In this short podcast, I will answer one of the most important questions that many students have asked me: How long does it take to become fluent in English?

How to Learn English

How long does it take to become fluent in English?

For many students, the fourth-tone is hard to pronounce. A word with two fourth-tone syllables is more difficult to speak well. Just remember one point, we should do the fourth-tone from level 5 to level 1. Please read aloud after me. 
秘密，抱歉，半夜，大象，地震，现代，介绍，信用，印象，浪漫，羡慕，适应，聚会，毕业，另外，正式，判断

Chinese Learning with Lily

How to pronounce a word with two fourth-tone syllables?


はい、こんにちは。ようへい先生です。
えー、今日は　とてもとても よくあるまちがいの文を みなさんに、紹介（しょうかい）したいと思います。5つありますので、私が言いますから、何がまちがいなのか、ちょっとみんな考（かんが）えてくださいね。

うん、こたえは後で言います。私が答えを言う前に みなさん考えてください。 
えー、1つ目、

①　その山は高いじゃないです。

はい、答えは「その山は高くないです」ですね、はい、ちょっとかんたんですか？
じゃあ、2つ目、2つ目もちょっとかんたんです。

②　つくえの上に何もあらないです。

はい。これは、せいかいは「机の上に何もないです」ですね。はい、これもかんたんでしたね。じゃあ3ばん目。 

③　私は今東京で住んでいます。

はい。これは、せいかいは「私は今東京に住んでいます」ですね、 じゃあ、4つ目、

④　去年（きょねん）から毎日学校ではたらきます。

はい、分かりますか。これもよくあるまちがいですね。”はたらきます” これは、ステイタス status  うん、仕事ですから、「去年から毎日学校ではたらいています」 『ています』を使わなければいけません。
「・去年から毎日学校ではたらきます」これはえ、意味が全然わかりません。はい、じゃあ最後5つ目

⑤　来年（らいねん）大学を入学（にゅうがく）します、

はい、これも 助詞（じょし）particle です。わかりますか。「来年大学に入学します」ですね。

はい、どうでしたか。えーかんたんでしたか？むずかしかったですか。はい じゃ今日もみなさん最後まで聞いてくれてありがとうございます。日本語の勉強がんばってください。バイバイ👋


ようへい先生　N4～N3　レベルの生徒（せいと）へ　(^^♪

＃1４　よくあるまちがい、５つ

Сегодня прочтем отрывок из сказки “Необыкновенные приключения Карика и Вали”, автор Ян Ларри. Это история о том, как один профессор и двое детей (их имена есть в названии - мальчик Карик и девочка Валя) стали очень маленькими и исследовали наш мир с другой стороны, так сказать. Я очень любила эту книжку в детстве.

Слова, которые объясняю в эпизоде: це́лый - весь, полный - whole; забы́ть - перестать помнить - to forget; находи́ться - быть, пребывать, иметься где-нибудь - to be, locate; склони́ться - нагнуться, опуститься - to bow down; ста́рый знако́мый - an old acquaintance; стекло́ - glass; пау́к - spider; сра́зу - немедленно, в тот же момент - at once, right away, straight; рассмотре́ть - всматриваясь, распознать, осмотреть - to descry; ко́нчик его ноги - tip of his foot; ко́готь (или когото́к) - ноготь зверя или птицы - claw; гре́бень - crest, comb; у́зел паути́ны - web node; бык - bull; разгляде́ть - то же самое, что рассмотреть - to make out; че́люсть - jaw; взду́тый - swollen; брю́хо - живот животного - belly, abdomen; охо́титься - заниматься охотой - to hunt.

Все тексты я выложила здесь: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AykLSjPt5-q6JHKDJ39-kVs12Dy8-A2EnEvN4Qc9bc0/edit?usp=sharing

Помните, что чтение по-русски углубляет ваши знания языка! Хороших вам книг, друзья!

Reading Russian

Отрывок из сказки “Необыкновенные приключения Карика и Вали” Ян Ларри

En este episodio te hablo sobre cual pronombre es mejor usar, ¿Tu o usted?.. Y aunque ya sabemos que Tu esta relacionado con cercanía y Usted con formalidad, creo que para los hablantes nativos es algo cultural. Algunas regiones usan mas uno que otro. 
Cuéntame en los comentarios cual prefieres usar, ¿Tu o usted?

Speaker Maria.E !!!

¿Tu o usted?

PHRASES and VOCABULARIES USED: 

I'd  like to now if ...
Let me check for you ...
We do have the ...
I'll go with the ...
I'll get that for you ...

Special
Availble
Great
Wonderful Choice
Right away

Language Lab: Conversations with Teacher Rose - Unlocking English Fluency

How to check the availability of a particular dish at a restaurant

Here are three comparative idioms that are commonly used in English:
1.	As busy as a bee: Meaning very busy or industrious.
Example: "During the holiday season, the shops are as busy as bees with shoppers."
2.	As light as a feather: Meaning very light in weight.
Example: "The package was as light as a feather, making it easy to carry."
3.	As clear as day: Meaning very clear and obvious.
Example: "Her explanation was as clear as day; everyone understood it easily."


Learn With Kimiya

Comparative Idioms 

Aquí te comparto una actividad para que puedas reconocer tu intuición. 

La magia de la vida

Episodio 22: La intuición a cara o sello

If you see someone sitting alone in a restaurant, you might assume they're waiting for someone, or perhaps they're grabbing a quick lunch on their break.

But more and more people around the world are purposely dining alone.

Japan has a special word for this: ohitorisama, which refers to people confidently doing things alone without worrying about what others think.

A recent survey found that 23% of Japanese people eat out alone, up from 18% in 2018. And in the US, solo dining reservations have risen 29% over the last two years, according to restaurant reservation site OpenTable.

OpenTable CEO Debby Soo thinks remote work is one reason for the increase, with people looking for a break from their home offices.

The increasing popularity in solo dining comes as more people are living alone. In 2019, the Pew Research Center found that 38% of US adults ages 25 to 54 were living without a partner, up from 29% in 1990. In Japan, single households now make up one-third of the total; that’s expected to increase to 40% by 2040, according to government data.

Growing interest in solo travel — particularly among travelers ages 55 and over — is also leading to more meals alone.

But Soo thinks there could be more to it than that.

"I think there's a broader movement of self-love and self-care and really … enjoying your own company," Soo said.

As a result, many restaurants are redoing their seating, changing their menus and adding other special touches to appeal to solo diners.

But some aren't always happy to seat one diner. A Michelin-starred London restaurant caused a stir last year when it started charging solo diners the same price as two customers. The restaurant, which has 34 seats, offers an eight-course menu costing about $280 per person.

Other restaurants say it's worth seating one person because solo diners will often come back and eat there again.