English with Dane

This is a special episode because I had a chance to sit down and have a chat with my new friend Sam. We shared our perspectives on a bunch of different things related to English-learning like the idea of levels, what is missing from traditional teaching, our unique approaches and motivations, and much more stuff. I know it's a bit of a long one, but I honestly think there is a lot to get from...

PRONUNCIATION TIME! I know I usually preach that pronunciation isn't super important past a certain point, but that doesn't mean you can't improve it! In this episode of English with Dane I go over (repaso) a few problematic words that continue to come up, and I also talk about long and short vowels and how we can use them to our advantage. As always, I'll include tips and tric...

I'm back! Today's episode is about SAY vs TELL, a topic that has been haunting English learners for years. It's not as simple as you might think, but it's also pretty easy once you get it. In this episode of English with Dane, we'll go over the difference between these two verbs while also checking out some collocations as well as some idioms you can start using today, all...

Here's a conversation I recorded with my friend Mario Marzo while we were in Tenerife. We talk about the role of confidence in language-learning, his experience as a non-native speaker growing up and how his approach to learning a new language has paid off. We also talk about more stuff too, so listen to the episode and find out. I met Mario towards the end of summer and we hit it off (that&a...

Here are some verbs that came up recently in my life that I wrote down to share with you. I thought these were great candidates to add to your arsenal and I've never talked about them before so here they are. As always, don't stress out about learning all of them, it's important to be aware of them and to recognize when you can use them. So, check out this episode and let me know wh...

Here's a strange news episode that talks about a couple buying a home only to discover that some really creepy stuff happened there. So creepy, it inspired the movie The Exorcist (1973). This episode of English with Dane is full of new vocabulary you can use right now. I found the article here in case you want to read it first hand. Reading is a great way to pick up new vocabulary because you...

Here's a list of some of the best TV shows to practice English. I did a similar episode a year ago or so, but here's an updated and probably more balanced list. I didn't want to list the typical TV shows you'll find in a bunch of boring articles, so let me know what you think. On this list (nunca IN this list) You'll find documentaries, dramas, and comedies that will help...

This episode is exactly what you think it is. This time we're taking a look at some of the most useful and practical phrasal verbs in English you might not be using: phrasal verbs with THROUGH. Go through, see through, fall through, and more on this episode of English with Dane. Maybe you have a good idea of what these mean, but you're not sure how to use them. Maybe you've never he...

Prueba TWYN grátis una semana y practica tu SPEAKINGThis was a really fun episode because I got the chance to answer your questions. I didn't answer all of them so, but I think my answers to these will help a lot of you out. Let me know what you think of the episode and if you agree or disagree with what I say in this episode. InstagramTikTok

Prueba TWYN grátis una semana y practica tu SPEAKINGIdiom time! Here's a quick compilation of idioms in English I use very often. I think you'll enjoy these. As always, I added example clips from movies and stuff so you can get a feel (buen idiom también) of how native speakers use them. Idioms are a great way of sounding more natural when speaking English, so I encourage you to learn so...

Prueba TWYN grátis una semana y practica tu SPEAKINGThe other day I found an article online about expressions in English and their crazy origins. I thought I'd share 5 of them with you and hopefully you find these origins as interesting as I did. The expressions that we'll take a look at in this episode are to bite the bullet / to break the ice / to butter someone up / to go the whole ni...

More phrasal verbs coming at you! 5 easy, useful ones you can add to your day-to-day without any stress. As always, don't feel pressured to learn all 5 but just be more aware of them and let them work their way into your conversations in a natural way. There are examples for each of them to give you an idea of how to use them, so you can't go wrong. I know phrasal verbs can be tricky som...

Strange News is back! In this episode, we're going to Hong Kong, where a company is offering bus tours for people who can't sleep. Yup. You read that right. People are taking tours around the city to be able to finally get some sleep. Strangely, I identify. Find out how people respond to these tours and let me know what you think of the idea. As always, this will be a great opportunity t...

Here's an episode several of you have asked me to do. Tips, or strategies on how to practice English from the comfort of your home. This is a topic that became really relevant during the start of the pandemic when we were all stuck at home and although I've shared some of these throughout the life of the podcast, I thought I'd get my favorite tips not just from but from other teache...

Here we go with another read-along episode! I love these. Let's read an article together and learn about new things while picking up new vocabulary along the way. Today we're reading this article about motivation in life and business written by James Clear, a New York Times best-selling author. I think this article is inspiring and hopefully, it will help you by giving you some good tips...

Advanced phrasal verbs this time, and in a format that might be more fun. I play clips from movies, and you have to figure out what each phrasal verb means. I've been doing a lot of phrasal verb stuff recently, but I think it's important to get comfortable with them. Don't get discouraged if you don't decipher all of these, the point is to become aware of them, and eventually i...

Here we go again with more phrasal verbs! After episode 121 (What are Phrasal Verbs and How to Learn Them) I realized it would be much better to group phrasal verbs by particle (UP) instead of the main verb, so this episode is about exactly that. I'll talk about different phrasal verbs with UP, and give you a few meanings for each so you can practice them and incorporate them into your day-to...

This episode has been a long time coming. This is a question I often get from students, and so I've put this episode together to answer it. There's no real difference between increasing your vocabulary in English and in your native language, but when it comes to a second language, the effort needs to be more present. I feel that a lot of you are experiencing a lack of confidence when it...

This might seem like a basic episode (or not) but I think it's a necessary one. I get a lot of questions about phrasal verbs from a variety of students, beginners and more advanced ones too, so I thought I would address those questions with an episode dedicated specifically to what they are, and more importantly: how to learn them. This episode includes three practical tips to make your life...

GET ready! GET a pen and paper and take notes because it's GETTING real. 😂 All jokes aside, this is a topic that a lot of English learners have a difficult time with, so here's a quick guide on how to use the verb to get. This episode was inspired by Maura who is one of my Patrons and with whom I had a long conversation with last week. She told me it's hard to wrap her head around...

An important episode in which I address, or talk about, a question I get asked very often about studying grammar and how important it is. Over the last year or so, I've noticed some teachers preaching to disregard, or not care about, grammar when trying to level up your English and while there is some good that can come out of this approach, I think it's restrictive and can hurt your dev...

This episode of English with Dane is full of new, practical vocabulary for you! We're reading a weird news story about some toy thieves in Holland and it will give us the opportunity to look over new words, expressions, idioms, etc to add to your arsenal. Who knew that Lego and Pokemon items could be valuable enough to have people smashing their cars through windows to get their hands on them...

I know how you feel about idioms, so here are some more! I also like talking about them because it gives me a chance to reflect on how I speak, which idioms I use the most, and how I interact with people in general. Idioms are a great way to make yourself sound more natural in when speaking English, so I always recommend to have some in your back pocket (there's another idiom!).

It's been a while since I did one of these movie reviews so let's see how it goes. You guys voted on Instagram and Moview Review won so here it is. I reviewed the 2021 movie The Suicide Squad which I watched a few weeks back. Maybe it's not the movie you want to talk about, but really, the point is to arm you with the tools (darte las herramientas) to talk about your favorite (or no...

What's up? What's going on? This episode of English with Dane was inspired by a conversation I had with a listener over Instagram. I found myself giving him advice on how to improve, how to take that next step and I'm pretty sure it was motivated by him saying he wants to talk like ME one day. I answered that I would prefer if he spoke like himself (but in English) and after thinkin...