Hello, good morning and good evening. Good afternoon,
wherever you're watching or listening from my name is Adriana from englishteacheradriana.come and
today I want to teach you how to learn English with movies. So I know that a lot of you...
Well, I know I love watching movies
I'm glad a lot of you watch a lot of TV, that you're watching movies, TV shows and in this lesson
I want to talk about how you can improve your level of English by watching movies in English, of course.
Okay to begin with this lesson. I have asked you a question in the live chat
about what is your favorite movie and why, in English, okay. So share with us, I can see lots of great movies coming through
Title Training Day, interesting, okay with Denzel, Washington
Silence of the Lambs. Okay. That's a little bit scary
Anyway, keep your questions coming through your, sorry, movies coming through and we will go through this.
In this lesson, I have divided this up into three topics. So we'll go through a few sections
First of all, why you should be learning English with movies
Go through some tips to help you learn English with movies and just a quick...
An exercise you can do at home. You can start doing this today
Incorporate this as part of your study routine
Just to simply learn real English and also to watch movies, have fun and improve your level of English.
This question has been asked a lot on my Instagram profile. I know a lot of you are watching
YouTube videos, you're watching movies. You're watching TV shows.
Some of you are watching them, but you're really frustrated because you can't understand English speakers.
Sometimes it's speaking too fast.
This lesson will help you to better understand natural conversations.
Now in the description below this video you will find also all the links that I mentione throughout this video
Make sure to check them out and if you do have any questions and like me to answer in the future,
please do join the discussion on my Instagram stories, which I am posting once a week.
My handle is English with Adriana. You'll find me there.
Okay, so let's begin. First of all, the first topic why you should be learning English with movies
Look movies, it teaches... Movies sho a lot about culture and how people interact
About communication, you can really learn a lot through movies if you like watching movies that is.
Also, I know that I watch a lot of movies to relax, just simply have a laugh.
It depend, heaps of movies out there, a lot of great movies for you to be watching.
Basically when you're watching movies, you see English being used in the real world, so you're not learning textbook English
So when you're in a language school, you may be presented with grammar rules. You may be presented with pronunciation rules
But as you already know, a lot of English speakers don't use grammar correctly.
We use a lot of slang. We use a lot of connected speech, doesn't mean that it's wrong, all right.
It just, it's just the way that we communicate and we speak in the English language. So this
frustration that you may be having at the moment that you're unable to understand native English speakers or English speakers who speak
but a higher level, you're struggling to understand them, it's probably because you've been learning textbook English and you haven't been
immersing and surrounding yourself with real English.
Watching movies, learning English with TV shows, movies is a great way for you to just
expose yourself to real English, surround yourself, and it's a great way to be just simply immersing yourself more in the English language
Now also you may notice that English speakers,
right, and you want to be able to use a wide range of vocabulary when you are also
speaking in English. By watching TV shows and movies in English you are actually seeing,
hearing other words being used, vocabulary. This is a great way for you to see and learn English words in
context. So I've talked a lot about this on my YouTube channel, the importance of learning English words in context and
also be using various English words in different contexts when you're speaking in English in the future.
By simply watching TV shows you'll hear new words, expressions, new phrases, slang, idioms in
context and your ability to understand and use them in the future will increase.
You will also learn how people express themselves. So various people express themselves differently.
So my word choice might be different to your word choice, if you're watching or listening to this.
It's probably different to other English speakers.
Everybody uses different words to express themselves, different grammatical structures, and this will...
By watching movies, you'll also see how different people express themselves.
What words they use, what grammar they use to express their ideas, their thoughts and how they communicate in English.
it's great for you to be exposing and surrounding yourself with the English language a lot more.
But there are some things that a lot of people, a lot of students actually don't do. So you may be watching
movies and you're using subtitles. You may be watching a TV show or a movie synchronized in your language.
This actually isn't good for you to develop and improve your listening skills, to learn new vocabulary, to learn real English.
So I have some tips to help you learn English with movies.
The first and most important tip is that you should be choosing an interesting movie.
So a movie that you love, a topic, a movie that you want to watc, so, for example
there was one movie recommendation that came through, The SIlence of the Lambs.
So as far as I know, this is a horror and it's a thriller. It's a scary movie.
I don't like scary movies. You told me to watch this in English or Croatian, my second language, I wouldn't want to watch it
Okay, it's not something that I'm interested in, but it doesn't mean that you're not interested in it.
It's important to be choosing a movie that you want to watch, that you'd like.
So I know a lot of you also may be learning English for specialized purposes.
Say, for example, for your job or your profession may be to communicate on certain topics with other speakers.
Think about why it is you're learning English and what vocabulary you need to improve. For example,
if you're a lawyer, for example,
and you need to improve your legal English, try to choose topics where you'll see a lot of lawyers, a lot of
courtroom activity, try to choose movies which have a plot based on these topics.
Now if you're a doctor, so you're in the medical field, maybe you're a nurse. You're a doctor,
You're a surgeon, whatever you want. You can choose movies based on medicine and operations in hospitals.
