Episode 4
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In this episode, I will show you one of the best ways to practice your English in your city. After that, I will read to you a short story to help you with your grammar skills. You’ll see how fun it is to practice with this audio.
Ok, let’s get started.
SpeakEnglishPodcast.com/podcast →
Imagine for a moment that I can show you the perfect activity for practicing your English by listening and speaking, meeting interesting people, learning exciting topics, and developing your public speaking skills. All of this in your own city.
Sounds interesting, huh? Well, if you live in a city, the chances are that you can find the perfect place for that. It’s called Toastmasters.
Toastmasters are a non-profit educational organization that helps people to develop their public speaking. There are more than 15.000 clubs around the world and more than 300.000 members.
In almost every city you can find a club.
So, what happens in a Toastmasters club? Usually, once a week, they have a session. Sometimes it is twice a month. In every session, members of the club give speeches in front of an audience. A typical session can have about 3 or 4 prepared speeches. After each speech, there’s another member of the club that gives a short evaluation of the previous speech. This way, everybody can learn and improve.
After the prepared speeches, there’s an exciting and sometimes frightening section called Table Topics. This is how it works: A member of the club presents a situation, and then a volunteer of the audience has to give a short 2 minutes impromptu speech. Impromptu means improvisation.
I know it can seem frightening because you are in front of an audience, and you have to improvise what to say, but it’s usually fun, and it’s an excellent activity if you want to get out of your comfort zone.
The main goal of a Toastmasters club is to provide a safe and pleasant environment for developing your public speaking skills. The best of it is that many clubs are only in English or bilingual. This means that you can practice your English in one of those clubs.
Of course, it’s an excellent way to meet interesting people, not only from your country but also from all around the world. Toastmasters clubs usually have members from different countries.
I used to be a member of a Toastmaster club, and the experience was very gratifying! I improved my public speaking skills, I learned about fascinating topics, and I met very interesting people.
I recommend you to look for a Toastmaster club in your city, and go there as a guest. If you like it, then you can think about becoming a member.
Ok, let's move on to the next section.
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GRAMMAR MADE EASY
POV Story: Grammar in Context
Read the same story in two different points of view and notice how the grammar changes naturally.
Past Tense
Paul’s friend recommended him to visit a Toastmasters Club in the city. Paul was a bit hesitant because a public speaking club seemed intimidating. However, he thought it would be an excellent opportunity to practice his English, meet new people, and get out of his comfort zone.
He sent an email to the club to arrange a visit as a guest. When the day came, he got to the club on time. The session began. He saw that one of the members conducted all the sessions. The first part was three prepared speeches. The opening speech title was: “Managing your time”; the second one was: “What you can learn from waiting at the airport,” and the third one was: “Be your own doctor.” The speeches were fun, entertaining, and informative.
After each speech, there was an evaluation performed by another member of the club. It was constructive and positive feedback that helped the speaker to improve.
The second section was different. It was the Table Topics. A guy presented the topic: “Imagine you are the president of the United States, and you have to tell on TV there’s been contact with aliens.”
Paul was one of the volunteers and, although it was frightening, he had a lot of fun.
After the meeting, Paul met some of the members at a bar near the club location. It was a perfect end for that exciting day.
Present Tense
Paul’s friend recommends him to visit a Toastmasters Club in the city. Paul is a bit hesitant because a public speaking club seems intimidating. However, he thinks it will be an excellent opportunity to practice his English, meet new people, and get out of his comfort zone.
He sends an email to the club to arrange a visit as a guest. When the day comes, he gets to the club on time. The session begins. He sees that one of the members conducts all the sessions. The first part is three prepared speeches. The first speech title is: “Managing your time”; the second one is: “What you can learn from waiting at the airport,” and the third one is: “Be your own doctor.” The speeches are fun, entertaining, and informative.
After each speech, there’s an evaluation performed by another member of the club. It’s constructive and positive feedback that helps the speaker to improve.
The second section is different. It’s the Table Topics. A guy presents the topic: “Imagine you are the president of the United States, and you have to tell on TV there’s been contact with aliens.”
