The Level Up English Podcast

The Level Up English Podcast episodes:

• 04.24.2024

  #269 Debates, Arguments, & Controversial Opinions

  I share some of my opinions on debate questions provided to me by Chat GPT, ranging from general opinions to deeper more philosophical ones. While doing so, I share some useful vocabulary as well as phrases you can use to...

  
• 04.17.2024

  #268 The Best Way to Learn English with Fabio Cerpelloni

  Fabio Cerpelloni chats with me on the podcast today around the topic of his new book: 'Any Language You Want: 18 Conflicting Lessons for a New Kind of Language Learner'. A collection of contradictory true personal stories in answer to "What's...

  
• 04.10.2024

  #267 Learn English by Teaching

  A listener asked me how they can teach English to their friend, so I decided to give some tips and advice in this podcast episode. I cover some tips you can do to help a friend, partner, or family member learn...

  
• 04.03.2024

  #266 Make English Pronunciation Easier with Assimilation

  In Episode 255, we spoke about Linking. In Episode 262, we spoke about Elision. Now, in Episode 266, we're talking all about Assimilation.  This is the 3rd and final part in our connected speech series, where I look at how spoken English...

  
• 03.27.2024

  #265 Acronyms to Level Up Your English

  Acronyms are words that use the first letter of each word in a phrase. NASA and LOL are two common examples from very different areas. In the age of the internet, acronyms are now a part of everyday writing and reading,...

  
• 03.20.2024

  #264 Increase Your Confidence to Speak English with Clare

  In this episode, Clare from the Smart English Coach podcast joins us for a fun chat about confidence, limiting beliefs, and language learning. We explore how confidence is so important in language learning and the steps you can take to...

  
• 03.13.2024

  #263 Big Lessons from Visiting Japan

  Do you love the rambling episodes? Well this might be for you! Today, I go over my recent trip to Japan and discuss some of the things I did, but mostly reflect on the language experience I had there. Learning Japanese,...

  
• 03.06.2024

  #262 Why You Can't Understand Native Speakers (Elision)

  Textbook English is different from spoken English, and a big part of this comes down to pronunciation and how things are said in real conversations.  This is Part 2 in my series on pronunciation, where we first looked at Linking in...

  
• 02.28.2024

  #261 Travel Stories - Phrasal Verbs with 'Turn'

  I get a few requests to continue my series on Phrasal Verbs, and specifically, I had one recently to cover phrasal verbs that use the verb 'turn'.  I thought of as many common ones as I could and made a list,...

  
• 02.21.2024

  #260 Playing Games to Learn English (Dylan - British Education)

  Dylan (from the YouTube channel British Education) joined me for a fun games session today. We're using games to have a conversation and practice English, and we encourage you to play along too. If you have a teacher or language...

  
• 02.14.2024

  #259 Fixing Your Relationship Problems

  Since this episode falls on Valentine's Day, let's discuss the topic of Love and Relationships. I'll be basing this episode around a group class I taught before where we discuss some questions related to relationships, such as having a long and...

  
• 02.07.2024

  #258 I Made Very Big Mistakes

  Just a few days into 2024, I already made 2 very big and expensive mistakes. In this episode, I share what happened and exactly why I made these mistakes, and then I talk about some possible lessons that I should learn...

  
• 01.31.2024

  #257 How to Live a Long Life (Blue Zones)

  In this episode, we're taking a deep dive into Blue Zones - 5 areas around the world where people live a long time with great health. I'll be sharing my uneducated views on why this might be, but also looking at...

  
• 01.24.2024

  #256 Spending 10 Days in Silence - Stories with Bree Aesie

  Bree Aesie from Into The Stories Podcast joins us today for a conversation about meditation and stories. This was one of my favourite conversations yet, packed with lots of life lessons as well as English learning tips and motivation. Since Bree's...

  
• 01.17.2024

  #255 The Secret to Natural British English (Linking!)

  Textbook English is different from spoken English, and a big part of this comes down to pronunciation and how things are said in real conversations. You may understand English learner material easily, but then really struggle when it comes to watching...

  
• 01.10.2024

  #254 Ask Me Anything 4

  I answer listener questions on all sorts of topics - ranging from British culture to the fairness of life! And of course, English language questions too. It was a fun episode and you all gave great questions.  I always enjoy...

