve one’s vocabulary without having to pick up a book. The second is that these are things a person can fit into a day without requiring much extra time at all. 

Learning through listening is a valuable and highly beneficial skill that is greatly under-utilised these days. 

There are podcasts relating to just about every field of employment, hobby or pursuit, or field of interest that will boost a person’s vocabulary both in general ways and by using language specific to that area. This can be invaluable for achieving higher professional standards and keeping on top of key terms used in a particular field or occupation. There is no doubt that actually knowing what you and others are talking about is far better than appearing as though you do. 

Audiobooks and podcasts are both brilliant ways of enriching the time already spent commuting, at the gym, cooking, or cleaning the house. One can escape into fictional worlds or choose content that enhances your knowledge and understanding of the world around them. They can delve into the past or ponder the future. 

There are podcasts of book readings and dramatisations. There are podcasts of everything from stand up comedy to beauty tips. And the beauty of podcasts is that they are usually absolutely free, although some do offer premium content to particularly avid listeners who are willing to pay for extra listening material.

Podcasts are easily searched using key words in any podcast app, most of which are also free, Personally, I love both Downcast and Podbean because they are easy to use and offer an enormous range of podcasts. 

Audiobooks don’t have to be fiction, either. There are probably bazillions of non-fiction books available on audio format. If cost is an issue, local libraries often have an audiobook lending service that removes that barrier. 

Radio — particularly the public talk-back variety — can be another great source of interesting listening material. Although it’s generally not limited to specific areas of interest, radio presenters often use highly varied and interesting language to keep their shows engaging and fresh. In Australia, the ABC has interesting conversations on all sorts of topics happening all the time. There are some stations dedicated to sport or news and current affairs, and others that offer diverse topics of intelligent conversation with both expert guests and listeners calling in to contribute. There’s a brilliant quiz called The Challenge just after midnight Sydney/Melbourne time every night, which is very entertaining and quite enriching for the vocabulary, too. And now that we live in the age of the Internet, that content is all freely available world-wide using the ABC Listen app on any device. I know from personal experience that there are similar stations and programs in Canada and The USA, too. 

Although a little more time-consuming than adding listening material to a regular routine,  one can also boost their vocabulary by watching or listening to documentaries. Free-to-air TV may not present as many documentaries as it used to, but for anyone subscribed to Netflix, Foxtel or any of the thousands of other streaming services, there are plenty available there, too. These can be great for developing both vocabulary and general knowledge at the same time. 

“Word of the Day” features are offered by many online dictionary websites and apps. Each day, they will select a random word and send a notification, message or email including the word and its meaning and usage. 

Whichever choices of source or content or style one makes, it is important to go beyond just hearing new words being spoken in order to incorporate them into regular vocabulary. Thankfully, this doesn’t have to be time-consuming either. 

The first step is to find out what the word means. While you are listening, it takes just a few seconds to look up an unfamiliar word on Google or an online dictionary, and by doing so, turn it into a word you understand are able to use. You can even ask Siri or Alexa to look it up for you if you’re really pushed for time. 

Repetition equals reinforcement. Using a new word several times a day in regular conversation or even by making up different sentences or silly rhymes in your head for a few days will consolidate your learning and understanding of the word so that in a week, you’ve got it for keeps. 

Making use of a new word doesn’t mean trying to inject it into conversation and potentially getting it wrong, or sounding like you are showing off. That kind of artifice isn’t helpful to anyone. Instead, you can create genuine conversations by sharing your new word with family over dinner, or turn it into a game in which the closest guess among family members is treated as winning, or ask your friends if they know the word. It could make an engaging social media post that could created and shared in less than a minute. 

Jotting down a new word and its meaning into a notebook takes less than a minute, and provides quick and powerful reinforcement of the learning. When you write down something you have heard or read, your brain processes that information in multiple ways, making your learning more complex and more likely to be retained. That notebook also then becomes a great personal reference tool for looking up words on future occasions, too! Any regular notebook would do the trick, or one of those alphabetised address books could be handy for this purpose, too. After all, there’s no rule that says they can only be used for phone numbers! 

The alternative term for vocabulary is ‘word power’ for very good reason. Why not take one of more these opportunities to improve yours? 

Easy Ways To Build Your Word Power Without Investing Extra Time Every Day #vocabulary #languagelearning #LearningNeverStops #learning #selfimprovement

The Value of Listening.

