native speaker, how exactly are you learning? You might get a little
practice, but you will not learn anything new.
On the other hand, as you listen to a native speaker you get a wealth of
learning. You’ll hear true native pronunciation. You’ll learn natural phrases.
You’ll learn new words. You’ll learn idioms and slang. In fact, most of the
benefit of having English conversations happens when you are listening.
This is good news, because most people love to talk. You don’t need to
feel stressed about talking with a native speaker because it’s very easy. All
you have to do is ask them a lot of questions. Ask them about their life. Ask
about their job or school. Ask about their family. Ask about their hobbies
and interests. Ask about their past experiences.
Then listen. Listen carefully. As they speak, look at their eyes and the
rest of their face. Seek to understand as well as possible. If you don’t
understand something, ask more questions for clarification.
When your goal is to listen rather than talk, you’ll learn more English
and you will also be a better friend. Everybody loves a good listener! The
added benefit to you is that you can relax. You don’t need to feel pressured
to speak. With a few simple questions you will have all the conversations
you want.
Mini Story Retells
We have discussed natural conversation situations and how to approach
them. In this last section, I’ll teach you how to practice speaking and
improve your pronunciation. Though you’ll always spend the vast majority
of your time listening, advanced learners can also benefit from a little bit of
speaking practice daily.
Speaking practice is only recommended for advanced learners who are
already speaking effortlessly. At that point, you are ready to work on your
pronunciation and speed.
One of the easiest ways to practice speaking is to do mini story retells. As
the name suggests, you will use the same mini stories described in Rule