  
• 01.03.2024

  #253 Use Conjunctions to Debate in English

  Let's look at some conjunctions (also known as connectives) to help improve your conversation and debating skills in English. Conjunctions are an effective way to make your sentences more complex and sound much more natural - rather than simply using...

  
• 12.27.2023

  #252 Reflecting on 2023, Planning for 2024

  Welcome back to one of my favourite episodes of the year - one filled with reflections and goal-setting at the end of the year. I love this time of year because it's a natural rest point for thinking about how...

  
• 12.20.2023

  #251 Is English Education Broken? (Gregory Diehl)

  Gregory Diehl is an English teacher and author of the new book: Our Global Lingua Franca: An Educator’s Guide to Spreading English Where EFL Doesn’t Work. It's a fascinating book looking at Gregory's experience teaching in many countries all around the...

  
• 12.13.2023

  #250 Answer These Mixed Conditional Questions

  Let's learn to use hypothetical situations with confidence in this episode on Mixed Conditionals. It's been a long-time suggestion from listeners, and I've finally decided to get to it. I cover some different types of conditional structures in a casual way,...

  
• 12.06.2023

  #249 Unbelievable Statistics About the UK

  In this week's episode of the Level Up English podcast, we dive into the fascinating world of statistics. Prepare to be amazed by some truly unbelievable facts! I'll start by covering a few random statistics, ranging from sleeping with a teddy...

  
• 11.29.2023

  #248 I Tracked My Language Learning for 2 Months

  Over the past few months, I've been meticulously tracking my language learning process for Japanese, Thai, and Chinese Mandarin on a Google Sheets doc. In this episode, I discuss the results of this data and we look together at the graphs...

  
• 11.22.2023

  #247 Digital Nomad in a Van (Paul Creane)

  Paul Creane joined me today to talk about his exciting lifestyle of being a Digital Nomad. We talk about what this means in the episode as well as lots of other useful terms related to this topic. We also cover what...

  
• 11.15.2023

  #246 Easy Stories in English (Ariel Goodbody)

  I am a big fan of reading for the purpose of learning a language as well, of course as listening, which is why I make podcasts. If you want to improve both of your listening and reading as well as...

  
• 11.08.2023

  #245 The Ultimate Guide to IELTS Speaking

  In this episode, I will be talking about the IELTS Speaking exam. I know the IELTS exam isn't going to be relevant for everyone, although I always like to mention that preparing for the exam can also be great practice for...

  
• 11.01.2023

  #244 The Link Between Exercise and Language Learning

  Over the years doing this podcast, the topic of exercise seems to have come up a lot when making comparisons to language learning, so I thought it was about time I made an episode where I talk all about it. In...

  
• 10.25.2023

  #243 Should You Learn from Non-Native Speakers?

  I get comments occasionally from people who say “I want to be like a native speaker” and “I don’t want to learn from non-native speakers.  In this episode, I'll argue the benefits of learning from non-native speakers as well as natives,...

  
• 10.18.2023

  #242 Learn Languages Like a Pro (Xiaogua Chinese)

  In this episode, I have a great and casual chat with Zhifei from​ Xiaogua Chinese about language learning, using flashcards, the best mindset for learners, getting a good English accent, and much more!  We also talk about my own Chinese learning...

  
• 10.11.2023

  #241 Furry Friends - Team Dog or Team Cat?

  For many of us, pets and animals are a huge part of our lives. We spend a lot of time and money looking after our furry friends, and I definitely have a huge soft spot for animals - especially cats! In...

  
• 10.04.2023

  #240 Biggest Lessons from Moving Abroad

  I’ve been living in Bangkok, Thailand since the beginning of August, so it’s been over 2 months now. This is the longest I’ve spent in one place outside of my home country before. One of our group class students requested...

  
• 09.27.2023

  #239 Never Forget English Words Again

  Memory is something we've covered a few times on the podcast before, but it's always worth coming back to with more ideas and tips. In this episode, I share advice on how you can stop forgetting English vocabulary, 2 methods...

  
• 09.20.2023

  #238 Level Up English Live - Giving Advice

  Every now and then, I invite the members of Level Up English to join me for a chat about different topics. This time, we spoke about giving advice. In the end, only 3 people joined, which was quite a nice...

  
• 09.13.2023

  #237 The Power of Groups and Movies with Cara Leopold

  Cara Leopold (Leo Listening) joins me once again on the podcast to discuss the benefits of learning English in groups with her experience teaching group classes based around movies, as well as some good movies and TV series she likes...

