English Listening Skill Practice: 10 Tips

 

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English is an international language. Whatever you do, wherever you go, you need it. For someone, it is enough to know it at the basic level. However, if you want to be able to express your thoughts clearly, to understand others well, and just to feel convenient, you need to know English well. And you need to know it very well (almost excellently) if you need to write essays, research papers, term works, etc. in English. All this requires a high level of English, good knowledge of grammar, spelling, punctuation, stylistics and so on. Naturally, not everyone has sufficient knowledge, but this is not a problem at all. We are here to help. It does not matter if you have difficulties with written assignments. The best native speaking paper writers will work on your papers to make them outstanding. On our website, you can get your paper edited, proofread, revised, rewritten, or created from scratch. The most qualified experts in academic writing field offer you their professional services at really cheap prices. In addition, our team provides a very attractive bonus and discount system. Entrust us your written assignments, and you will have time to improve the level of language skills. In particular, in this post, we present useful tips on how to develop and improve one’s listening skills in English.

What for do we need to develop listening? The types of listening in English

Do you want to improve your listening comprehension of English? For this purpose, it is necessary to use different types of listening. Today we want to tell you what and how often it is necessary to practice listening in English, and also, what types of listening exist. In addition, we offer our professional help with your written assignments: https://essaycorrector.org/blog/proof-reading-for-money-pay-little-get-much.

You can find exercises on English comprehension development in almost every teaching book. Fluent oral speech, which we need to try to understand, often irritates us. It seems that the native speakers talk incoherently and too quickly. That is why many students try to avoid the work on listening skill, in any possible way. This is wrong because the more often we listen to English speech, the more quickly we get used to it and the easier it becomes to understand what the native speakers talk about.

Why is it important to engage in listening?

The first task of every person that learns English is to be able to understand the language aurally. Whatever good vocabulary and grammar knowledge you have, they will not help you much in communication if you listen but cannot understand your interlocutor. Read more about grammar importance here: https://essaycorrector.org/blog/how-proper-grammar-can-help-to-climb-ladder.

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By listening to different texts in English, we develop and improve:

  • Pronunciation: often, our idea about how a word should sound and how it sounds, in fact, does not match. This is one of the main reasons why we cannot understand English aurally. While listening, you can hear how to pronounce a word correctly and you can repeat it with a native speaker simultaneously. Thus, the habit to pronounce sounds as a native speaker pronounces them is developed.
  • Intonation: sometimes it seems that English-speaking citizens are overly emotional, they speak too expressively. In the meantime, this is the usual tone of speech for them, and everyone who learns English should learn the native speakers’ intonation, in addition. You will hear, which parts of speech a speaker emphasizes, where the pauses are made, etc. Also, you need to know that word order in English matters a lot: https://essaycorrector.org/blog/why-word-order-is-so-important-in-english.
  • Word usage options: there is no secret that many words in English have several dozens of meanings. This phenomenon is called polysemy. During listening, you have an opportunity to hear how a native speaker uses different words. Thus, you can learn the natural example of a new word usage or get acquainted with a new context for an old word (i.e. the word you already know).
  • Linguistic conjecture: this is the ability to guess the meaning of a word based on its context. If you hear some unknown word, you will hardly need to use vocabulary because you will probably manage to guess what this particular word means based on the general text.

What types of listening exist in English

Listening for detail is the listening for learning. You engage in the listening of a record adapted to your knowledge level or slightly above this level. At the same time, your task is to understand every word and precise meaning of a record. This is the most useful and simultaneously the most difficult listening type. Usually, right before listening, you study new words or even the whole record text. It is recommended to listen to the text several times, study all new words and the cases of their usage. It is also useful to work on grammar: study new constructions and understand why different constructions are used in different cases. In case of emergency, you can always hire editing service to correct your grammar.

Listening for gist is the most pleasant type of work on English aural comprehension. Your task is to understand the general meaning of a text. At the same time, there is no need to discuss the meaning of every word, the misunderstanding of some constructions is also allowed. This type of listening trains our linguistic conjecture. Besides, extensive understanding of the language is entertainment, in fact, and a great way to take your mind off grammatical exercises. You can use any video on a subject that interests you and listen to it, not try to realize all difficulties of English grammar (https://essaycorrector.org/blog/evolution-of-english-grammar).

