On the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, school ends at 12 noon, and that gives an interesting feeling to the day. On this day, I felt like I did when I was a kid, and as I was cleaning up, I found a green magic marker. It made me really want to draw with markers like that… I’ll let you find out the rest by listening along… If it helps you to read along to the words, you can do that. I make a transcript for every episode and you can get those by supporting the podcast on Patreon for as little […]

Have you ever gotten a surprise call? I got one when I was at work telling me my Grandmother was in the hospital. I had to ask my boss to leave work to see her. She understood, and let me go. This is the story of what happened that day. It was almost like a dream, but there I was, in reality. Please visit boxcarenglish.com for more podcasts and lessons, and support the podcast at patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast for more human-centered, AI-free, gentle, supportive, and effective English-learning entertainment! Write to me at [email protected] – I’d love to read some of your letters […]

There’s an election, and the voting happened at the school where I work. This is about how I went to vote and what happened that day and the day after. Please check out our page at patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast And do leave us a review on the podcasting service you use. Send me an email at [email protected]

I found some sunglasses on a sunny day… and they made me think. Go to Patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast to support us. And Boxcarenglish.com for more!

The final installment of grandpa’s visit to Haytown. An ending, but a new beginning as well. Thanks for listening! Let me know how your English is coming. Check out the website for more: boxcarenglish.com Join our Patreon to chat with me and get transcripts: patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast

The weekend is here! I take my Grandpa to a Chinese restaurant to celebrate. Visit boxcarenglish.com for more podcasts and lessons Support the podcast at patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast

This story is about my Grandpa visiting my house. My grandpa has a lot of dogs and cats, and he brought them all to my house — including a tiny kitten! Sometimes English learners get confused by the words “fun” and “funny.” This episode can help you out. Read this: “I noticed that Shelby was acting funny. That’s my dog. Shelby is her name. She was acting funny. I mean, she wasn’t acting normally.” This type of language is easiest to learn through stories like the ones you hear in Boxcar English. I hope it’s useful to you! Please find […]

A drive in the country. Let’s take a look at three of the natural, American-style phrasings used in this episode: 1–“It sounded like they hadn’t had a chance to speak in a long time” You can say “it sounds like” in the same way as “it looks like” or “it appears”! “to have a chance” – to have an opportunity “to speak” in this case means the birds haven’t had a chance to speak to each other! 2. “We drove off” — we drove off? That means we started driving, and sounds like the drive will go a long way! […]

I could not find my username. I could not find my password. And, I admit it, I cried. Support the podcast at patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast and get some bonus stuff! Find more and take lessons with me at boxcarenglish.com

This episode is about how our lives are full of magic. I saw a star in the hole in the clouds, and it seemed to want to say: “Hey Karl, don’t forget that your life is full of magic.” I want to hear from you: what’s an experience you’ve had of the magic of life? Join me at Patreon.com/boxcarenglishpodcast, and help build a community of people who want to improve their English in a human, creative, community-forward way. You can see more at boxcarenglish.com.