Paul is one of the volunteers and, although it’s frightening, he has a lot of fun.
After the meeting, Paul meets some of the members at a bar near the club location. It’s a perfect end for this exciting day.
Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode.
Review
Vocabulary
Review the most useful words and expressions before listening again.
public speaking
speaking formally in front of an audience.
Table Topics
short impromptu speeches in a Toastmasters meeting.
non-profit
organized for a purpose other than making profit.
impromptu
done without preparation.
prepared speech
a talk planned before it is delivered.
comfort zone
a familiar situation that feels safe.
evaluation
feedback about someone’s performance.
gratifying
giving satisfaction or pleasure.
Want more speaking practice? Continue with a complete audio course.
Great
Hi Georgiana.There s only a few days i discovered your podcasts.I m areally astonished.
It s exactly what i search.
Your english speaking is quite captivating.I ll definitely listen more than 3 times everyday the same audio.now i m in number#004…
I m so lucky and i thank you a lot.
You re awesome.
Thank you! Enjoy!
Thanks for your precious time dear teacher your class is so awesome
I love you teacher Georgiana
thank you georgiana for all.
i like very much your quiet speaking
Thanks!
Your potcasts are always effective, informative and at the same time very enjoyable and…
“Toasmasters practice” is such a good idea!
Thank you, Geaorgiana!
Greetings!
i don’t know is here Toastmasters, in morocco!!!
exactly in tanger?
I recommend you to go to Toastmasters.com and check out where’s the nearest Toastmasters club.
Excelent ways
For help
Hi Amboise! Thanks for the comment! I’m happy that you liked my lesson!
Es de lo mejor para aprender inglés. Tus métodos realmente funcionan
Gracias Jaziel!!
it’s awesome mam! i can’t express how i’m feeling. this podcast really fantastic.
Thanks Chandan!!!
Hello Georgiana, you are awesome the way you teach is very unique and easy to understand. I have one question according to this video Toastmaster is nice technique to improve our spoken English so shall i go with Toastmaster or with your videos.
That’s a great idea Rohit! I’ve been going to a Toastmasters club some years ago and it was a wonderful experience.
Hello teacher , your lessons it very ful help i like you teacher and god bless you in your ways in your work .in your familly ect..
Hello Georgiana, thank you for your mission. I am writting from Turkey to you.
Hi, Boras! Have a nice day!
Great lessons Ms Giorgian! you’re a very dedicated teacher and thanks for all the help you have been giving us English learners a great bear hug of your student Vitor from Brasil.
Hi, Victor!! I’m so happy that you’re enjoying my English lessons. I wish you a great day!
I like the content of your website, You made me interested in going to attend a Toastmasters session in my city(Cairo), Thanks.
Hi Georgiana.
Thanks a lot for your attention to people and nice podcasts for learn English
Hello Gorgiana.thank you for your useful podcasts.i enjoy of reading them ,your podcasts very help me to learn english fluently.thank you for your efforts
I think Toastmasters is a good idea. It’s a good initiative. I am going to think about this.
Hi Georgiana,
I would like to say thank you for your effort to teach English, differently
I’m in love with your podcast, it’s amazing content I can’t stop to listen and learn.
Kisses from Brazil.
Thanks for your precious time dear teacher your class is so awesome
Ciao Giorgiana. Your podcast are very, very useful. Moreover, I follow your “Magic Course” and I must admit that I’m getting amazing improvements. Thanks & bye
Thank you so much for your kind words. I’m thrilled to hear that you find my podcasts useful and that you’re benefiting from my “Magic Course.” It’s wonderful to know that you’re experiencing amazing improvements. Keep up the great work! If you have any questions or need further guidance, feel free to reach out. Thanks again, and have a fantastic day!
Hi Georgiana,
Thank your for this poadcasts , I really appreciate your method .
Mohamed from France.
Hi Georgiana,
I ordered the course fluency II, I hope that I can improve my english.
Kind Regards
That’s awesome! Happy learning!