Listening for specific information is listening to audio recordings in order to discover specific information that interests you. For instance, you listen to a record with a text about Sweden to learn what population of this country is. At the same time, you ignore the rest of information not related to the numbers that interest you.

Sometimes another type of listening called inferential listening is also distinguished. This type implies understanding the state of a speaker, i.e. his (hers) emotional state. This type of listening is not as much useful in education as previous three types, however, it becomes useful when we speak about relationship building. The ability to understand the mood of a speaker is extremely useful.

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How often is it required to practice listening in English?

The answer is on the surface: as often as you can allow it. It is recommended to allocate every day at least 10-15 minutes for listening practice. Fortunately, on the web, there are millions of records that last 2-10 minutes for those who study English. You can watch videos at home or upload them to your phone and listen to them any free minute. There are even special websites with videos divided into groups, according to topics. Some websites are free, others require payment. It is up to you what to choose. By the way, there is a great online service where you can check your grammar for cheap.

Before start practicing, it would be nice to learn a bit of theory. So make sure that you possess enough grammar skills. Further, we will share with you useful tips on how to understand English aurally. Do not you know what materials to listen to in English? Do not worry. Today everything is available on the web. Besides, in this post, you will read about what and how to listen to in English.

Improving listening skills is not an easy task but very captivating. Select interesting materials on your own, practice at least 10-15 minutes per day, and in one or two months English will stop seeming an inarticulate flow of strange words. Use different types of listening in English and everything will be put in its place: the speech of native speakers will be understandable and your pronunciation will be clear. Although you are focused on listening now, do not forget about writing skills, grammar, and spelling. Also, we suggest that you use the assistance of a professional editor at a cheap price.

English listening: helpful tips on speech perception

Would you want to understand English perfectly when you listen to it? Use the given tips to make your ears perceive the language. Take the first steps right now. Those who study English have definitely heard about so-called language barrier, which means the fear to start speaking a foreign language. However, not so many people know and mention that there is another auditory barrier, which means a poor understanding of speech when you listen to it. What is the reason for the appearing of this obstacle and how to overcome it? Let’s think about it together.

The reasons for auditory barrier appearing

  • Personality type features. You have probably heard about visual, audial, kinesthetic, and digitals types of personality. If you do not belong to audial, it can be difficult to perceive English aurally. These are either inborn or developed skills, it is impossible to change them radically but you can develop the skills you lack.
  • Neglecting listening. Some people do not know how to work with audio recording, what to begin learning with, thus, not everyone allocates time for the development of this essential skill in English. Ordering our cheap article rewriting service, you provide yourself with enough free time.
  • Low language level. Recollect what your level of English is, what your speed of speech is when you speak in English. Usually, you understand the speech of the same type (similar to your own). That is why develop all skills simultaneously.
  • Absence of knowledge of short forms and slang in spoken English. For instance, «want to» is often replaced with «wanna», and causes difficulties in speech perception. If you are not aware of such shortenings, suchlike expressions may confuse you. But remember that they are not acceptable in academic written papers. Our professional research paper proofreaders will help you write a high-quality paper, using only appropriate wordings.
  • Too difficult material. On the internet there is a myth that it is possible to learn English, just having watched «Friends» / «How I met your mother» / «House, M. D.», etc. These series are great but they are absolutely inappropriate for those who are at the Beginner or Elementary level because these people do not possess yet the required vocabulary and other skills. That is why they will not manage to understand the speech clearly and may get disappointed in their skills at all.

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Tips on the listening skill development

1. Listen to different audio materials regularly. It is impossible to learn to dance, only observing others, but you need to start dancing as well. How can you start understanding English aurally, without making any effort? Proceed from theory to practice, from words to actions as soon as possible. Listen to the audio lessons, songs, watch movies and series in English (and consider your level). The most important is to select the materials that interest you. Try to provoke interest in you, and it will be easier to develop listening skills. We suggest that you deal with what interests you, meanwhile, we will deal with the routine written assignments you need to do for your college classes: https://essaycorrector.org/blog/paper-grader-guarantees-the-highest-quality-of-your-works.

