English, baby! Daily Podcasts

Have you ever been to a festival? Whether it’s a little street fair or a giant, city-wide party, festivals can celebrate almost anything! There are festivals to celebrate ethnic food, festivals that highlight holidays, and festivals that center around one item, like books or apples, beer or art. Festivals can become an annual tradition for families, and they’re a great place to make memories, take lots of pictures, buy a souvenir, and eat delicious food! With festivals featuring everything from food and wine to music and flowers, it’s safe to say that everyone should be able to find a festival they’d like to attend. The trickiest part might be findng friends to go, too. Learn what festival Marni wants to attend and find out if she can convince Amanda to go with her in this English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“My first instinct is to have a silly, weird, strange show that you never really get your footing in. It seems honest and then it’s not. It seems silly and weird and then all of the sudden it gets serious.” —Writer and Performer Bo Burnham, speaking about making his shows (Splitsider) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Sculptures can be a feast for the eyes. You can stand there and look at one sculpture for hours if it is interesting enough. They have been around a long time and are made of many different materials. They can be made of ice, ceramic, clay, concrete, steel… you name it. Now, sculptures are not just a feast for your eyes. They can be a feast for your stomach. People have been making edible art sculptures from sugar or candy. These may be sea shells or people. The sculptures often look very beautiful. And you can eat them! Some people think this is a really cool idea. Other people think it is frivolous. Why make art and then have it destroyed? It seems like a very strange impulse. Andy loves edible art sculptures. Listen as he gives Dominique the scoop in today’s English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Did you ever fight with your friends when you were young? When kids fight, it’s usually about something silly. Like, who ate the last cookie, or who popped the float? Maybe, you were the one always looking for ways to end the fights. You just wanted to make sure everyone got along. You didn’t expect your friends to fall in love, but you wanted everyone to be nice to each other. Sometimes, the fights happened anyways, and you were caught in the crossfire. When you are caught in the crossfire, this means that you are in the middle of an argument or conflict between two other people. This isn’t a very fun place to be. You can get worn out very quickly when you are caught in the crossfire. Sometimes, there’s nothing you can do except wait until the fight has played out. Hopefully, everyone apologizes in the end, and no one is left with bad feelings. Kelsey and Andy get in a small argument about coolers and floats. Watch as Dominique gets caught in the crossfire. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

You and your friends are camping. You hear a noise. There is something behind a big tree. Is it an animal? Is it a person? Perhaps, it is a mythical creature! What do you do? Maybe, you talk about capturing it. It could be Bigfoot. If you capture Bigfoot, you will be famous forever. Then again, maybe, it’s just one of your friends playing a hoax on you. Many people have had similar experiences while camping. This might explain why the idea of Bigfoot is so popular. Bigfoot appears similar to a person, but it is a creature with hair all over. People say that Bigfoot lives in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. But the truth is that no one knows if Bigfoot could really exist. There isn’t enough evidence to show that Bigfoot is real. Andy and Marni are talking about Bigfoot in today’s English lesson. Can you guess who believes in Bigfoot? -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Clowns have been around for hundreds of years. They have randomly been popping up in plays, literature, and circuses for a very long time. Clowns are mostly silly, harmless, and playful characters. Sometimes, they are even witty. However, Stephen King decided to put a new mask on the traditional clown. It’s an evil mask that has people super freaked out. King has forever changed the face of the clown with his novel, It. It has been adapted into a movie, which is currently in theaters. King fans, and scary clown fans, are very hyped up about viewing this new movie. The movie takes place in a small American town. One day, out of nowhere, children start vanishing from this town. One of the characters in the movie has a theory that the town is cursed by an evil clown. Andy recently finished reading Stephen King’s novel, It. Listen as he tells Romeo about his theory about evil clowns. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“Does she just pick out her biggest fans ever and let them work with her?” —Activist Laverne Cox, speaking about working on a secret project with Beyoncé (Jezebel) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

The world is becoming a very small place. Many people now work for international companies, and your best job prospect might want you to know more than one language. But with so many different languages in the world, how can we bridge the gap? In the future, technology might help us. However, in important meetings, struggling to understand another person isn’t a good option. Never fear! There are many impressive people who are fluent in many languages. Working as an interpreter is a valuable job for people like this. A good interpreter can help people communicate important ideas. They think on their feet and can understand many things at the same time. Working as an interpreter might be difficult sometimes, but it is also very rewarding. Romeo speaks many languages. Listen to today’s English lesson to hear him tell Jordin about the idea he had after he ran into an old friend. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

