Ann-Marie's English

Good Morning and welcome to the first of our short culture club episodes. These are shorter than the regular speaking practice episodes and share some culturally important event that is happening soon. 

Today is June 17th and I have been looking forward to making an episode on this topic all week. Being English there is only 1 thing I’ll be focusing on for the next month. The FIFA World Cup is taking place in North America. The first match was played last Thursday on June 11th in Mexico. 

We are currently in the group stages, there are 12 groups (Group A to Group L) with 4 teams in each group. The top two teams from each of the 12 groups, plus the eight best third-place teams will progress to the knockout stages, where it gets really exciting!

England are in Group L, the last group, so our first match is tomorrow. And because the 2026 FIFA World Cup is being co-hosted by 3 nations; Canada, the United States, and Mexico, there is a big time difference for LIVE viewing times in Taiwan. Most matches will be broadcast LIVE in Taiwan on ELTA sports channel in the early hours of the morning, between 3AM and 5AM. If you’re lucky some (like this morning's Group J match between Argentina & Algeria) are played at 9AM.

So the dilemma is… do we wake up at 4AM to watch it LIVE or do we watch on catch-up. ELTA provides full-match on-demand (VOD) replays and 2-day catch-up viewing, but annoyingly when you go to click the replay on ELTA you can see the score! We call this a spoiler because it spoils the match for you if you already know the end result. 

So which team will you be rooting for? 

那麼，你會為哪一隊加油呢？⚽
歡迎留言和我分享你的看法！ 💛
Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cm6khd8jd01qf01w46q6barvx/comments

A2 - B1 level : Around 10 minutes 約 10 分鐘

Today we talk about the crazy hot weather in England this May with 12 words and phrases that are useful because they're common in discussions about weather, travel, seasons, and everyday life in both Taiwan and the UK. 
今天我們要聊聊英國今年五月異常炎熱的天氣，以及為什麼這波熱浪讓許多英國人吃不消。
本集將學習 12 個實用單字和片語，這些詞彙經常出現在與天氣、旅遊、季節以及英國和台灣日常生活相關的話題中，非常值得學起來！ ☀️🇬🇧🇹🇼🎙️
Here are the first 5: 

1. heatwave — a period of unusually hot weather — The country experienced a heatwave that lasted for a week. — 熱浪
2. unbearable — too unpleasant or difficult to tolerate — The heat was unbearable without air conditioning. — 難以忍受的
3. multiple days in a row — several consecutive days — It rained for multiple days in a row. — 連續好幾天
4. air conditioning — a system that cools indoor air — Most offices have air conditioning during summer. — 空調；冷氣
5. central heating — a heating system that warms an entire building — Many British homes use central heating in winter. — 中央暖氣系統

希望這一集對你的英文學習有所幫助！如果你有任何想法、問題或想聽的主題，歡迎留言和我分享。也別忘了給節目一個五星評價，讓更多人一起加入學習的行列。謝謝收聽，我們下週見 💛 也可以 Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cm6khd8jd01qf01w46q6barvx/comments

B2 - C1 English Level : Around 8 Minutes
In today’s episode we have 3 advanced level English tongue twisters to help you practice some of the most difficult vowel and blended sounds. 
Follow along with me as I break down how to pronounce these 繞口令 step-by-step and you will be nattering like a native in no time 💪🏼 跟著我一步一步拆解這些英文繞口令的發音技巧，讓你輕鬆練習清楚發音，很快就能像母語人士一樣自然開口說英文。
希望這一集對你的英文學習有所幫助！如果你有任何想法、問題或想聽的主題，歡迎留言和我分享。也別忘了給節目一個五星評價，讓更多人一起加入學習的行列。謝謝收聽，我們下週見 💛

Hello 👋 Welcome to the podcast 大家好! I'm Ann-Marie 我是英國人 and this is my English podcast 🇬🇧 started to help my students learn more authentic modern English, from a Taiwanese perspective.

When you learn a language you want to talk about your daily life, the food you love, the places you visit. Have you ever tried to explain 鹹糕 to a foreigner? Fear not! Ann-Marie's English has got you covered.

