Talking About the News

Listening to the news is a good way to practice your comprehension skills and stay informed about the world. Most people already know the BBC, so here’s an alternative: National Public Radio (NPR)’s All Things Considered is a mixture of US and international news and culture stories. I often listen to it while cooking lunch, exercising, or doing chores around the house. As I’m writing, I’m listening to a story about a new arts center in Buenos Aires.

For this week, listen to a news story and come in ready to talk about it. The instructions below are for All Things Considered, but you can do this with any news source you prefer.

1. Look for a story that’s interesting to you and about a topic you understand on the All Things Considered page. This is important: news about Afghanistan or iPhones is universal, but a story about baseball or local politics has vocabulary and cultural references that only locals will understand. Use the “older” and “newer” buttons to find more stories.

2. Listen to the story. Try to get the big idea. Listen a few times if you don’t understand.

3. Read the transcript to test your comprehension.

We will talk about some current events next week in class.

Have a great week!

Dave