People make mistakes. It’s a normal part of life. Some mistakes are pretty small. Like, you spilled coffee on your new shirt. Or you forgot to set your alarm, and you overslept. Other mistakes are a little bigger. Maybe, you were in such a hurry to get to work that you ended up running over your neighbor’s cat with your car. Or what about that time you totally dropped the ball and didn’t get your girlfriend a birthday present? Dropping the ball is something we all do sometimes. When you drop the ball, this means that you forget to do something. If you are busy and have a lot of things to do, dropping the ball might be super easy. If you drop the ball, you can always try to make up for it. Flowers and chocolate might work. Sadly, though, nothing is going to bring your neighbor’s cat back to life. Kelsey and Dominique are spending time at the river. Kelsey dropped the ball and forgot to bring the cooler. Guess who else dropped the ball? Watch and find out! -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Breathe in. Breathe out. Did you even need to think about that? We all breathe oxygen every day. However, air quality around the world is getting worse, and sometimes, breathing well isn’t easy. Maybe, this is why oxygen bars have become popular. At an oxygen bar, you can breathe pure, clean oxygen. Some people say that the clean oxygen from oxygen bars removes toxins from your body. It can also help your immune system. However, others think the idea of buying oxygen is just quackery. Why should you pay for something that is free in the air? Well, even if you don’t believe pure oxygen is enlightening, you may still enjoy the flavors of oxygen you can taste at an oxygen bar. These can include everything from orange and mango to lavender and mint. Marni feels super energetic because she went to an oxygen bar. Find out how Dominique feels in today’s English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Actors and other people who work in theaters often have interesting beliefs. One of the most well-known beliefs is that it is bad luck to wish a person good luck before a show. Instead, actors believe it is better to say something with the opposite meaning. Now, it is traditional to say, “Break a leg,” before they are on. Of course, this is just pretend. No one wants an actor to really break their leg on stage. That would be painful for the actor and the audience! Instead, the expression break a leg is just another way of wishing one luck before they go in front of an audience. There are many different ideas of how this started. They are all good stories, but like many theater stories, no one knows which one is true. Kelsey has just a few minutes before her big show. It’s time for everyone to wish her luck in today’s English soap opera. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Hawaii is a lush, tropical paradise located in the Pacific Ocean about 2,000 miles off the western coast of the United States. It is known for its waterfalls, tropical forests, and coconuts. It also has some of the most beautiful beaches in the world. When the wintertime blues start to seep into your soul, it might be time to pack your sunscreen, and fly away to a Hawaiian paradise. However, Hawaii is not cheap. If you want to take a vacation to Hawaii, you are going to have to budget and save your money. Planning your vacation beforehand can help you find the best deals on hotels and restaurants. Even then, it might still be too expensive for many people. If this is the case, you might have to use your imagination. Drinking piña coladas in your bathtub is a close second. Dominique is having a hard time dealing with all the winter rain. Listen as Jordin tells her about the benefits of escaping to the tropical paradise of Hawaii. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Stephen King is one of the most popular fiction writers alive today. His most famous stories are usually scary, like Carrie, Pet Semetary, or The Shining. However, he also loves to cross genres, and he has written in almost every style. When he was a college student, he began to write a dystopian western about a gunslinger. The book wasn’t published until 12 years later. When The Dark Tower was published, many people were pumped. The story became very popular. It told the tale of Roland, The Gunslinger, who must survive in a post-apocalyptic realm. The book is strange and beautiful. Now, after 35 years, this famous novel is going to become a movie. Fans of the story couldn’t be more excited! Andy is a big fan of The Dark Tower. Listen to today’s English lesson to hear him talk with Marni about why he’s excited. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

“Many moons ago, I think I had just met Edgar Wright and professed my fandom… I was like, ‘Well, I’m totally available!’”—Actor Jon Hamm, speaking about meeting one of his favorite directors, Edgar Wright (Entertainment Weekly) -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com

Everyone has their ticks. There is something that irritates everybody. Maybe, you hate large crowds of people. Maybe, you hate the smell of perfume. Maybe, you hate certain sounds. Do you hate the sounds of tapping pencils? What about the sound of heavy breathing? Or the sound of lips smacking while people are chewing? You may have something called misophonia. Misophonia is the hatred of human sounds. People who have misophonia may feel stressed, irritated, or enraged by the sound of smacking, chewing, breathing, or yawning. They may feel that people making these sounds are rude and don’t have any manners. They may need therapy to get over their misophonia. Others may need to wear earbuds to block out the noises. Romeo has misophonia. Listen as Andy and him talk it out in today’s English lesson. -- View this and other great English lessons at www.englishbaby.com