In today’s episode you’ll find out how to use literature to deepen your fluency and connect with other English speakers.
Practicing grammar and vocabulary are not the only ways to improve your English.
Try grabbing Shakespeare or Walden!
Today let’s meet Kevin.
Kevin is an English teacher with a passion for literature.
He helps his students use literature to dive deeper into the English language and strengthen their skills.
Today Kevin is going to show us 3 things we can do to use literature to push to the next level.
3 Tips:
- Tip #1) Make sure you’re choosing literature that is relevant to you: Don’t use Shakespeare if it doesn’t interest you. There are no correct titles to pursue if they are not right for us. How can you find the right literature for you? Librarians are great for this task. Go ask a librarian. You can also look online. There are forums. You can ask your friends. Don’t trust a single source of authority. There are good books everywhere.
- Tip #2) Stop after you have made a list of 10 new words: Every time you come across a new and interesting phrase or word write it down. Make sure that these words get transferred into your active memory. Dedicate some time to using these words in your speech over the next few days. This will help build your active vocabulary quickly. It’s a great idea to work with a teacher online to solidify these words into your vocabulary repertoire.
- Tip #3) Get a community to motivate you. Try a book club. This group will make sure you have a goal. You can discuss the new vocabulary with them. You will also start to understand new layers of the story that you may not have caught the first time. Another thing to do is take lessons with a teacher to really deepen your vocabulary.
Kevin’s Bio:
“Hi, I’m Kevin!
I’m a professional, CELTA qualified English Language and Literature tutor. I grew up in Birmingham, England and have been teaching ever since graduating in English Literature from the University of Cambridge 2 years ago. He is based in Berlin. I teach both online and offline, for all ages and abilities, though I specialise in high level studies. If you’re interested in taking your linguistic, literary and cultural understanding to the next level I’d love to hear from you! You can find me athttp://www.italki.com/kevinsexton“
“Kevin is a professional, CELTA qualified English Language and Literature tutor. He grew up in Birmingham, England and has been teaching ever since graduating in English Literature from the University of Cambridge 2 years ago. He has taught English and German in several schools and is now based in Berlin. Our guest today is Kevin Sexton Let’s get to the show
He teaches both online and offline, for all ages and abilities, though he specialises in high level studies. If you’re interested in taking your linguistic, literary and cultural understanding to the next level he’d love to hear from you! You can find him athttp://www.italki.com/kevinsexton“
How to work with Kevin:
- Step 1: To get $10 off your second lesson you must register on this page as a new user of italki.
- Step 2: After you have registered please search for Kevin’s profile, send him a message, and schedule a lesson.
What did you think about today’s episode?
What are your favorite books? Why do you like them?
What book do you want to read in English this year?
