In Contact! Episode 27: Literature

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Welcome to a new episode of In Contact! On this occasion we'll talk about literature. There must be at least one book that you really enjoyed reading (in childhood, in school or recently) and that made you dream of fantastic worlds and realities or that made you think of our current world. Novels, poetry, short stories, chronicles, plays... There are so many different options for all of us to enjoy and enrich our mind and spirit by means of the written word! By the way, there are many wonderful pieces of literature that can help you improve your English level and, in addition, help you learn about different times, cultures and ways to see the world and life. 

In this episode we'll share with you some important information about narrative tenses, which you may find useful when telling or understanding a story. We'll recommend you some interesting but simple books that you may enjoy reading to improve your vocabulary and reading comprehension in English. Our Top 5 will introduce you to songs inspired in classic literary stories, and of course we'll share with you some idioms related to books that you may enjoy fun and handy. In general, in this programme you'll find useful advice on how to make the most of reading in order to improve your language level and also to enjoy your time!

How about you? Would you like to tell us more about your favourite books and the experiences you've had with any book? Send us a message and tell us more about you:

• Have you got any favourite book that you would like to recommend other people? What's so special about this book?
• Do you have any literary genre that you prefer? Which one is it?
• How many books do you read in a year, and how enjoyable do you find this activity?
• Do you like reading a book before or after seeing a film based on it, and why? Do you remember any positive or negative example of this situation?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

And here's a recommended video for you in case you're thinking of reading a book in English. Have a great time!

In Contact! Episode 26: Sports

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It's time to start the ball rolling and challenge your ability and strength! This episode of In Contact! will be full of adrenaline and stamina because it will be dedicated to sports! Don't worry, even if you don't practise any sport, for sure you can't help feeling great admiration for those athletes who are really good at what they do and enjoying their performances. Anyway, remember that it's never too late to start doing any physical activity that helps you strengthen your body and mind and, of course, help you make the most of very enriching social interaction.

What's coming in the next minutes of In Contact!? We'll learn different ways to talk about abilities (yes, there are more options apart from verb can!) and some idioms related to sports that you may find useful in everyday conversations. We'll take a trip down Memory Lane to remember some of the best athletes of all times, and we'll also travel through time with some spectacular songs that will remind us of the sports spirit and victory. You'll hear the presenters of In Contact! exercising their brain and vocabulary with the Word Tango and, to end with a high note, we'll challenge two of our English teachers to find out how much they know about sports. Certainly this will be a very fun and inspiring episode!

We'd love to hear what you have to say about this topic and about the episode. Please do not forget to post your comment below! Here, some questions you may think of to share your answers with us: 

• Do you practise any sport? How often do you do it, and how did your passion for it started?
• In general, how much do you know about sports and their rules?
• If you don't do any sport but you had the chance to start practising one, which one would you go for and why?
• Is there any athlete you really admire of who you consider has left an important legacy in history?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

In Contact! Episode 25: Transport

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By land, by air or by water, today there are many different ways to move from one place to another, and day after day they're more powerful and faster than they used to be before. Today we'll talk about transport, and for that we will consider the advantages and disadvantages of some of the most common methods around the world.
Get ready for a grammar dose in which we'll tell you when to use articles a, an, the or when to omit them. Our programme will also be loaded with useful expressions to talk about transportation, including our typical idioms, and we'll have some information about the benefits of alternative and active transportation means. Don't miss our Top 5 with songs about methods of transportation and our interviews to people in university to know what their favourite means of transport is. All this and much more coming in this episode!

You are the main reason for this show to be, therefore all your comments and contributions are always welcome. Can you answer a few questions regarding the topic of our episode? Don't forget to post them in the box below!

• What methods of transportation do you usually use? What are some advantages and disadvantages of these?
• What is transport in your city like, and how would you change it to make it better?
• What is more important to you when having a vehicle: comfort, speed, costs or convenience? Please explain your answer.
• If you could invento or propose another method or system of transport in your city, which one could it be?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

In Contact! Episode 24: Law and Order

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Laws are created to keep a society in order. However, laws are always broken, and therefore there's always the need of justice to be done - the thing is, justice is practised in different ways all around the world, even though there are some principles and values we all believe in. Today we'll discuss the importance of laws, justice and order, and we'll also consider some laws that are considered controversial and even bizarre. 