What resources can be used:

  • Learning English with the help of movies and series will bring you much pleasure and help understand English better;
  • Add several sites with audio recordings in English to your favorites and visit them at least once a week;
  • Visit one of the websites with online dictations in English to find out how well you understand English aurally and check your spelling skills, in addition. Also, you can check your essay for grammar on our website.

Another essential point: study regularly. If you allocate every day at least 20-30 minutes for listening various recordings, then, you will see good progress in several weeks. If it becomes your habit, in several months you will manage to improve listening skill greatly (time depends on your personal skills). In addition, improve your writing skills with the accurate college proofreading services.

2. Use audio books. Audiobooks are the great resource for listening skill development. However, if it is hard to understand the speaker's speech, listening may turn into a real torture. In this case, we recommend using an amazing technique of work with audio books. Find a record and read it silently simultaneously with speaker. In about 10-20 minutes you get used to the speaker's pace of speech and voice, and it will be easier to distinguish separate words. Close the text and listen to the record. Maybe, you will not understand each word, but you will notice that you perceive most words that speaker says. If you listen to books every day, in some time you will not need to use the text of a record at all. In addition, read about one of the most effective ways to improve grammar with the help of loud reading.

3. Enlarge your vocabulary. The bigger your vocabulary is, the easier it becomes to perceive speech aurally. You will hardly manage to understand the native speakers if you do not have your own «baggage» of words. Pay special attention to the spoken vocabulary, various shortenings, and exclamations. It may seem weird but the ignorance of simple Eh, Oh, Uh, Um may confuse you: you will think that this is the part of some unknown word and lose the sense of a story, focusing on this unknown element. Also, study the idioms and slang expressions, they are often used in spoken English. They are especially popular among young people. So if you want to watch your favorite movies or listen to your favorite songs in English, study not only classic but modern vocabulary as well. Also, keep in mind that you should not use the slang words in your academic papers. If it happens, our essaycorrector experts will paraphrase your essay to help you get a good grade.

4. Develop grammar skills. Grammar also plays a pretty significant role in overcoming auditory barrier. It is not necessary to learn all rules by heart, but it is obligatory to know the difference between «What are you doing?» and «What do you do?».

5. Work on your pronunciation. If you learn to pronounce words correctly, it will be easier to recognize them in someone else's speech. The principle is simple: when you learn a word, listen to how it sounds and it will be easy to recognize it when someone talks. Learning new words, use an electronic dictionary, which can be used to listen to how every particular word sounds and also you can try to copy the speaker's accent. The next time you hear some word it will be easier to recognize it.

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6. Speak in English more. Talk to your teacher, other students, friends who also learn English, foreigners, etc. as much as possible. Thus, you can hear «live» speech and get used to the fact that English may sound differently because everyone has its own pronunciation and accent. If you want not only to speak to your interlocutor but also increase your level, we would advise you to attend additional courses. And our experts will help you with your written assignments.

7. Learn to think in English. This is a very helpful habit. It is not easy to develop it but it will serve you well if you manage. Do not think about translation when you read or listen to a text. That is why it is important to select such materials that interest you: it will captivate you and you will not be distracted by word-to-word translation.

8. Use all technical achievements. Do not neglect the “miracle of scientific and technical progress”. It happens that it is difficult for someone to perceive English speech aurally even when a recording is clear enough. A slow motion function will assist you, in this case. Reduce the playback speed until you catch the speaker's speech.

9. Look for the opportunities to practice listening actively. Busy people do not always have the opportunities to watch series, but they can always find a couple of minutes to install on a tablet or smartphone a special application for learning English. Also, you can download separate audio lessons or listen to audio books (fortunately, they are so many on the web and in free access, and also, there are many options of where to get quality essays proof reading services at a low price). Try to listen to audio on your way to work and home, during lunch break (or when you work and no one sees).

10. Develop a musical ear. The better your musical ear is developed, the easier it is to understand foreign speech and learn to pronounce the sounds correctly. Do not panic. Not everyone has a good musical ear inherently. However, you can fix it. One of the most effective ways is to learn songs in English: try not only to listen to a singer but also sing along with him (her). If you are embarrassed or do not want to disturb your neighbors, then, listen to simple texts and try to imitate the speaker’s intonations and accent. In addition, there are special resources, where you can listen to your favorite songs and learn to understand English aurally. Fortunately, not only a musical ear can be fixed, but also you can fix and check your essay on our website.

