Here’s my list of some of the sites offering mostly free or low-cost resources for improving your English listening skills. They include some excellent audio and video resources that will help you understand spoken English better. It’s a public list so if you have a favourite site that’s not yet included, please add it 🙂 […]
Learning English with stories
September 11, 2014 by 2 Comments
Do you like reading short stories? I do. And I also like using them as a resource for teaching English. I find it’s a good way to add something a little bit different to our lessons, as well as a good way to use culturally relevant resources by selecting stories or fairy stories according […]
Infographic: How to learn English
April 9, 2014 by 1 Comment
This interesting infographic from Kaplan shows some of the different ways people learn English. You can see that many of the people who took part in this survey say that TV programmes, films, and music help them learn. What do you think is the best way to learn English? How to learn English via Kaplan […]
Pronunciation resources for learning English
April 8, 2014 by Leave a Comment
English is spoken in more than 60 countries and it’s estimated that it’s used by more than 1 billion people. There are many varieties, accents and dialects of English, and learners generally learn to speak it in the accent in which they’re taught, or in the particular accent they prefer. I asked readers on another […]
3 tips for staying motivated when learning English
April 7, 2014 by Leave a Comment
In many ways it’s easier to stay motivated when you’re an independent English learner because you are in charge of your learning, and you are deciding what you’re going to learn, and when, and how. But even when we love doing something our levels of motivation naturally go up and down. Some days, nothing can […]
Twitter hashtags for English language learners
April 5, 2014 by Leave a Comment
A hashtag is # added to a word, with no spaces. For example: #grammar People use hashtags in their Twitter messages (tweets) to mark keywords or topics and help them show up more easily in Twitter search. Hashtags are an excellent way to discover opportunities to join conversations with other people learning English and with […]
7 ways to make time for learning English
April 2, 2014 by 4 Comments
Do you find it difficult to find the time for learning English? With a job, family, hobbies, and social life it’s very easy to feel we just don’t have any spare time for anything else. I know I feel like this sometimes. And I’m not going to pretend that I always use my […]
Improve your English: the possessive apostrophe
April 1, 2014 by 5 Comments
What is the possessive apostrophe? The possessive apostrophe is a punctuation mark (‘) used to show possession: to show that something belongs to someone or something. Apostrophes were first used to mark possession in the late 16th century, but without clear guidelines they were used inconsistently for centuries. We have clear rules for […]
List of useful language exchange websites
January 3, 2014 by
Many learners of English find it difficult to practise and improve their spoken English. Fortunately there are many free language exchange websites where you can find language partners – people who want to learn your language, and who are native or fluent English speakers. Find someone who you are comfortable with and you enjoy talking […]
What is independent language learning?
December 16, 2013 by Leave a Comment
Independent language learning I love teaching English. Except for one big problem that affects many English teachers and learners… the price of good-quality English lessons. I want to help as many people as I can to learn English, and at the same time support my family and pay my bills. But many of […]