Here we discuss global issues and local topics, to bring you closer to the English speaking world.
If you have any questions you can send me a message on Instagram at ann_maries_english or join the community on Patreon.
Let's begin! 我們開始吧！

A2–B1 English Level : Around 15 Minutes
本集節目中，我們將練習幾組學生常覺得困難的相似發音單字，接著透過有趣又容易上手的英文繞口令來訓練口腔肌肉與發音清晰度，最後分享幾個實用技巧，幫助你提升英文口說能力，讓表達更自然、更有自信🎙️🇬🇧
你不需要聽起來像英國人，才能說出一口好英文。清楚的發音，才是有效溝通的關鍵。集 Episode 21，想要你的發音進步的朋友們，今天的 Podcast 歡迎來聽喔 !
本集21 沒有 worksheet.
你的作業是跟著逐字稿練習發音，專注於把每個字說得流暢且清楚。
不需要追求速度，重點是讓發音自然、清晰，並透過反覆練習建立口說自信。
You don’t need an English accent to speak English well. Enunciation is more important, so that a snack doesn’t become a snake! 🍪🐍
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Following on from episode 19, today’s podcast dives deeper into this classic English novel ‘The Secret Garden’. This is an advanced level listening exercise, where we read the blurb, look at the chapters in more detail, and discuss the style of language used in this book.
延續上一集 Episode 19，今天的 Podcast 將更深入探討英國經典小說[秘密花園]（The Secret Garden）。這是一集進階程度的英文聽力練習，我們會更詳細地聊聊書中的章節內容、閱讀書籍簡介（blurb），並討論這本小說所使用的語言風格。
Key vocabulary
adapted — 改編的；調整過的
to be orphaned — 成為孤兒
a hypochondriac — 疑病症患者
a robin — 歐亞鴝
amusement — 娛樂；有趣的事物
impoverished — 貧困的；貧窮的
industrial Revolution — 工業革命
slums — 貧民窟
in dire straits — 處境困難；陷入困境
the moors — 英國石楠荒原
Grammar used
Neither has… nor…
Example: ‘An orphan neither has a father nor a mother.’  沒有...也沒有...Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cm6khd8jd01qf01w46q6barvx/comments

A2–B1 English Level | Around 5 Minutes
A short book review of a well-loved English classic novel by Frances Hodgson Burnett. This 5 minute podcast gives a brief summary of the main characters and storyline. 
This is for lower intermediate level learners. I use simple vocabulary in short easy to understand sentences. There is a lot of repetition of common words. So you can follow along with my pronunciation. You can listen to how many times I say garden in one episode 😄
第19集：《秘密花園》書評

Ep.19：《秘密花園》讀書心得分享
A2–B1 英語程度｜約 5 分鐘
這一集將帶你認識英國經典小說《秘密花園》（The Secret Garden），作者為 Frances Hodgson Burnett。
在這段約 5 分鐘的 Podcast 中，我會簡單介紹故事主角與主要劇情，帶你輕鬆進入這部深受喜愛的經典作品世界。
本集特別適合初中階（Lower Intermediate）英語學習者。
我會使用簡單單字，以及短而容易理解的句子來說明內容。
節目中也會重複很多常見單字，幫助你更容易跟上發音與語感。
你甚至可以數看看我在一集裡說了幾次 garden 😄
https://www.patreon.com/posts/ep-19-mi-mi-hua-158911476?utm_medium=clipboard_copy&utm_source=copyLink&utm_campaign=postshare_creator&utm_content=join_link
Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cm6khd8jd01qf01w46q6barvx/comments

Hello, and welcome back to the podcast.
Today’s episode is an advanced level Q&A all about running. Following on from episode 17 were we heard about how the marathon distance was created. 所以如果你對跑步有興趣還是要聽到高級的英文課歡迎來收聽

Questions

1. How did you get into running?
2. What’s the most challenging thing about running in Taiwan?
3. Ｗhat keeps you coming back and signing up for more races and joining more training plans?
4. What is your go-to meal before a big race?
5. What happens when you ‘hit the wall’? 