11. Do not be afraid to listen. No one of language barrier types will bother you if you break the psychological barrier. Almost all people are afraid of novelty, uncertainty. Remember the time when you start to discover a new computer program or gadget. In the very beginning, it all seems very difficult but after several days or weeks, you become an active user. It is harder to become a user of English, more time is required, but you can do it! The most important is to have the desire to solve the problem, and sooner or later you will find the way to success.

As you can see, the reasons for language barrier appearing are pretty banal and the tips on its overcoming are easy to use. Choose the options that suit you the most and good luck with your English! Also, remember that English grammar check for your papers is available 24/7 on our site.

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How to understand English aurally: tips on work with audio materials

1. Use the principle «from simple to difficult». Have you decided to watch series? Great, this is a very captivating occupation. However, choose the correct loading. For the beginners, we would advise reading the text of recording or the subtitles. Simultaneously, you can take notes of the unknown words (the best option is to write the whole sentence with the word you do not know) and learn them during the breaks between the lessons. Try to listen to the same recording or watch the series once again, in a week but without text this time. You can act in the same way with other materials: do not be embarrassed to use the texts or subtitles. Develop your skills gradually. Also, do not forget to complicate the task: with time, start watching videos without subtitles, try to understand the meaning speech aurally. In any case, never focus on a single word. However, if you want to have your text perfectly written, our online service will detect and correct grammar mistakes for you.

2. Learn your favorite songs. For sure, you have your favorite songs in English. Search for the lyrics, thus, you will become able recognize fluent speech and take the first steps towards musical ear development. There are numerous sites where you can find the lyrics of the songs you love.

3. Write dictation in English. If you perceive English well enough when listening to it, you have already learned to recognize the words in speech, you can try to complicate the task. Choose an audio file and try to write the text by dictation. If you cannot follow it, stop the recording after each sentence, listen to it several times. Then, check whether you have heard the words correctly and what moments cause difficulties. Or you can use ready exercises, which often follow after some audio file. If work with audio files is one of your written assignments and you want to be sure that your work is error-free, get proficient college essays editing services that will fix all possible mistakes.

4. Do not focus on unknown words. A common mistake among students is the following: listening to audio, you suddenly hear an unknown word and start thinking what it means, meanwhile, the record keeps on playing. Thus, you focus on the words you do not know and lose the sense of a record. This is exactly what you should not do. Try not to concentrate on the unknown words but continue listening. You will understand the general meaning from the context, anyway. If you want to avoid common student mistake, you need to get a good education at a good university. Consider this list of top 50 universities: https://essaycorrector.org/blog/top-50-universities-and-schools-for-producing-millionaires.

5. Do not rush to look for every unknown word in a dictionary. Have you decided to enlarge your vocabulary, pushing pause button every 20-30 minutes and writing down the words? Great! However, before you look at the word meaning in the dictionary, try to guess it from the context. Think about what it could mean. If you focus your attention on an unknown word, you will listen to the next sentence but will not manage to understand what the speaker is talking about. As a rule, about 50% of unfamiliar words can be guessed from the context. After that, add to your personal vocabulary not a single word but phrases. Thus, you will see not only an abstract notion but its live usage. If you are interested in this issue and want to know more, contact our essay editors online anytime.

6. Get used to the thought that it is okay to understand not everything. This is really okay. Your main task is to understand what someone speaks about, in general, and not to perfectly realize every single word. Do not feel embarrassed because of a small gap in knowledge and do not try to learn the whole dictionary of English words. For instance, you have not understood some phrase. Is it necessary to go back to it? We would rather say no. Now your task is not the word-to-word translation, but you need to learn to understand English aurally, to understand what others say. That is why do not be upset if you do not understand the meaning of some expression or phrase.

We hope you will find our tips useful and you will learn to understand English aurally. This is a very important skill. Only on condition that you will manage to develop it, you will be able to understand your interlocutor and speak to others in English. We wish you fascinating lessons! In addition, we offer you to use our online paper editing services to make your written assignments outstanding. The cost is very low and there are no extra fees. The payment system is very flexible and convenient. Use any payment method you prefer. You will also get your personal bonus, and there are some services that you can get absolutely for free. Purchase our services now! Do not waste a minute!

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