Episode 20

Episode 20

The end is here! But not forever... This is the last podcast of Series 3. Adam talks about animal noises and we hear the latest from Carolina and Emily.

Transcript

Adam

Hello and welcome to Episode 20 of the Learn English Elementary Podcast. I'm Adam and I'm alone today. Yes, that's right. We said goodbye to Rob last time. And some of you, like Waide from Libya, wrote to say that you'll miss him and thank him for the podcasts. So, if you're listening Rob… best wishes from all of us.

I’m also going to say goodbye today, but not forever. This is the last podcast of Series 3 of Elementary Podcasts. We’re going to take a short break over the summer and then start Series 4 again in a few weeks.

But there’s still a podcast today and we're going to hear more about Carolina. She's a Venezuelan student studying in Newcastle in Britain and I'm sure you remember that she's been a bit depressed recently. Let's hope today is better.

But first, let's hear some of your comments on the last podcast. Tess and Ravi talked about the Loch Ness monster and we asked you if you believe the story. Is there really a monster? And… none of you believe in poor Nessie! Except for Jimmy182 from Italy who said "I think aliens live in Loch Ness and they'll conquer us! And don't forget the Yeti too. I saw them both!" I think he’s not 100% serious…

Even so, a lot of you would like to visit Loch Ness one day - as Ariyan.y from Iran said, "for the beauty of its nature".

We also asked you to send us stories or legends about monsters from your countries. And you sent some fantastic stories. abbask370, from Pakistan, told the story of a huge snake, guarding treasure at the top of a mountain. Fazan, from India, also talked about a giant snake that guards treasure in a local castle. He said that people who visit the castle never come back - and the snake even eats the bones! Waide told a story about a woman who killed her son and turned into a big bird that kills boys. Tiago from Brazil wrote about a headless mule which breathes fire and gallops through the countryside on Thursday nights!

And Nessie, the Loch Ness monster, seems to have some family members around the world. Liya from China lives near lake TianChi - the deepest lake in China. A monster was reported there in the 1980s. People said its body was like a cow and its head was like a big tub and it moved very fast. And Hurrem from Turkey wrote about a monster reported in Van Lake, the biggest lake in Turkey.

Enough monsters! Now it's time to hear from Carolina again. Let's see if Emily's plan to cheer her up at the city farm worked.

 

Carolina

Carolina: So, this is the city farm. What a wonderful place.

Jamie: It's cool, isn't it? A place with lots of farm animals in the middle of the city.

Carolina: I love it.

Emily: Me too.

Carolina: Look! Pigs! Hello, little piggies! Can I touch him? Am I allowed?

Jamie: Yeah, you can touch him. Scratch his back. Pigs like that.

Emily: Look at the sheep. Aren't they cute?

Carolina: Hello, sheep. Beeee beeee

Emily: Beeee beeee? That's not what sheep say.

Carolina: What do they say, then?

Emily: Baaaa baaaa

Carolina: No. Beeee beeee

Emily: Baaaa baaaa

Jamie: So animals speak different languages. English sheep say 'baaaaa' and Venezuelan sheep say 'beeeee'. I thought it was only people.

Emily: Do you think an English sheep can understand a Venezuelan sheep?

Jamie: They'd have to go to a language school.

Emily: What do dogs say in Venezuela, Carolina?

Carolina: Uau uau. And in English?

Jamie and Emily: Woof woof.

Jamie: Or bow wow. Sometimes they say bow wow. That's similar. What about a donkey? Heehaw, heehaw.

Carolina: iiiiiiiiooooooo

Emily: That's brilliant. iiiiiiioooooo. That's much better than English. And cows?

Carolina: Mooo.

Emily: That's the same. So Venezuelan and English cows can understand each other. There's a good name for your band, Jamie. The Language of Cows.

Carolina: That's a clever name. It means everyone can understand each other – like cows. All over the world.

Jamie: I'll think about it.

Carolina: Brrr. It's cold. I'd like something to drink. A coffee or something. Do you think there's a café here?

Jamie: I think so. Over there, look. There's a shop too.

Carolina: Let's go and have a look.

Carolina: That's better.

Emily: Yeah. Much.

Jamie: What time is it?

Carolina: Half past six. We should go.

Jamie: What are you doing this evening, Emily?

Emily: I… um…

Carolina: Yes, that's a good idea, Jamie. We're going to the Chinese restaurant with Henry and Ivan. Why don't you come too, Emily?

Emily: Um, no I… um… I don't think so.

Carolina: Come on.

Emily: No, thanks… I can't. I'm doing something.

Carolina: What are you doing?

Emily: Oh, OK. I suppose I have to tell you. I'm seeing Cameron. He invited me out and I said yes.

Carolina: I knew it! I knew it! I said you liked him and he liked you!

Emily: OK. Calm down. You'll frighten the animals.

Jamie: That's great news, Emily. Cameron's a good guy.

Emily: I hope so.

Carolina: Listen! That…

Emily: Carolina del Barco! I know what you're thinking. Don't you say a word!

 

Adam

Well, Carolina certainly seems a bit happier now. And Emily's news seemed to make her very excited too. I wonder how things will go between Emily and Cameron? What do you think? And where should they go? What do you think is a good place for a first date? The cinema? A restaurant? A walk in the park? Write and tell us at www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish or leave a message on our Facebook page.

