Emma's ESL English
Episodes
Episode 151 Speaking With Gravitas: What Shared Talent Do these Two Great Speakers Have?
05 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're learning about the advantages of learning to confidently pause when you're speaking in public. It's not an easy skill to d...
Episode 150 A History Of American Independence Day And How It's Celebrated
04 Jul 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we'll find out who wrote the American Declaration of Independence that officially formed the country 'America' and split i...
Episode 148 LGBTQIA Influencers And TV Shows To Help You Improve Your English in Pride Month
27 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the podcast we are celebrating Pride. **Please note: if you are against anything to do with the LGBTQIA community or pride in general, t...
Episode 147 The Best English Summer Songs To Add To Your Playlist
21 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I'm going to introduce you to some quintessentially summery English songs. These will be well known to most native speakers and a...
Episode 146 English Words And Phrases To Keep You Cool This Summer
20 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are talking about words and phrases we can use to talk about hot weather. If you live somewhere hot or you're travelling with native spe...
Episode 145 How To Overcome Your Anxiety When Speaking English
14 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Sometimes, there's no getting around it, we have to say something under high-pressure conditions. In these situations our anxiety can really get t...
Episode 144 'What do you think?' 5 Tips To Answer This Question Well In English
13 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're talking about impromptu speaking, that's situations where suddenly, without preparation, you need to say something. This is o...
Episode 134 Confused? 'I like' OR 'I prefer'? 'I wouldn't prefer' OR 'I'd rather not'? Don't worry, I've Got You! Correctly Express Your Preferences In English Today.
11 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode we're talking about preferences: 'I prefer chocolate to ice cream'. I'll review the grammar and difference in g...
Ep 143 Natural British and Business English Phrases and Idioms Part 2
07 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this video I'll be reviewing some of the phrases and idioms in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_sqxYGubJTc This video, just like y...
Episode 142 Natural British and Business English Phrases and Idioms Part 1
06 Jun 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I will review some vocabulary from the first six minutes of this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSQlQcJumME You don't nee...
Episode 141 How To Use The Adverb 'Well' Correctly In English
31 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're looking at some English Grammar. I have collected all the sentences from this episode from things my students have said. The corre...
Episode 140 - Winnie the Pooh, Rabbit And The Quest to Understand British Politeness
30 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Last week, in Episode 138, I read 'Winnie the Pooh Goes Visiting', I decided to spend some time looking at some of the phrases from this story...
Episode 139 Episode 139 Check out my Chinese Learning Journal - Top Ten Tips to Enhance Yours
24 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're going to look at my Chinese Learning Journal. Although mine is in Chinese I think there are a lot of principles that work for learnin...
Episode 138 Episode 138 Winnie The Pooh Goes Visiting - Reading Well Known British English Story
23 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the podcast we're reading Chapter 2 'In which Pooh goes visiting and get's into a tight place' from A.A. Milne's Winn...
Episode 137 Join Me For A Walk Around Historic St. Bees And Natural English Conversation (Part 2)
17 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I continue the stories I was telling you about St Bees yesterday. This includes a story about the hand-carved swimming pool in ...
Episode 136 Join Me For A Walk Around Historic St. Bees And Natural English Conversation (Part 1)
16 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I take you on a walk from my parent's house down to the beach in St. Bees. This episode works best as a video. If you'...
Episode 135 How To Express Your Preferences In Different Scenarios With Example Sentences
10 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are continuing with yesterday's theme of preferences. Today we will discuss preferences in four different scenarios: business/work, food...
Episode 133 Choosing The Right Book To Help Improve Your English
03 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we're discussing what to look for when you're choosing a book to help you practise your English. Books can be great places to...
Episode 132 Discover the Secrets to Finding Your Perfect English Teacher!
02 May 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we're looking at another tip to improve your English: finding the right teacher for you. It's OK to Change Teachers: Remember...
Episode 131B- Great Influencers To Follow For English Listening Practise And Conversation Awareness
27 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In these two episodes I covered some social media (especially Instagram/TikTok) sources you could use to practise your English. I also talked about th...
Episode 131A: Learn English With Social Media: How To Use Tiktok And Instagram To Learn English
26 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is one of two episodes that I will post about Social Media Sources. I decided the original recording was too long so I've split it into two. ...
