You mimic naturally. Why not apply this innate skill to improving your accent?

English for IT Pros

How to Get the American Accent -- Mimicry

Formas IMPERFECTAS
I was - yo era
You were - tú eras 
She was, he was - Ella era, él era
We were - nosotros éramos
You were - ustedes eran
They were - ellos eran

(Examples in the same order with English then Spanish)

I was tall, short, thin - yo era alto, bajo, delgado.
You are  Costa Rican, a man, a woman - tú eras costarricense, un hombre, una mujer
She was from Costa Rica, he was from Chicago - Ella era de Costa Rica
We were friends, we were family, we were cousins - nosotros éramos amigos, éramos familia, éramos primos
You were colleagues, you were partners  - ustedes eran colegas, eran socios
They were lawyers, they were students, they’re  - ellos eran abogados

***Special note for “it”***

It was late, early,  - era tarde, era temprano
It was an example - era un ejemplo
It was a good day - era un buen día
It was a class - era una clase
It was a student - (él, Ella) era una estudiante
It was my brother - (él) era mi hermano
It was a gift for you - era un regalo para ti
it was a good friend - era un buen amigo
It was last night - era ayer en la noche
it was yesterday morning- era ayer por la mañana
It was yesterday afternoon - era ayer por la tarde


conjuguemos y conjugamos 

CAPÍTULO 13 - ERA - I WAS

Сегодня знакомимся с Михаилом Зощенко и его весёлыми героями рассказа “Бабушкин подарок” Лёлей и Минькой. 

Слова, которые объясняю в эпизоде: 
горячо́ - (перен.) очень сильно - dearly, strong, so much; дари́ть - to give, present; вдоба́вок - к тому же, в добавление - in addition, moreover, as well; корзи́нка пиро́жных - a basket of cakes; позво́лить - разрешить, дать возможность - to allow; вы́брать - to choose; како́е придётся - любое - any, which one will have; вся́кий раз - каждый раз - every / each time; хны́кать - to whimper; серди́ться - быть раздраженным, злиться на кого-то - be / feel angry; да́ча - dacha; су́мочка, су́мка - bag, purse, handbag; подбежа́ть - run up; поздоро́ваться - say hello, to greet; грусть - sadness; на э́тот раз - this time; рассерди́ться - to get angry; невоспи́танная осо́ба - ill-mannered person; открове́нно - frankly, openly; благовоспи́танный - well-mannered; на све́те - in the world; благодаря́ - по причине, вследствие - thanks to, due to; такти́чное молча́ние - tactful silence; веле́ть - приказывать - to command; протяну́ть - to reach out, reach; ладо́нь - palm, hand; положи́ть - to put; моне́та - coin; копе́йка - penny.

Пишите в комментариях, какие книги или каких авторов вы хотите почитать вместе со мной? И помните, что чтение по-русски углубляет ваши знания языка! Хороших вам книг, друзья!

Reading Russian

Отрывок из рассказа "Бабушкин подарок" М.М. Зощенко

Customer: Excuse me, can you help me, please?
Staff: I’ll try!
Customer: I’m looking for some apples.
Staff: The produce section is in aisle 1, at the front of the store, near the door where you came in.
Customer: Sorry, can you repeat that?
Staff: Of course. Go to the front of the store, and near the door, where you came in, you’ll see the fruit and vegetables.
Customer: Right. Got it. Thanks so much.

English Conversation/Dialogue

At a Supermarket

This story uses words from '4000 most common English words'

Zara is dragging Bobby into the market. He is like a stubborn little boy. Her eyes are beaming with enthusiasm and his are downcast with despair. 

The market is out of this world! There are countless numbers of things Zara has never seen before. 

As the two friends walk down the street, Zara points at everything in amazement while Bobby  dismisses them as boring and ordinary. 

Arriving at a food stall, Zara wants to experience everything. “And what are these fragrant things?” 

“Those are herbs…” 

“And this spicy thing?”

“Garlic… umm, where are you from?” 

“And what about this? It looks like the roots of a plant!” 

“That’s ginger, and, yes, they are the roots. Are you from outside of China?”

Zara is overwhelmed with positive emotion and disregards Bobby’s questions. 

The two friends arrive at an animal stall. It has horses, cows, chickens and pigs for sale. Zara touches all the animals, smelling and patting them. “These creatures are beautiful!” 

But Bobby doesn’t get it. He’s never met someone so strange in his life. He’s actually starting to feel irritated by Zara’s joy.

“Look, I have to get going soon… You know, my important task. So, is there anything I can do for you?” 

Zara stuffs a sugar-coated figurine into Bobby’s mouth. “Try this!” 

Bobby reluctantly chews and a little smile appears on his face. But then it disappears and he looks annoyed.

Zara runs off down the street, touching all the lovely silks and picking up all the metal tools. 

Bobby thinks, who does she think she is?

Being a Cloud

Zara the Mayfly

¿Tú montas muchos pollos? ¿O conoces a alguien que lo haga? Probablemente sí...

Expresiones en español

Montar un pollo

FLO TALKS 

ATTACHMENT IS NOT LOVE

In this short dialogue we will listen to a couple discussing the time. Pay attention to different phrases they use to tell time!

Transcript: 
NATASHA: What time is it? We’re going to be late!
TONY: It’s a quarter after seven. We’re on time. Don’t panic.
NATASHA: But I thought we had to be at the restaurant by 7:30 for the surprise party. We’ll never make it there with all this evening traffic.
TONY: Sure we will. Rush hour is almost over. Anyway, the party starts at 8:00. But I do need help with directions. Can you call the restaurant and ask them where we park our car?

Practice Listening, Reading & Comprehension

What Time Is It?

CUATRO DE LOS CHISTES MÁS COMUNES EN LAS PROVINCIAS DE MÉXICO.