  
• 09.06.2023

  #236 Adding 'Up' to Verbs (Part 2)

  In this episode, we'll be talking about some patterns you can remember when adding UP to verbs. Here are some examples: cloud up, clear up, finish up, drink up, break up One of the Level Up Members recently asked about the difficult...

  
• 08.30.2023

  #235 Learn English Fast with Comprehensible Input

  I had a great audio question sent in today about learning with comprehensible input. So in this episode, I cover some of the ideas behind the comprehensible input method, and then explore the input hypothesis from Stephen Krashen and how...

  
• 08.23.2023

  #234 Steve Kaufmann's Language Learning Advice

  Steve Kaufmann is a polyglot who has a good level of proficiency in around 20 languages. Steve is well known for his content online and on his YouTube channel, Lingo Steve. You've probably seen him before!  Today he joined me for...

  
• 08.16.2023

  #233 Don't Take Yourself So Seriously

  On the private podcast last week, I chatted a bit about my experience in China and then ended on the idea of the benefit of being silly in your language learning. I thought it was a really interesting and potentially...

  
• 08.09.2023

  #232 Making Big Life Changes

  I recently made a huge change in my life and I'm announcing it to everyone in this episode today. I'm going to talk a little bit about this change, why I made it, and some of my feelings about the...

  
• 08.02.2023

  #231 Don't Call Me 'Dear'

  Do you know how to use the word 'dear'? A lot of people get confused with this term, and honestly the answer isn't as simple as you may think, so let's look into that today. I'll cover the ways in which...

  
• 07.26.2023

  #230 Buying a House in the UK

  A listener requested a topic on the housing market in the UK, so I thought I'd give it a shot and make it as interesting as I can. In this episode, I talk about the housing crisis the UK is...

  
• 07.19.2023

  #229 The History of English with Kevin Stroud

  Kevin Stroud from the History of English Podcast joins me for a fascinating discussion and dive into... well, the history of English! In this episode, we talk about a variety of things, including: Why TH doesn't have its own letterIn what part...

  
• 07.12.2023

  #228 English Vocabulary for Getting Sick

  This week I’m beginning to come down with a cold. I can feel my throat getting hoarse and it hurts to swallow, and I probably don’t have much time before I’ll be unable to record a podcast episode, so let’s...

  
• 07.05.2023

  #227 Do Phrasal Verbs Need Prepositions?

  I had a listener question about Phrasal Verbs and why some of them use prepositions even though the meaning seems to be the same without them. Can we say "Check it" and "Check it out"? What's the difference? I break down this...

  
• 06.28.2023

  #226 Ask Me Anything 3

  This is the first AMA (Ask Me Anything) episode I have done since #84! It's been a while, but this is where I reach out to Instagram to get some questions for me to answer on the podcast. If you like...

  
• 06.21.2023

  #225 Tips to Succeed in IELTS with Aubrey Carter

  Aubrey Carter from All Ears English and IELTS Energy joins me today for a chat about the IELTS English exam, and a few other topics. We discuss tips for the exam as well as some interesting slang and vocabulary that would...

  
• 06.14.2023

  #224 Eat or Eat Up? (Why We Always Say 'UP')

  I got a question about adding "UP" to certain verbs and this learner wanted to know more. As I did more research, I was plunged into a rabbit hole of research and it turned out to be much more complicated...

  
• 06.07.2023

  #223 How to Get Natural English with Parallelism

  I see a lot of writing mistakes with learners struggling with parallel structures, or parallelism. This is where features in a sentence have to follow the same grammatical patterns to sound natural. It may sound a bit confusing, but honestly, it's...

  
• 05.31.2023

  #222 What do British People Think of the Monarchy?

  With the recent coronation of King Charles in the UK, people might be wondering why I haven't posted any content related to the royal family. Well, in this episode I'm going to be exploring the British opinion on the monarchy (based...

  
• 05.24.2023

  #221 The Importance of Sleep

  Are you well-rested and ready to begin today's episode? Sleep is a vital part of human health and I explore this a bit in today's episode. I talk about the importance of sleep and how it related to learning and...

  
• 05.17.2023

  #220 Business English - Anna with 2Ns

  Anna Connelly is known as Anna with 2Ns online and has her own podcast looking at Business English. She joins us today to discuss business English, giving presentations, job interviews, and more! Whether you need business English or not, I...