Episode 130 Study Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 With Me!
25 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's podcast we're studying Shakespeare's most famous sonnet, Sonnet 18 to celebrate Shakespeare's birthday on the 23rd. In this...
Episode 129 Celebrate Ma Rainey: Singer, Songwriter, And Influential Figure In American Music
19 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're celebrating another birthday. You might not have heard of Ma Rainey, but she was a very influential singer and songwriter in the earl...
Episode 128 How Can We Make Learning English More Effective Than Just Striving For Fluency?
18 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I'm talking about fluency. So many students, when I ask what their their goal is for learning English, they tell me: '...
Episode 127 Celebrate Yuri Gagarin by Reading a European Space Agency Article -English Grammar
12 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Since today is the day that the first man, Yuri Gagarin, entered space we're celebrating by reading an article from the European Space Agency. If...
Episode 126 How To Master The Grammar Of Time (take Time Or Make Time, Etc.) With Examples
11 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we have a grammar class about time. You can learn what these expressions mean and how to use them. We will be covering time expressions: to take...
Episode 125 How To Use Something, Anything, Nothing, And Everything
05 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today's podcast we're looking at some confusing grammar. Something, Anything, Nothing and Everything seem like they might be used the same...
Episode 124 Happy Birthday Maya Angelou!
04 Apr 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are celebrating Maya Angelou's birthday. Maya was a famous Black American writer, poet, speaker, actor. civil rights activist and so many...
Episode 123 Describing People Who Aren't Generous: Scrooge! Skinflint! Penny Pincher!
29 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about people who aren't generous with their money or who would rather keep their money to themselves than give you any! A...
Episode 122 Idioms and Phrases To Use When You're Saving Your Money: Freeloader! Scrimp and Save! Reel it in!
28 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This week on the podcast we're looking at idioms and vocabulary that we use to talk about money. Today we're talking about spending money. The...
Episode 121 Happy Birthday Captain James T. Kirk! Best Quotes From Iconic American TV Show - Star Trek
22 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today on the podcast we're celebrating Star Trek's Captain of the Enterprise, Captain James T Kirk. I'll talk a little bit about the sho...
Episode 120 Reading From Elif Shafak's Best Selling 2021 Novel, On The International Day Of Forests
21 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today, in celebration of the International Day of Forests, I was reading from Elif Shafak's new book The Island of Missing Trees. This book is bas...
Episode 119 - How To Choose Reading Sources That Work For You - Part 2 - Donald Trump
15 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we're continuing to look at different internet newspaper sources you could use to help you learn English. We're trying ...
Episode 118 How To Choose Reading Sources That Work For You - Part 1 - Marie Kondo
14 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we're looking at lots of articles about the same story. The goal is to figure out how we can identify good learning sources...
Episode 117 - International Women's Day Celebration And Discussion On The Impact Of English
08 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Happy International Women's Day! In this episode I'll go into why I wanted to do these three readings for International Women's Day and ...
Episode 116 English Poetry Reading - Seema Begum - This Young Muslim Poet Will Blow You Away With Her Amazing Words!
07 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode I'm reading a poem called Uomini Cadranno, Italian for 'Men will fall' written by Seema Begum when she was 14. This...
Episode 115 - Reading About Structural Racism From Best-Selling English Book by Reni Eddo-Lodge
01 Mar 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Welcome to part 2 (there are 4) of our International Women's Day celebration. In this episode I'll read a short excerpt from Reni Eddo-Lodge&#...
Episode 114 - Reading - Jane Goodall's Inspiring Thoughts on Compassion and Love
28 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is episode one of our 4 part International Women's Day celebrations. In this episode I will be reading an excerpt from Jane Goodall's boo...
Episode 113 Exploring Famous Black American Music and Musicians You MUST Know About
22 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is a little different to normal. This month is Black History Month in America, in the UK Black History Month is October. I wanted to take...
Episode 112 British Culture - What on EARTH is Pancake Day? And HOW Do We Celebrate?
21 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today is Pancake Day in the UK, otherwise known a Shrove Tuesday. This is the day before Ash Wednesday, or the beginning of lent. Traditionally people...
