TALC Chats Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Today w e are going to talk about using “ going to ” to talk about the future. In episode #13 we practiced using "will" + the base verb ( the verb without any endings: eat, work, run) to  talk about the future.  A review:       Mary will help me with my homework tomorrow. Offer/promise        I will (I’ll) answer the door .   Quick decision               I will (I’ll) ha...

Send us Fan Mail What shall we have for breakfast? We are asking for suggestions or recommendations about what we will fix for breakfast. "Shall" is an old fashioned  word that we don't use very frequently. We still use it  when we ask questions that ask for suggestions or recommendations with "I" or "we" : "What shall I do now?" "What time shall w...

Send us Fan Mail In the last episode Latonya and Diana talked about the signs of spring that we see all around us. In this episode they talk about what people do in the spring. When the bright springtime sun shines through our windows we see lots of things that we didn't see in the dark days of winter. We see that our windows are dirty!  We see smudges on the windows.  We see that we need to...

Send us Fan Mail Tuesday, March 19, was the first day of spring 🌱.  In this episode Latonya and Diana talk about the signs of spring in Western Washington. Cherry trees  bloom 🌸🌸 in clouds of pink and white. The grass turns bright green. We need to mow (cut) the grass in our lawns. Dandelions are often the first flowers we see in the spring 🌼. People think of dandelions as " weeds "...

Send us Fan Mail Latonya and Diana recorded this episode on March 1 , 2024. When we say that date in English we say "March first, twenty twenty-one".   In English we use ordinal numbers   when we talk about the date on the calendar . When we count (1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8, 9,10), we use cardinal numbers. Ordinal numbers are numbers "in order" : first, second, third, fourth. fifth.  Tho...

Send us Fan Mail In TALC Chats episode # 8, Latonya and Diana practiced using that little verb "to do'" in the present . In this episode they practice using "to do" in the past . A quick review of the forms "to do"in the present :           I do          we do          you do          they do          he/she/it does "to do" has two important jobs:      ...

Send us Fan Mail We will practice using “to have in the present. We use “to have” a lot in English. It is the 2nd most used verb.   We use “to have" in many different ways. Today we will practice using “to have“ as a main verb .  “To have” means to own something or possess something: I have a car. (I own a car.) It can also mean to perform an action: " I have breakfast at 8:00." ( I...

Send us Fan Mail The theme of the day is "idioms" -  expressions that have a special meaning.  We cannot translate idioms word for word.  Last week was Valentine's Day. People talk a lot about love on Valentine's Day. Let's read a Valentine's Day love story that has a lot of idioms .    Latonya and Diana will read the story together and then they will take a close  lo...

Send us Fan Mail Most people have morning routines. They do the same things every morning. Other people don't have a routine. For those people every morning is different. We all have some things in common (the same as another person or people) about  starting our day.  Everyone wakes up ( stops sleeping ) , and then they get up (get out of bed).  Latonya and Diana  both get up around 7 o&apos...

Send us Fan Mail The verb “to be” Present Tense   ·          I am (contraction: I’m) ·          You are (you’re) ·          We (you and I)  are (we’re) ·          They (the children) are (they’re) ·          He (my father) is (he’s) ·          She (Latonya/Diana/the girl) is (she’s) ·          It (the time, the weather, an object) is (it’s)   Listen for the verb “to be” and the contractions in our...

Send us Fan Mail We use "to make" a lot in English . It is one of ten most used verbs, so let's practice using "to make". Present tense :                                        I, you, we, they make       he, she, it makes     Past:   I, we, you, they, he, she, it made Do you make cookies often? Do you make a mess in the kitchen when you cook? Did you make that hat? Do you...

Send us Fan Mail It's a cold, rainy day. It's a perfect day for a walk! Diana invites Latonya to go for a walk today. They want to stay warm and dry on their walk. Latonya and Diana discuss what they will wear - what they will put on . They decide they will wear layers - maybe two shirts and a vest (a jacket or sweater without sleeves ). Latonya likes to wear a warm pair of pants made of...

Send us Fan Mail It's 2024! It's a new year! The day of the week today is Friday . The date is January  12, 2024. At the start (beginning)  of a new year many people make resolutions. Resolutions are promises people make to themselves about what they will do and what they won't do in the new year.  Resolutions are goals. Sometimes we make resolutions to do some things that we have p...

Send us Fan Mail Pets are important members of many households . A household is a group of one or more people who live in the same dwelling (living space). The people in a household may be relatives (family members) or may not be relatives (not family members). Pets are animals who live in our household.  We love them and we take care of them. We feed them (give them food) and make sure they have...

Send us Fan Mail Talking on the phone in a language that you are still learning isn't easy. But sometimes you need to do it. In this episode a mom calls Dr. Getbetter's office to make an appointment for her son who is sick. He got sick a few days ago and now he is worse . His temperature is 103 degrees and he is coughing all the time. Dr. Getbetter's receptionist answers the phone. ...

Send us Fan Mail In the fall and winter a lot of people get sick. Latonya and Diana discuss a very common illness that people get this time of year: the common cold. Cold is the same word we use for something that is at a low temperature. For example: "I'm cold."  "It's cold outside today." "My coffee is cold." Today we are talking about a different use of t...

Send us Fan Mail Latonya and Diana talk about using the busy little verb " to do " in the present tense. (I, you, we, they do;  he , she it   does ). Here are some ways we use "do" as a main verb: 1. to talk about doing chores, like "We do the dishes every day."2. To talk about unspecified activities, I'm not doing anything special today, what are you doing? 3. T...

Send us Fan Mail Latonya and Diana talk about where their parents were born.  They also talk about the relationships that we have with family members through marriage , our in - laws . For example, your husband's mom and dad are your mother - in - law and father - in - law.  Your sister's husband is your brother - in - law and your brother's wife is your sister - in - law . Your son...

Send us Fan Mail Latonya and Diana chat about family relationships: parents ( mothers and fathers) , siblings (brothers and sisters), aunts , uncles , nieces and nephews . Some family members are living and some have died, or passed away . Listen for the present tense of that little verb that is used most frequently in English  - " to be ": I am , we/you/they are, he/ she/it is ; and the...

Send us Fan Mail Today, Latonya and Diana talk about the different types of shopping we do and the different types of stores where we do our shopping. How about you? Where do you like to shop? Send us a comment. Tacomaliteracy.org

Send us Fan Mail What is Black Friday? Let's talk about shopping and good deals! Tacomaliteracy.org

Send us Fan Mail Let's talk about Daylight Saving Time. What is it? What is your experience? Listen to Diana and Latonya talk about the things that change for us when we set our clocks one hour ahead . Tacomaliteracy.org

Send us Fan Mail Thanksgiving – it’s complicated ·        What are we celebrating? ·        If you ask different people you will get different answers. ·        What did we learn when we were kids? Well, we learned :   These people, the Pilgrims, were not able to practice their religion freely in England so in November 1620, they came to an English colony in what is now Massachusetts in the Americ...

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