words and phrases to listen out for;

1. backstory
2. turns out 
3. to get into something
4. dripping with sweat
5. energized
6. look into something
7. trail running
8. check out something / check something out
9. that was the key
10.  hit the wall

As this is a natural discussion style I speak at a faster pace than usual, as I would when speaking to native English speakers, you can also hear lots of filler sounds (for example; like, erm, um, so…) when I am thinking about what to say. There is also more repetition and errors that I self correct, I left all of these in the episode so you can hear how this adds an extra layer of confusion when listening to native speakers. 

Hope you find the episode helpful, leave a comment if you have any questions about it or if you have any suggests. Cheers 💕
Press play. Practise. Speak better English.
按下播放鍵，一起練習，把英文說出口。

Ep.18 高級 Advanced Level｜Running 跑步
Hello，歡迎回到節目！
今天這一集是高級程度的 Q&A 討論，主題是「跑步」。
延續上一集 Episode 17，我們聊到馬拉松距離是怎麼來的。如果你對跑步有興趣，或是想挑戰比較進階的英文聽力內容，歡迎收聽這一集！

本集討論問題：
• 妳是怎麼開始跑步的？
• 在台灣跑步最具挑戰性的事情是什麼？
• 是什麼讓妳一直持續報名比賽、參加訓練計畫？
• 比賽前妳最常吃的早餐是什麼？
• 跑步時「撞牆期（hit the wall）」是什麼感覺？

因為這一集是比較自然的聊天討論形式，我的語速會比平常快一些，就像和母語人士聊天時一樣。
你也會聽到很多思考時的語助詞，例如：
like, erm, um, so…
另外在對話中也會出現一些重複、停頓，或是我自己修正說法的地方。我刻意保留了這些內容，因為在真實情況下，母語人士說話時也常常會這樣，而這些元素也會讓聽力理解變得更有挑戰。
希望這一集對你的英文學習有幫助！
如果有任何問題，或是有想聽的主題，歡迎留言告訴我。
Cheers! 💕





Leave a comment and share your thoughts:

Ever wonder why a marathon is 42.195 km long? In today’s episode we hear the interesting story behind this distance and learn common English vocabulary to talk about the world’s most popular solo sport…running 🏃🏽‍♀️🏃‍♀️🏃🔊 Listen to the end for a bonus shadowing section.
Includes: transcript, vocabulary list, gap fill exercises.

你有沒有想過，為什麼馬拉松的距離是 42.195 公里嗎？
在今天的節目中，我們將帶你了解這個距離背後有趣的故事，
同時學習用英文談論世界上最受歡迎的運動——跑步的常用詞彙。記得聽到最後，還有加碼的英語跟讀法練習喔！
📝內容包含：逐字稿、單字表、填空練習。

Leave a comment and share your thoughts:

🎆學英文、聊文化，讓英國的煙火，點亮你的英文力！


🔥 在這一集節目中，我們將帶你認識英國最「熱鬧又震撼」的傳統節日——Bonfire Night（煙火夜），又稱為 Guy Fawkes Night（蓋伊・福克斯之夜）！你將聽到這個節日背後的精彩歷史故事，了解為什麼英國人每年 11 月 5 日都要點燃篝火、施放煙火，還會發現像 “caught red-handed” 這樣的英文片語究竟是什麼意思。
🕯️ 「記得，記得，十一月五日——一起聽聽英國怎麼過！」
我們也會帶你看看現代英格蘭各地的人們如何慶祝這一天——從甜滋滋的糖蘋果到繽紛的煙火表演，並教你幾個能用來談論「節慶與傳統」的實用英文表達。

🎧 非常適合想要在提升英聽能力的同時，更深入了解英國文化與歷史的你！

留言分享你的想法吧 你怎麼看 Bonfire Night 呢？留言告訴我們吧 🗣️Leave a comment and share your thoughts: https://open.firstory.me/user/cm6khd8jd01qf01w46q6barvx/comments