Episode 111 'You Pierce My Soul'! Reading The Most Romantic Moment In Jane Austen's Persuasion.
15 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today I will read a short excerpt from Jane Austen's book, Persuasion. This is the love letter that Captain Wentworth writes to Anne Elliot after ...
Episode 110 - Episode 110 Learn About The History Of Valentine's Day And Some Western Romantic Traditions!
14 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Happy Valentine's Day!! I hope you're having a lovely day, whether you have someone special, or you bought yourself chocolate! Today I wante...
Episode 109b English Poetry Reading - 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud' by William Wordsworth
08 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are reading the William Wordsworth poem 'Daffodils' or 'I Wandered Lonely As A Cloud'. Why? This is one of the most famous Br...
Episode 109a Dorothy Wordsworth's Diary - English Writing And Reading - History and Background
07 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Dorothy and William Wordsworth lived in Grasmere and later Rydal, villages in the Lake District National Park, which is near my home. William is one o...
Episode 108 Heart Idioms You Can Use To Sound Like A Native Speaker
01 Feb 2023
Contributed by Lukas
On today's episode we're learning lots of phrases and idioms using the word 'heart'. Many of these idioms are very common and some c...
Episode 107 Learners, Don't Make This Common Mistake When Voicing Your Opinion In English!
31 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Being able to express your opinion is a really important skill if you're going to be working with Western Native Speakers. I've noticed a lot ...
Episode 106 What Is Burns Night And Why Is It So Special To The Scottish?
25 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today is Burns Night. This is a big night in Scotland when the Scottish poet Robert Burns is celebrated. In this episode I'll give you some hist...
Episode 105 English Idioms That Will Up Your Negotiation Game
24 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we're looking at a group of idioms that you can use when you need to ask for a change or to explain to someone that there is the p...
Episode 104 Don't Be Confused By English Sarcasm! Here Are Some Common Phrases And Explanations.
18 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Do you struggle to understand WHEN or WHY someone is being sarcastic? Do you wish you could be more sarcastic, but don't know what to say? Then th...
Episode 103 How NOT To Describe Old Women In English!😠
17 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
This is the final episode looking at the vocabulary from Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad. In episode 100 I read a segment from the book in which ...
Episode 102 If You're Gonna Start Gambling, Here's The English Vocabulary You Need To Know 🤑
11 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Continuing with our Witches Abroad analysis, this time we're focusing on the gambling vocabulary used in the episode. Disclaimer: I don't ga...
Episode 101 English Words You Can Use To Sound Smart (From 'Witches Abroad')
10 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're going to analyse the reading from last week (Ep100), Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad. I hope you've had time to listen to las...
100th Episode Special! Listen To Me Read A Fantasy Novel While You Improve Your English! 🥰 (Featuring: Terry Pratchett's Witches Abroad)
04 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today is our 100th episode! That's pretty amazing to me! Thank you all so much for listening each week. I really appreciate you taking the time to...
Episode 99 New Year's Resolutions - Create Goals That You Can Actually Achieve In Your English
03 Jan 2023
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about New Year's Resolutions and I gave you some tips on how you can set yourself up to have successful goals, rather than...
Episode 98 New Year Celebrations - What Are We Doing? And Why? 🤔
28 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about New Year celebrations in America and the UK. Of course all over the world people have different kinds of celebrations fo...
Episode 97 Ready To Take Stock And Celebrate Your Progress In Your English Studies?
27 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today it's just a short episode. I want you to take some time to evaluate your progress this year. We will use this evaluation next week, but for ...
Episode 96 Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol - Analysis and Vocabulary
21 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yesterday we read Charles Dickens' Christmas Carol. This is quite a challenging read, even for me! So I just read a tiny bit, which is all about C...
Episode 95 Come Celebrate Dickens' Christmas Carol With Me This Holiday Season!🎄
20 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Continuing on our Christmas theme, today I will read a short excerpt from Charles Dickens' A Christmas Carol. (I know! Terrifying! It's SO H...
Episode 94 - Father Christmas's Fake Beard - Analysis and Vocabulary
14 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yesterday we read Terry Pratchett's Christmas story 'Father Christmas's Fake Beard.' Today we will review some of the phrases and gr...