This is a great way for you to improve your vocabulary in that field.
Of course, don't be watching a movie just based on the vocabulary
you'll learn, but if you do really struggle to remember words based on your profession, it is always great to be
choosing a movies to watch based on your field of expertise.
Now also it's important to be not using a dictionary. Okay. Now, when you're watching a movie it should be fun.
You should be having fun doing this and
I don't recommend that you use a dictionary and sit there with a dictionary next to you to look up all the words
that you'll hear, the whole point of watching movies is for you to be immersing yourself more in the English language. If you are
if you're listening to this lesson at the moment, you probably can understand 80 to 90% of what I'm saying
So you are ready to actually watch movies and if you don't understand a word,
instead of focusing on okay, I've got to translate this word. I've got to look it up in a dictionary.
Start to ask yourself questions.
So ask yourself questions about what word is
that word that you identify, that's a new word.
What context is it being used in, is it being used with a positive connotation, with a negative connotation?
Ask yourself questions about the context and about the situation that you find that word in.
Why is this a lot better than just simply translating or looking it up in a dictionary?
It's not gonna be fun for you to watch a movie and to just simply be looking up every second word.
Instead of looking up the words, press pause, think a little bit about what happened in the scene before.
Think about what's happening now, and why do you think they use that word? What's happening? By asking yourself these questions,
instead of just looking at these words, you're training your brain to think a little bit more, you're training your brain to identify,
the context of that word. If you really then have to do, only then use a monolingual dictionary to look it up, but even then
if it is an important word, you'll hear it used repetitively
Okay, if you really want to but I'm sure that if you do question yourself,
if you do ask the context that's being used in, you will be able to understand what the word means. All right.
Now also by you asking yourself questions and not using a dictionary, you are actually
training your brain to process that new word a lot better and the chances of you remembering that word in the future a lot higher
Because you're already questioning, okay, so, for example the word was
Okay flower and okay, that's not good word. Let's say the word was bubbly. She was a bubbly person
So if, if a character described another person as bubbly she has, she's a bubbly person, think about,
okay, what did that person do in the previous scene? So was she happy or was
she sad? Most likely she was very happy because somebody that it's bubbly, they are very very happy all the time.
just have a very bright and expressive personality. By you
analyzing that person before, how they acted
you'll also create an association, a visual Association in your brain that okay, so that character acted like this.
She was bubbly. Then in the future, I can use bubbly to describe my friends
to describe my colleagues or describe somebody new, okay.
So this is also a great way to be questioning yourself.
Again, another tip that I have for you to be learning English in movies is all the new phrases that you do learn, repeat
them.
Okay, if you hear that the actors are using them over and over again
Maybe it's a phrase that you should know, try to shadow.
Shadowing is something I've talked a lot about on my channel.
It's basically when you listen to English speakers saying something and you repeat out loud
exactly what it is they're saying. So you're copying them like a child.
When you're doing this, this will help you remember those phrases,
but also remember the pronunciation and most importantly, the intonation. So I know a lot of you maybe are
but you're not speaking that much and then when you do have to speak, you're a little bit worried about your
pronunciation, your accent, how you sound. By simply shadowing and repeating these phrases,
it's something that children do, it's probably most likely how you learned your language. It's how I learned my first language.
You know, when your parents are like,
mum or dad or give me that, you're repeating over and over again to a child, the child
repeats back at you. This is the same that you're doing.
It's a great way to... It's actually really fast way to
learn new phrases, new expressions and most importantly, to be using that you, not, new knowledge.
Okay, so also I do recommend not using subtitles, I have talked about this over and over again.
Subtitles are great to be using if you want to improve your reading skills, but to be improving your listening skills,
I don't recommend that you use subtitles, they're actually stopping you from improving your listening skills.
They're stopping you from really enjoying that video, because you have to do a lot more brain activity.
In the long term, okay, but I know in the short term it will be harder for you to follow English
conversations, to follow actors and everything without subtitles, but in the long term you'll see that you'll enjoy
watching movies in English a lot more. Now, I do understand that
it's easier said than done, just to stop using subtitles
and this is why I want to go through exactly now, how you can progress to
Because I know a lot of you really want to stop using subtitles
But you don't know how to progress and want small things you can start doing now to just stop using them.
Okay, this is what we're going through now.
If you're watching this and you can understand me and you're live here and you can understand and follow
There is no reason for you to be using subtitles.
Because throughout this live stream, there are no subtitles at the moment. There is, there are subtitles if you're watching it replay, but
Basically, you are at a level to stop using subtitles.
So how can you progress. So, learn English, improve your English without subtitles while watching your movie.
So I want you to choose a movie, get it out
and if you aren't using subtitles at the moment watch two to three minutes of that movie without subtitles.
Okay, so watch it without subtitles and just see what's happening.
Okay, pay attention to how are people holding themselves, pay attentions oto the words they're using, pay attention to the intonation to the pronunciation
really actively listen and also pay attention to their body language. So how are they holding themselves, how are they not holding themselves
Now once you watch 2 to 3 minutes of this, what I want you to do is rewind.
