The Vivaling English Podcast (VivaLing)

In this special Halloween-themed episode, Kari and Robert discuss Halloween traditions, their favorite creepy films, and a treasure trove of vocabulary words that express fear and describe all things spooky. Tune in… if you dare! 

What do you want to be when you grow up?
A doctor, police officer, or teacher? These are common answers, but have you ever thought about having an unusual job? Learn fun new vocabulary, hear about the ups and downs of these unique professions, and guess the meaning of some key job-related terms.

Plus, we have a challenge for you at the end! 

In this fun episode, we’ll explore the world of chores and discover that making your own snack can be a chore too! Learn how to whip up a quick and easy bagel pizza with your favourite toppings. We’ll guide you step-by-step and share some fun pizza trivia along the way.

Join us for a festive journey around the globe! In this episode, we explore unique and heartwarming Christmas traditions from different countries. Discover how people celebrate with food, music, decorations, and customs that might surprise you. Tune in and celebrate the season with us!

Audio attributions: TaDa, Horn Honk, Beach Soundscape 3 by soundbible, Traffic Jam by Yo_Mama, Evil Laugh 6  by Hi man, Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Falling Down Stairs by creative commons, Ticking Clock and Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Ticking Clock and Electronic Chime by KevanGC, Pigeon by Vjahir Vorkuet
Tornado Siren 2 by Delilah

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Audio attributions: Electronic Chime by KevanGC, Cha Ching Register by Muska 666, Drum Roll and TaDa by soundbible, News Intro by Maximilien, Small Crowd Applause by Yannick Lemieux
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Audio attributions: Electronic Chime by KevanGC, Evil Laugh, Male 6 Himan, Labrador Barking by Daniel Simon, Sad Trombone by Joe Lamb, Ta Da and Tiger Growling by soundbible.com, Small Crowd Applause by Yannick lemieux

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Audio attributions: Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Angry Squirrel, Chimpanzee, Coyotee Call, Neck Breaking, River Noise, Scary Titus Calen,Ta Da and Wind Blowing by Soundbible 

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Audio Attributions: Ambulance, Female Sigh, Flushing the Toilet, Pig Oinking, Robot Machine, Strange Noise by Soundbible. Cha Ching Register by Muska666, Old Car Engine by Daniel Simion, Robot Blip, Robot Blip 2 by Marianne Gagnon, Sad Trombone by Joe Lamb

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Sarah is an English coach with VivaLing.  But she also speaks another language herself - listen to her lamguage learning tips based on her experience as a coach and a student. 

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Camping is a fun way to enjoy nature and spend time with your family or friends. In part 1 Tom shares a funny anecdote with Kari and tests her on the words he uses for camping equipment. In part 2, it will be the other way round! 

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Now it's Kari's turn to tell us about her childhood memories of family camping and Tom's turn to be tested on the camp word family!

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As people's thoughts start turning to school again - this podcast revises superlative adjectives and discovers the biggest, oldest and coolest schools in the world. 

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We all know about maths, science, English and history, but some schools and universities have some crazy subjects. 
Find out with Tom if these are true or false . 

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Do you know what a tall tale is?  Have you ever heard of Paul Bunyon?  And Babe?
If not - you will definitely learn a lot in this new podcast.  Join Kari for an excellent lesson in American culture and improve your listening skills!

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Have you ever tried to describe a sport to someone who knows nothing about it?  That was the challenge Tom faced with Kari - who has never seen a rugby match and wanted to find out more.   Listen out for specialist sport and rugby vocabulary!

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Last week we taught Kari the basics of rugby - a sport she knew nothing about.  This week she has actually seen a game so she was able to ask more questions.  Learn more vocabulary and practice your comprehension with the exercises on the transcript. 

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Wednesday September 27th is world tourism day.   But what is dark tourism.  Listen to Tom explain this new (or not so new) phenomenon and make up your own mind.  Is it a good or bad thing?

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Bhangarh Fort is one of the most haunted places in the world! Find out what happened when Tom visited it in 2022. Would you have the courage to stay the night in a cursed castle?
Check out the transcript for vocabulary and comprehension exercises. 

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Why are people so afraid of Friday the 13th? Is it really an unlucky day? What is the history behind the superstition? Find out more with Kari and Tom... 

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Listen to these 4 different Halloween traditions and try to guess which country they come from. We hope you don't get too scared!

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Do you know what stingy means? Find out what happens when Jack tries to trick the devil!