Episode 93 - Reading - Terry Pratchett's Father Christmas's Fake Beard
13 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I will read a short children's story written by my favourite author, Terry Pratchett. The story is about Father Christmas (Santa...
Episode 92 English Vocabulary You Can Use To Describe Different Kinds Of Laughter
07 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I will introduce some different English vocabulary to describe laughter. It turns out that there are a lot of different words, colloca...
Episode 91 - Do You Know The Difference Between "Looks Like," "Lookalike," And "Look Alike?" 😵
06 Dec 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we're learning about the nuances between these very similar pieces of English language. It's very easy to get these words conf...
Episode 90 Get These 4 Intensifiers Right and Improve Your Everyday English
30 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we will look at the correct grammar and meaning for intensifiers, specifically So, Too, Such and Enough. It's common f...
Episode 89 - 6 DIFFERENT Ways To Use The English Phrasal Verb 'Back Up'🤯
29 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're going to look at the phrasal verb 'back up'. In this episode I will cover 6 different meanings for this phrasal verb, however,...
Episode 88 This Is How You Ask People To Go Out For Food In English
23 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we talk about the different phrases you might say to go out with your colleagues for food. We'll also talk about some of the cultu...
Episode 87 Learn Common English Sounds And How To Pronounce Them
22 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This is one of the first episodes I planned to do, and then I thought, 'Hmm how could this work in a podcast?' I'm still not sure it does!...
Episode 86 Analysing the English Vocabulary and Structure of My Phone Disaster Story (Ep 85)
16 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're going to analyse yesterday's story. We will review the structure and see how it compares to the structures we discussed last week....
Episode 85 Listen To Me Tell My Phone Disaster Story! 😭In English
15 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today I'm sharing the story of my recently deceased phone.😭 The reason I decided to share this story in particular, is because it's a very...
Episode 84 How To Structure Your Writing In English For Better Results!
09 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yesterday we read an article from Engoo about the Bermuda Triangle. You can find the article here: https://engoo.com/app/daily-news/article/mysteriou...
Episode 83 How English Articles Can Help You Improve Your English Daily
08 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today's podcast features a reading from Engoo. This is a really useful website for your English. You can organise the articles into different leve...
Episode 82 How Guy Fawkes Impacted British Culture Today
02 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Yesterday we talked about what was happening in the UK that led up to Guy Fawkes and his gang's 'Gunpowder, Treason and Plot'. Today I'...
Episode 81 Who is Guy Fawkes? And What Did He Do?
01 Nov 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In today's episode we'll look at the British history that led Guy Fawkes and his gang to plot to try to blow up the King, his family and Parli...
Episode 80 - English Listening Practise - Reading Terry Pratchett's Wintersmith (2 of 2)
26 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode we are revisiting Tiffany and Miss Treason. We've just missed a major part of the story where Miss Treason takes Tiffany to a danc...
Episode 79 English Listening Practise - Reading Terry Pratchett's Wintersmith (1 of 2)
25 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
On the 31st of October we celebrate Halloween in the UK. I was going to do some Halloween vocabulary, but that's a bit boring. So instead I'm ...
Episode 78 Idioms To Use When You Can't Trust Something
19 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are looking at idioms that describe untrustworthy behaviour, untrustworthy people or things you can't quite believe. There are a surprisi...
Episode 77 English Idioms To Use When You Want To Talk About Lying
18 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about lying. There are lots of ways that we use lies in different societies. In the UK we often use lies as a way to be more p...
Episode 76 🤫 English Idioms We Use When We Tell A Secret
12 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're focusing on telling secrets. Some of these phrases can be used to ask someone not to tell a secret, or to describe someone who can'...
Episode 75 English Idioms To Use When You Want To Keep Secrets🤫
11 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're starting a 4-part series on related idioms. Today, keeping secrets. Tomorrow, telling secrets! 🙊 Then next week: lies and trust...
Episode 74 English Expressions To Describe Someone's Anger Levels😡
06 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
The word 'temper' is used in a lot of phrases but what actually is it? 'Temper' usually describes someone's anger level. For some ...
Episode 73 Phrasal Verbs You Can Use With The Word "Look"
05 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we are talking about phrasal verbs that start with 'look'. There are a lot of them! So we're not covering all of them today. Hopefu...