In this highly screen-oriented world, are we losing the skill of listening?

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There are four main sets of skills that English teachers work to develop in their students: reading, writing, speaking and listening. 

Over the past few years of my teaching career, I have observed that my students find listening much more difficult than the others. 

I’m not talking about them showing respect or being quiet when I’m talking – most of them are pretty good at that, thankfully. 

It’s the art of deliberate, intentional listening, focusing on what is heard and processing that kind of information, that people seem to struggle with. 

I have offered my students audiobooks to help them with reading their set texts. Most of them aren’t interested in that— not even the struggling readers, who would really benefit from that kind of assistance in getting through a book. I have also offered them podcast episodes related to the books they are studying, and I don’t recall anyone taking up the offer. 

Give them a YouTube clip, though, and they’re on it like flies at a barbecue. 

Don’t get me wrong – those YouTube clips and TED Talks can be super helpful. My issue is that people – and it’s not just kids, I’m sure – are so oriented to screens and visuals and  hooked on sensory overload that they’re losing the art of listening. 

People these days frequently have music playing while they do other things – work, run, work out, eat, walk, shop, drive, clean the house, you name it. There’s absolutely nothing wrong with that. But do they ever really just stop everything else and just listen to something? 

It is really healthy to turn off the “noise” of the world and the demands of a busy life and close your eyes to focus on what you can hear. You don’t even have to listen to anything in particular – it can be fascinating to see what you can hear when devices, TVs, and appliances are turned off and things are quiet, especially if you go outside.  

In terms of listening material, there is so much available that is good to listen to beyond music or commercial radio. Audiobooks are fantastic, as I’ve observed in a previous post. There are podcasts on every imaginable subject, free of charge, just begging to be listened to. Listening to talkback radio is both informative and entertaining, if you can find a station or a show you really like. 

Listening is such a valuable skill. It enriches life in so many ways. It builds relationships, enhances learning, develops understanding of the world and the different people in it, provides entertainment, aids relaxation and soothes the soul. 

If we would all just turn off the screens, close our eyes, and open our ears more, we’d be a lot better off. 

Why I Love Audiobooks

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I am a relatively recent convert to the audiobook experience. 

Before October last year, I had really only used audiobooks when teaching Shakespeare texts in high school, as it took the stress out of the actual reading for kids who weren’t sure how to approach or pronounce the parts of the language that were unfamiliar to them.  Beyond that, i had suggested them for people, especially kids, who weren’t keen on actually reading, or people who were sight impaired, or… you get my drift. They were always a good idea for someone else.

Of course, thinking of them in that way meant that I never really tried them out for myself. 

It was only when my own circumstances changed that I learned my lesson. Quite unexpectedly, I found myself recovering from emergency spinal surgery, spending a lot of time lying down, and unable to work for an expended period. I was in pain, forced to rest, and couldn’t really focus my eyes too well for some time.

On an impulse, I purchased an audiobook and found myself completely engrossed in the story. When it finished, I bought another. And another. I was hooked. 

The audiobooks I listened to during my recovery kept me company when I couldn’t sleep, and gave me something to think about other than the pain. They took me out of my hospital bed and carried me to different places. They gave my mind something to do when my body couldn’t do much at all. They were great for my mental health. And I really enjoyed them. 

Now, I listen to audiobooks on my commute to work each day, instead of getting steamed up over news and current affairs on the radio. I listen when I am resting, which I still need to do as my back is still healing. I often listen during my lunch break at work, which is actually much healthier than working straight through it as I have tended to do for most of my career. I listen while doing the dishes. 

Audiobooks have not replaced my reading time. I love reading books, and treasure the time I get to spend in them. That will never change. I’m a book nerd, through and through. Even a cursory glance at my Goodreads profile, Twitter feed or Book Squirrel blog will testify to that. 

Listening to audiobooks has also enabled me to add another dimension to my book blog, with audiobook reviews being added to the repertoire, along with Indie book reviews, author spotlights and interviews, and other bookish goodness. As I like to deliver varied and interesting content, that has been a bonus. 

Audiobooks have enhanced different times in my day when I can’t read, and made them more interesting and stimulating. They may not be for everyone, but adding some great listening time to my routine has been a positive and enjoyable development for me.