And tell us about the noises that animals make in your language. Do dogs go ‘woof’? Do frogs go ‘ribbit’? Do sheep go ‘baa’?

Now let's look at some of the language from the podcast. Carolina invites Emily out for dinner, but she can't go; she's busy. Listen to the verb forms that Emily uses to talk about her plans.

Emily: No, thanks… I can't. I'm doing something.

Carolina: What are you doing?

Emily: Oh, OK. I suppose I have to tell you. I'm seeing Cameron. He invited me out and I said yes.

Emily says "I'm doing something", Carolina says "What are you doing?" and Emily says "I'm seeing Cameron". The verb form is the present continuous or you might know it as the present progressive. "I am doing", "I am seeing". But she isn't talking about something that she's doing now, she's talking the future. It's quite common to use the present continuous to talk about the future in English, when we talk about things that we have already arranged to do, often with other people. For example, "I'm playing tennis with Graham tomorrow, and then we're having lunch with May". There are some exercises on the website to practise this and other interesting things too, like the verbs 'say', 'speak', 'talk', and 'tell'. And, of course, you can learn more of the noises that animals make in English! See if it's the same as in your language - and don't forget to write and let us know at www.britishcouncil.org/learnenglish. We really enjoy reading all the messages you send and I'm sure you enjoy reading other people's messages too.

So that's all for Series 3! You’ll have to wait for Series 4 to find out how Emily’s date with Cameron went and to find out what Tess and Ravi are talking about next. But don’t worry, there are lots of other pages on the LearnEnglish website. You might want to try watching ‘Word on the Street’, a great series of videos where fans of Rob can see him. If you prefer audio, there’s Big City Small World. And if you only like Elementary Podcasts… then you’ll just have to wait for Series 4.

Thanks again for all your comments and for listening. Have a great summer. Bye!

Discussion

Language level

Average: 5 (4 votes)
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Submitted by Aljumhy2020 on Sat, 11/12/2021 - 17:09

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My family has camels and sheeps.

Submitted by chad on Sun, 31/10/2021 - 08:05

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Thank you for all of this wonderful team . i wonder if there are videos for these series i need it necessary. because I'm dying to see those guys .

Hi chad,

Sorry :( I'm afraid we don't have videos of this series. But we do have other video series that you might be interested in. Here are some links:

-- Speaking skills: https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/skills/speaking
-- Video zone: https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/general-english/video-zone
-- More video series: https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org/general-english/video-series

Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team

Submitted by jmajo on Sun, 24/01/2021 - 14:34

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I feel good about animals, I like them because we need them. I've never been to Britain, so I don't know if what Tess and Ravi said is True or not. It's very common to have a pet in my country, most of the people have dogs or cats for pets but some people have other kind of animals like spiders or birds, I used to have a dog when I was a child but I don't like to have pets anymore because there's pets everywhere nowadays in the city where I live and not all of the owners are good owners, I mean there's a really problem here of overpopulation of dogs and not all of the owners behave responsibly with it and it's common to have attacks and accidents with dogs on the street and in the parks. Lots of people leave the dogs all day inside a house when they go out to work and the dogs start barking when they feel alone. But when I lived in the countryside I used to have a horse and a dairy cow and I really like having them. Thanks for the episode. Great site!!

Submitted by Mazoon AL.Ghssani on Fri, 09/10/2020 - 08:51

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I don't like animals very much, but if I have to choose one of them I would rather choose cats. Thank you for the podcasts and I wish complete them to series 5.

Submitted by Marey Saad on Tue, 29/09/2020 - 23:23

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Hi In my opinion the best place for dating is the beach, having a walk with your friend on a quiet beach is wonderful. Thanks for the series, and I love listening to your podcasts. Thanks

Submitted by Bruno2020 on Wed, 13/05/2020 - 01:10

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Hi guys! Thank you so much for another amazing podcasts series!It has helped me a lot. I love animals,all of them.My family and I always have dogs in our house.They are the friendliest animal in the world!

Submitted by clauvera2016 on Mon, 04/05/2020 - 08:41

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Hello ! Could you help me with something, please ? I am very confused about using of "at the farm" and "on the farm". When can I use them properly ? How it is right? " I work at the farm or on the farm ? " "I am at the farm or on the farm"? "This story takes place on the farm or at the farm" ? "I saw many animals at the farm or on the farm "? Thank you very much ! All the best !
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Submitted by Peter M. on Tue, 05/05/2020 - 07:01

In reply to by clauvera2016

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Hello clauvera2016,

I think on the farm describes something which is a part of the farm and not just located there.

At the farm has a more general meaning. It describes something which is located there and may or may not be part of the farm.

 

If I said 'I'm working on the farm' then it would be clear that I am doing something related to farming – working in the fields, looking after animals etc.

 

If I said 'I'm working at the farm' then I could be doing something related to farming, but I could also be doing something at that location, such as decorating the house or fixing the roof.

 

Peter

The LearnEnglish Team

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Submitted by kamicounciler on Tue, 07/01/2020 - 18:01

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i love animals.they are incridble,the feeling they have for each other and for humans is one of the greatest things i ve seen. i dont know much about how british people treat animals,but i think they love dogs. in my country(iran) all of the people are not animal lovers,and even there are some people that bother them and unfortunately there are not suitable laws to support animals