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Prepositions are small and annoying words - they are responsible for many mistakes in English, but why?
Join Tom to look at some key dependent prepositions and prepositional phrases and use his simple exercise to get more practice.  Don't forget to check the transcript to see the prepositions used in this podcast. 

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Next week is a very special week for VivaLing - we will be celebrating our anniversary - find out which by listening to this podcast, You will also  learn more about the history of birthday and anniversary parties with Kari and Tom. 
Would you like to join us for our anniversary celebrations? - register with this link   https://vivaling.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0vf-2hrDkiE9XUlpNX-_DeL9T9HTT4XdPr#/registration 

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Many people are aware that the Americans will be celebrating Thanksgiving this week.  But what do you know about the origins of this festival, and what can you do to respect its traditions?

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Join Kari and Tom as they introduce our listeners to 6 idiomatic expressions related to animals - a horse, a dog and a bee!!

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We're back! And as this is a new year it is also a new season.  
Our first episode in 2024 is an excellent chance to check how much winter vocabulary - you know. 
Join Kari on her tour of a winter wonderland! 

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Join Kari and Tom on their mission to help you improve your vocabulary - not by learning new words - but by adding prefixes and suffixes to the ones you already know.  This week - suffixes. 

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Tom and Kari follow up last week's episode on suffixes with an episode on the opposite - prefixes!

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The difference between make and do can be tricky but there are good explanations and examples here to help you understand. 

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February 14th is a romantic day - it is Valentine's Day but what do British and American people actually do, and what do you know about the culture and history behind this tradition. Join Tom and Kari to find out more!

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Have you ever wondered what collocations were - and why you should study them.  Learn some examples of adjective/noun collocations and see if Kari and Tom can fit them into a short story!!

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Not only will you learn how to cook vegetable stir fry with Kari's recipe, but you will also learn new words for food and cooking techniques.  What could be better than that?

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In British and American English we have different words for different meals and courses.  Join Kari and Tom as they steer through this minefield to help you undertsand which words to use. 

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It's important to be able to use a variety of grammar when you are speaking and writing - Kari and Tom give some excellent tips on the difference between the passive and active voices. 

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Last week we were talking about the passive voice - this episode is an extension of that - looking at a specific passive voice structure that many students have difficulty with 0 the causative!

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The gerund finishes with -ing - but it is not a verb.  What is it and how can we use it?
Find out with Kari and Tom in this excellent podcast. 

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Maybe you noticed we have paused for a while - the reason is that we are re-organising the podcast to make it match our listeners' needs. 
Please contribute to the future by letting us know your opinion about our podcast - 
The survey can be accessed on this link...
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Have you ever wondered why people make Jack o`Lanterns for Halloween?
Listen to the Vivaling English Podcast to find out more about this popular festival. 

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Remember, remember, the 5th of November,  Gunpowder, treason and plot. Why do people in England celebrate with big fires and fireworks on this day every year?  Listen and find out...

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There are many different Christmas traditions around the world. In this podcast we look at four traditions from four countries: France, China, Germany and Spain. Try and guess which is which. 

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Learn more about what is true and not true about Christmas with this Vivaling Christmas podcast.

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Have you heard of the Loch Ness Monster?
What do you think?
Could he exist?
Listen to these experts discussing the possibilities and see who you agree with.....
But don`t be afraid - Loch Ness is a long way away.

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Learn more about Black Lives Matter and why it is so important to fight against discrimination.  
Listen to Vivaling coaches talk about their experiences!

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Audio attribution: Mike Koenig and Daniel Simion on SoundBible

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It`s important to learn more about strange animals all over the world.  The more we know, the more we can help them.
Find out more about the mysterious aye-aye from Madagascar and listen to some ideas about how you can help endangered animals.
Attribution to Caroline Ford for the sound effect "sound of someone eating" attribution 3.0 licence. http://soundbible.com/976-Eating.html

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Audio attributions: Seagulls by Daniel Simion.

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Audio attribution: French accordion music by Dar Golan, royalty free music by New York Baguette.

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Audio attribution: The Star Spangled Banner by John Stafford Smith (Public domain), Drum Sound Effect by The Sound Laboratory

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Audio attribution: Cow Moo by Mike Koenig, Ole Matador by Soundbible

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Being polite is a way of showing respect to people and making them happy. But how polite should we be in Britain? Please listen to these 5 handy tips. Thank you so much!