Rewind that scene and then watch it with
subtitles. If you really struggle to understand what happened in those 2 to 3 minutes watch it again.
But this time use subtitles. When you are using subtitles again, only use English subtitles.
Don't be using, if you're an Arabic speaker, don't be using Arabic subtitles.
Only be using English subtitles to really listen to the conversation and then follow exactly what they saying
Watch it again. You still don't understand what's happening. Watch it one more time.
Now while you are watching it a few times with subtitles, you may see that there's new phrases, there may be new
expressions, new words that you may come across.
Instead of looking up these words, remember in the tips that I shared before ask yourself questions.
So why are they using this word? What do they want to say? What is, what's happening in the scene? Ask yourself questions.
What's happening in the scene?
So that you can get a better idea of the context that that word is being used.
If you still cannot understand the exact scene and it's a really important word for you to be able to understand exactly what's going on
Only then get a dictionary and look it up, get a monolingual dictionary. Don't get a bilingual dictionary.
So get an English English dictionary with English
definitions because this will also help you just stay in the mindset of, in the English mindset and not translating.
after you've gone through this, you understand everything, a great way for you to be using what you've learned
Because I'm sure, while you've watched that video that
segment or a part of, of a TV show or movie, watch it again with some titles
So shadowing, I did talk about this before, is when you repeat out loud what they're saying. Watch the movie again, watch with subtitles and
repeat out loud everything that the actors are saying. Now, why should you repeat be repeating this out loud?,
It's a great way for you to get that speaking practice.
It's a great way for you to be using the new words that you've learned, also it is a great way to be focusing on
connected speech, in movies in TV shows people don't speak slow.
They speak very very fast and by you shadowing natural English, natural English.
You will hear connected speech, you'll hear intonation, the tones they're using
make sure to, make sure to be following also how that voice is going up, how the voice is going down and
copy them exactly how they are speaking.
Now this can also be a little bit hard to do
If you... I do recommend that you begin with subtitles and then progress without subtitles.
Again, this should only be about two to three minutes at the scene. You don't have to worry and do the whole
movie, I mean it can last anywhere between, I don't know, 45 minutes to an hour and a half.
Three hours, I saw recommendation was Titanic.
Don't be doing it throughout three hour movies such as Titanic.
Only choose one scene in the movie and
focus about ten minutes of your day doing this on a scene that lasts about two to three minutes.
Now you can also take this a level up by shadowing without subtitles.
So once you've gone through your shadowing with subtitles, you can turn the subtitles off and shadow without subtitles.
Now, why shadow without subtitles,
this is a great way to really train your ear, to see that you fully understood everything, you are able to use connected speech, just
as the actors have done and you're able to follow, to process the information very very fast.
Now this is something I would like to highlight that this is something you should be doing
about every second day, every third day.
You shouldn't be dedicating hours and hours of this, just choose a scene that you like, an interesting scene and
only choose about two to three minutes of that scene. Ah, I see you do this as well. Fantastic.
I'm glad that you're doing this
Now one other thing that you could do is... You want feedback. So I know a lot of you would like to,
would like feedback. Basically if you sound ok, if your intonation is okay, if your word choice is okay.
If you're sounding like the actors, if you sound like a native.
Now a great way for you to get feedback and what actually, to give yourself feedback, is to be recording your voice.
So I have mentioned it before, I'm sure you all have a mobile device.
Record your voice, shadow after the actors and then once you've finished shadowing compare.
Listen to yourself and listen to the actors and see okay, were you able to use pronunciation. Okay, were you able to
speak clearly. Are you able to understand everything that you said? Give yourself feedback and this is a great way to also track your progress
Small daily steps to achieve English fluency is really the way to go. This exercise, about ten minutes long
it shouldn't take you more than ten minutes. If it takes you more than 10 minutes,
you really have to try to reduce your time, the time that you're spending on this exercise.
Doing this every single, every single day or every second day is really
fantastic for your listening and for your speaking skills and by giving yourself
feedback and by actually storing it somewhere on your mobile phone, on your computer, in the long term
you will see the progress that you're making and you'll be more satisfied and motivate, motivated to continue learning with movies.
Now it is really important to be choosing a movie that you like, if you choose a movie that you don't like, it
won't be fun. And you won't want to do this. Also, it is important to just be realistic.
Some days you're not going to want to do this, some days
you will try to be as consistent as you can. If you can do it every second day and it's
fantastic, you can do it every day, that's also great.
Don't be too hard on yourself, aim for every second or third day.
And the point is to be consistent. If you do it once a month, it's not going to work.
But if you do do it consistently for the next two to three months, you will see that your ability to progress from using subtitles
to not using subtitles will happen a lot faster and also your ability to
understand movies and TV shows in English will really improve.
Okay, that would be all for today, I hope this video lesson was useful, if
you do have any questions for future videos, make sure to ask the poll on my Instagram.
I will be posting one today. You will find a link to my Instagram in the description below this video.
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