Learn English with Amy #englishwithamy

English with Amy

The podcast that helps you listen and learn more. Learn English with Amy is a lighthearted -and occasionally silly- approach to speaking English seriously. Each episode features a conversation with a guest and a mini English lesson. Ideal for intermediate to advanced English speakers who want to improve their listening skills and their grammar – especially for use in business and academia. Topics are inspired by my guests and by my students here in Brasília, the capital of Brazil! Vamos lá! For more tips, follow me and #englishwithamy on Instagram.

Episódios

  1. Ep. 5 Memory Keepers and Your Photo Legacy⁣

    10/10/2020

    Ep. 5 Memory Keepers and Your Photo Legacy⁣

    Welcome to Episode 5 of Learn English with Amy, the podcast for intermediate & advanced English learners that helps you listen and learn more.⁣⁣ Full transcript available on Otter:  https://otter.ai/s/f-Hjo-GTQv-LHzS39rxjuw Available on YouTube with subtitles: https://youtu.be/ssSjD8vxekE My guest this episode is Patricia Pulido (@patriciapulidophoto), a professional photographer and entrepreneur currently living in Mexico City.⁣ Patricia specializes in documentary-style family photography and, being tri-lingual (!) and very international, works with clients around the globe. ⁣  In the first part of our conversation, Patricia will talk about her life, her work, and her latest project. She's just launched a brand-new online photo organizing course, YOUR FAMILY STORIES, YOUR PHOTO LEGACY. It's a step-by-step guide for organizing your family photos and videos in a way that is both practical and meaningful. ⁣And in the second part of our chat, Patricia talks about what she still finds confusing or difficult about English. She also gives listeners her *TOP TIP* for learning a new language!  ⁣This conversation features two related ideas. The first is “MEMORY KEEPING” – that is, the act of preserving or keeping memories. The people who take on this work for their family being what Patricia calls the MEMORY KEEPERS. The second is the idea of “LEAVING A LEGACY”. In simple terms, a legacy is a gift passed from one generation to the next.  For more info about Patricia’s new online course, visit her website:⁣ www.patriciapulidophoto.com⁣  Be sure to subscribe to this podcast you can listen to the next episode as soon as it's released!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣And for *almost*-daily English tips, follow me (@englishwithamy_) and #englishwithamy on Instagram.⁣

    19min
  2. Ep. 4 Cracking the Code: The Science of Reading

    03/10/2020

    Ep. 4 Cracking the Code: The Science of Reading

    Welcome to Episode 4 of Learn English with Amy, the podcast that helps you listen and learn more.⁣⁣ This episode is ideal for *advanced* English learners, especially those of you who are preparing for postgraduate studies. And those of you with school-aged children.⁣ *Also available on YouTube with subtitles (first 10 min only)*:  https://youtu.be/XgxYoPi1nvI *For the full transcript, visit Otter* : https://otter.ai/s/VivxsuvKTzC5Z2ZdvnckCA The theme of this episode is “cracking the code”, an idiom meaning: ‘To figure out how to do something – often something very difficult. To solve a difficult problem or mystery.’ The formal term for “cracking the code” is: decoding. Decoding is also a term used by reading specialists, like my guest, Lynn Carpenter. ⁣  Lynn is head of instructional support at The Churchill School & Center, a school in New York City for children with language-based learning disabilities, and director of the school’s Center for Professional Development and Parent Engagement. ⁣ I provide background on the something called the ‘Science of Reading’. The main components of which phonics and decoding. Phonics is the ability to identify that there is a relationship between the individual sounds (phonemes) of the spoken language and the letters (graphemes) of the written language. Decoding is being able to use visual, syntactic, or semantic cues to make meaning from words and sentences. This information is informed by the excellent work of the journalist Emily Hanford, of APM Reports. See below for links to the three reports I reference. How are phonics and decoding taught? How should they be taught? And also: How is it that even privately-educated kids can get all the way to university and still not be proficient readers? Why haven’t they been able to crack the code of reading?⁣ Lynn addresses all these points in our conversation.⁣ Be sure to subscribe to this podcast you can listen to the next episode as soon as it's released!⁣⁣ ⁣⁣⁣And for *almost*-daily English tips, follow me (@englishwithamy_) and #englishwithamy on Instagram. ⁣⁣⁣⁣ VOCABULARY⁣⁣⁣⁣⁣ phonics⁣ decoding⁣ dyslexia⁣ tutoring⁣ word attack⁣ professional development⁣ certification⁣ body of knowledge⁣ ⁣debunk ⁣ The Matthew Effect ⁣ ⁣ ⁣ADDITIONAL READING & SOURCE OF BACKGROUND INFORMATION IN THIS EPISODE All works by EMILY HANFORD: Hard Words: Why aren't kids being taught to read? (2018)⁣ https://www.apmreports.org/episode/2018/09/10/hard-words-why-american-kids-arent-being-taught-to-read⁣ ⁣At a Loss for Words: How a flawed idea is teaching millions of kids to be poor readers (2019)⁣ https://www.apmreports.org/episode/2019/08/22/whats-wrong-how-schools-teach-reading ⁣ ⁣What the Words Say: Many kids struggle with reading – and children of color are far less likely to get the help they need (2020)⁣ https://www.apmreports.org/episode/2020/08/06/what-the-words-say

    15min
  3. 08/09/2020

    Ep. 1 Learning the Ropes

    Hi and welcome to the first episode of Learn English with Amy, featuring a mini English lesson and a brief interview with my inaugural guest, who initially claims to be called "Jeff"!  :) This episode is also available on YouTube with subtitles: https://youtu.be/wOyAMlG7KOg When we say we're LEARNING THE ROPES, it means we're learning how to do a job or activity. For example, I'm learning how to record and edit this podcast, and you'll even hear me testing the sound towards the start of the episode. So where does this expression come from? Well, as with most idioms, it's true origin cannot be confirmed. However, it's very likely that it has a nautical origin -- and refers to sailors and sailing. As the website knowyourphrase.com explains:  "When it comes to wind-powered ships, ropes (or lines), are important for navigating them through...the ocean. Many of these lines are attached to the sails of the ship and are used to control the shape of the sail. This, in turn, impacts how the vessel [or ship] moves around the water."  So ropes are an essential part of a ship, and sailors must learn how to use them, move them and tie them into various knots. When someone teaches you how to do a job or activity, they are SHOWING YOU THE ROPES. As for learning how to record a podcast, fortunately there are many people on YouTube who can help SHOW ME THE ROPES. When you have successfully learned how to do a job or activity, you can say that you KNOW THE ROPES. ...With time and lots of podcasting practice, I'm sure I, too,  will be able to say that I *KNOW* THE ROPES. Follow/subscribe to Learn English with Amy to listen and learn more, and follow me on Instagram for *almost*-daily English tips!  @englishwithamy_   /   #englishwithamy  Link to full transcript: https://otter.ai/s/2hLjZ9h8TSi4UlUxwIBKgg

    6min

Sobre

The podcast that helps you listen and learn more. Learn English with Amy is a lighthearted -and occasionally silly- approach to speaking English seriously. Each episode features a conversation with a guest and a mini English lesson. Ideal for intermediate to advanced English speakers who want to improve their listening skills and their grammar – especially for use in business and academia. Topics are inspired by my guests and by my students here in Brasília, the capital of Brazil! Vamos lá! For more tips, follow me and #englishwithamy on Instagram.