To talk about law and order, we'll give you some vocabulary you can use to talk about crimes and sorts of punishments, and we'll have some information about some controversial laws and the way they are practised in different places of the world; we'll share with you some nice expressions you can use in everyday conversations when discussing justice and laws, and you'll get to know 5 songs related to real events involving crime; you'll have very useful recommendations to learn English through the news, and we'll come with a very witty challenge for people in university to see how much they know about some strange laws around the world.

Now it's your time to have your say! Please leave a comment telling us your opinion about this episode and answering some of the following questions:

• What's the most serious crime a person can commit in your opinion, and how do you think it should be punished?
• Do you think that there are certain minor crimes that should not be punished, and which ones are these?
• Is the justice system effective in your country? How can you describe it?
• What's your opinion about laws regarding capital punishment, abortion, euthanasia and some other controversial topics?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

In Contact! Episode 23: Growing Up

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You may remember when you were a kid and wanted to become bigger to make your dreams come true. Now that you are an adult, maybe you want to stay younger for ever or, why not, turn the time back to be younger and live the good old times again. Being a child, a teenage, an adult or an elderly always comes with their pains and their glory. That's why in this episode we'll discuss growing up and growing older.

Do you think being an adult is better than being a child? To say you agree or disagree with this idea, we'll help you with some common forms used in conversational English to express so. We'll also go on a journey through the stages of life and explore some of the things they come with. Our idioms for this episode will remind us of the good and bad things of growing up with some hilarious expressions. Talking about our Top 5, do you think our invited artists are happy or unhappy about growing older? We'll also listen to people talking about life stages and some advice to use English correctly when talking about age. All this and more will be coming in this nostalgic episode!

No matter how old you are, for sure you can contribute with your answers to these questions as you listen to the show:

• What are the dearest memories of your childhood?
• Was your teenage a difficult time of your life? What do you remember most of it?
• How do you feel about your adult life? Is it what you expected from it?
• How do you see yourself in 30 years?
• What piece of advice would you give to younger people?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

In Contact! Episode 22: Regrets

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One feeling everyone has had at least once in their lives is regret. Yes, we know, it can be an awful feeling. And even though some people feel it more often than others, there are many situations in life in which we may repent the choices we've made and want things to be different. But don't worry, even mistakes or unfortunate situations can help us learn and improve!

In this episode of In Contact! we'll have some valuable information to help you express yourself when you're sorry: in fact, our grammar dose will give you some useful expressions you may consider using to express your regrets, and the idiom dose will come loaded with conversational expressions about the topic. We'll be in contact with the world and with some information about some of the greatest regrets in modern history, as well as some recommended songs related to this feeling. We've also invited two people from our university to tell us about their regrets and about the things they'd never feel sorry about.

Now, as you listen to the show, we'd like you to answer some of these questions (don't forget to post your answers!):

• If you could turn back the time, what event would you change in your life and why?
• Would you study something different or go for a different occupation if you had the chance? If so, what decision would you make?
• What's the biggest regret you have now? How did that decision change your life?
• Is there anything in your life you don't feel sorry about, even though other people may think it is wrong?

We're sure you'll like this episode and you'll feel no sorrow for listening to it. Have a wonderful time, and don't forget to be in contact!

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here! 

In Contact! Episode 21: Australia

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What comes to your mind every time you hear 'Australia'? Maybe you may know little or nothing about this wonderful country, or maybe things like kangaroos, koalas, wildlife and stunning beaches come to your mind. There are so many things to learn about this amazing place, so today we'll dedicate this episode to the lucky country, Australia.

And in order to make you more familiar to this wondeful island in Oceania, we'll share with you some information about the culture and people of this country, the particularities the Ozzie (Australian) accent has and some expressions that are widely used in conversational situations. Also, we'll listen to music of famous singers and bands which maybe you didn't know come from Australia. Of course we won't miss this chance to test people's knowledge about the Never Never and the dexterity of our two presenters of In Contact! to talk as much as they can about Australia without hesitation, deviation or repetition. You'll definitely love this episode!

Before you start listening and as you listen to the episode, Please answer the following questions:

• What do you know about Australia (location, capital city, culture, etc)?
• What makes Strine (Australian English) so special and different from other types of English? Do you find it easy or difficult?
• What animals species from Australia are well know (here we'll see if you're an Anital Planet fan!)?
• Would you be interested in travelling to this beautiful country? And what do you find most appealling of it?

 WANT THE TRANSCRIPT? Click here!