Episode 72 Vocabulary Words To Describe Looking At Things
04 Oct 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We have covered words for looking before. In Episode 28 we covered watch, see and look. However this time we're looking at more nuanced words that...
Episode 71 Learn Easy English Comparative and Superlative Adjectives
29 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're reviewing something that is commonly confusing for lots of students. Questions I WILL answer for you today: When using comparative ...
Episode 70 - 'There Isn't Much Variety' or 'There Isn't Many Variety', What's Right?
28 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week my student said 'there wasn't many variety', and just like yesterday's podcast, I had that feeling of 🤔 why is that weird...
Episode 69 What's The Difference Between 'Few' And 'A Few' In English?
27 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today's episode came from a sentence that I knew didn't sound right but I wasn't sure why. I hope I can clear it up, but you know, English...
Episode 68 You'll Take A Shine To These English Idioms
22 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about some different idioms, words and phrases that we use in the UK. These are all related to the sunshine, but some of them ...
Episode 67 All Things British and Royal - Flags, Stamps, Money, Titles and The Coronation Party
21 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
In this episode I will review a few of the changes that will be happening in the UK due to our change of monarch. I will talk about the changes to fla...
Episode 66 How To Talk About Death In English And What To Say When Someone Dies
20 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
With the Queen's funeral yesterday I decided this might be the best time for us to talk about death. It's a depressing subject but something t...
Episode 65 Why You SHOULD Read In English And Tips For How To Make It Easier.🤓
15 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today, after reading from so many different books, I decided to do a little sales pitch on WHY YOU should read English books. Actually any kind of rea...
Episode 64 Simon Sinek's 'Start With Why' And Using It To Help You Improve Your Learning Goals
14 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today I'm reading from Simon Sinek's first book 'Start With Why', I'm just reading one page from the book so you understand ...
Episode 63 How Learning Another Language Can Make You A Better Communicator
13 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about a skill that hopefully you have learned from speaking in a foreign language, that you might not necessarily be applying ...
Episode 62 Listening Practise and English Vocabulary Analysis from Terry Pratchett's Jingo
08 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is shot on location in Workington. It is great listening practise for you and after the reading I'll go into detail about some of the...
Episode 61 English Listening & Vocabulary Analysis of Dara McAnulty's - Diary of a Young Naturalist
07 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This episode is shot on location in Workington. It is great listening practise for you and after the reading I'll go into detail about some of the...
Episode 60 English Listening and Vocabulary Analysis of Harry Potter And The Philosopher's Stone
06 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week the videos were recorded on the beach at Workington. It was very bright and when I got home I realised I hadn't looked at the camera onc...
Episode 59 Confusing But Common English Idioms You Need To Know
01 Sep 2022
Contributed by Lukas
Today we're talking about various different idioms that I said or heard this week. These are very commonly used in the UK, so important to know. H...
Episode 58 Ways To Describe Sickness Or Illness In English!
31 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're looking at lots of different idioms. These are idioms that are commonly used to describe illness, both in others and in ourselves....
Episode 57 English Phrases And Idioms To Make Your Sentences More Interesting!
30 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This was my first ever full video episode! I had no idea how to edit videos, I was really nervous to be on camera and I wasn't sure where to look!...
Episode 56 Catchy Ways To Keep Your Speech Interesting Using Stories and Tone of Voice
25 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We're continuing the speech analysis from yesterday. Today we're focusing on using stories and tone of voice to deliver your point effectively...
Episode 55 Catchy Ways To Keep Your Speech Interesting With Repetition to Reinforce and Remember
24 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
We're continuing the speech analysis from yesterday. Today we're focusing on the repetition that the speaker uses to reinforce his points and ...
Episode 54 Catchy Ways To Keep Your Speech Interesting With Common English Collocations And Phrases
23 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week we're doing something a little different. We're going to analyse a speech. We're looking at what the speaker does to make the sp...
Episode 53 English Storytime - My Grandpa's Garden
18 Aug 2022
Contributed by Lukas
This week I'm talking a little more about my Grandpa's garden. I'll put a video together on YouTube so you can see some of the pictures an...