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Audio attributions: TV static by Mike Koenig at Soundbible, Traffic jam by Yo mama  at Soundbible.com

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Audio attribution: sad trombone by Joe Lamb, barking labrador by Daniel Simon, drum roll and door close  by soundbible.com 

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Audio attributions: Metal Gong, Flushing the Toilet by Soundbible, Chinese Gong by Daniel Simon,  
Thanks for the participation of Elie and Loh Waihong.

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Audio attributions: Astronaut Breathing, Count of Three, Crowd Boo, Heckles and Bird Poop Splat by Mike Koenig, Shotgun Blast by Jim Rogers, Sports Crowd by GoGo at Soundbible 

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Audio attributions: Magic Wand Noise, Soldiers Marching by Sounbible, Electronic Chime by KevanGC, La Marseillaise, Land of Hope, Glory by Public Domain 

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Not only did William Shakespeare write amazing poems and plays.  He  also introduced words and expressions into the English language - find out more by listening to the Vivaling English Podcast. 
attribution 
Cartoon birds 2 - Daniel Simon 
Drum roll - soundbible.com
Electronic Chime KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Neck Breaking, Button Click, River Noise by soundbible.com, Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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We all love music so let's learn more about the five most popular genres as well as some curious facts related to them. You'll be sure to learn something new as you practice your listening skills!

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Audio attributions: Electronic Chime by Kevan GC, Dinosaur Roar by Soundbible

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Brittany introduces three new dialogues on the theme of summer for you to improve your listening and learn more about many people`s favourite season.

Attributions  Cha Ching register Muska 666
flock of seagulls Daniel Simion
Sunny Day soundbible.com
Electronic Chime KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Air Horn by Soundbible, Chinese Gong by Daniel Simon, Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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Brittany will teach you about a typical American family and their hobbies.  Learn new words and improve your listening with this excellent new episode. 

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Audio attributions: Meadowlark, Service Bell by Daniel Simion, Zombie Horde by Mike Koenig, Fire burning by JaBa, Warning Siren and Drumroll by soundbible.com, Helicopter Approach by Mike Koenig, Sad Trombone by Joe Lamb
Statistics and stories adapted from BBC Newsbeat,The Guardian

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Audio attributions: Water Drop by soundbible, Tornado Siren II by Delilah, Thunder and Crisp Ocean Waves by Mike Koenig, Sawing Wood, Party Crowd and Old Car Engine by Daniel Simon
Electronic Chime by KevanGC

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Audio attributions: Electronic Chime by Kevan GC, Sad Trombone by Joe Lamb

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Audio attribution: Electronic Chime by Kevan GC

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Audio attributions: Jump by snottyboy, Swords Clashing by Mike Koenig, Evil Laugh by Himan, Strange Noise and Sound at Carnival by soundbible, Electronic Chime by KevanGC, Sakura 2020 by Roa Music

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Audio Attributions: Fish Splashing by Soundbible, Sad Trombone by Joe Lamb, Electronic Chime by Kevan GC

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It’s Christmas time, and we’ve got a special holiday treat just for you! This kids episode is packed with fun, laughter, and a sprinkle of festive magic. Whether you’re cozy by the fire or out enjoying the winter chill, this is the perfect way to celebrate the season.

Gather your loved ones and let's get into the holiday spirit 🎅🎁 

Do you love veggies? How about growing them right at home? In this fun episode, you'll learn how to plant a mini garden on your windowsill! Follow step-by-step instructions to grow your very own all from the comfort of your house.

In this cosy episode of "You’re the Apple of My Eye," Kari and Robert celebrate autumn with a chat about their favourite apple dishes and fun apple-themed idioms. Join in for a fun mix of food and language! 

In this episode, we dive into the exciting world of restaurants, with a special spotlight on the Rainforest Café. Can you imagine dining in a tropical rainforest surrounded by the elements? Tune in to test your memory with some fun questions and get creative with a challenge for your next English lesson!
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In this episode, we explore the modal verbs WILL and SHALL. Join us as we use them in practical scenarios like planning a trip to the UK! Are you ready to master WILL and SHALL? Tune in and practice along with us!

In this episode, Kari and Robert dive into the world of "thank yous"—from casual and heartfelt to formal and polished. Discover new ways to express thanks, gracefully accept gratitude, and even navigate those tricky "thanks, but no thanks" moments. Tune in for practical tips, playful banter, and a few fun surprises along the way. Ready to say thank you like a pro? Let’s get started!