English Fluency Blueprint

Amira, you’re welcome. You are correct to use the words and phrases you already have. Remember, that even for native speakers we basically use the same words, and most words we don’t use often. However, keep yourself fresh by reviewing words that you hear or come across in your reading.

If you haven’t already read the phrase lessons in the Understanding American English Phrases, I invite you to read them and copy the lessons. It gives an explanation of certain phrases, here’s the link:  http://englishbaby.com/lessons/5744/member_submitted/understanding_american_english_phrases

For those endeavoring to achieve a level of fluency in English, make it a goal to find someone to communicate with in English on a regular basis. Steps 1-5 should be helpful in assisting you to find a speaking partner(s).

Again, practice is the key. I know a lot of idioms and expressions already and keep them in a file, but I noticed that the ones I used more than one time are sticking deeper in my mind than those I’ve just written at first sight and never used them. So use what you have.

Thank you Mr. Alston for your patience and efforts with us in this forum and the others.

Step 6 - The relationship between English, Culture, and the basis of Phrases, Idioms, and Slang.

Introduction

There are many instances where the relationship between American English and American culture is revealed. However, the question can be asked “what is American culture.” Since the United States is a nation of immigrants (with the exception of native American Indians) there isn’t one ethnicity that defines American culture although there is a perception that there is.

True, Europeans have been the majority since the founding of the country; however, they are rapidly heading towards being a minority and already are in many cities and states. Even among European ancestry, there are vast cultural differences. When you enter their communities you see begin to see their culture.

Therefore, to get a sense of the interrelation between American English and culture as it relates to a common denominator I will focus on aspects of American culture that transcends the culture of various nationalities.

American English and Culture

The relationship of American English and the influence of culture can be found in some of the following areas:

• Naming babies - The Bible influences the naming of babies, many whose names are direct biblical names such as: Abraham, Aaron, Caesar, David, Dan, Daniel, John, Mark, Paul, Matthew, James, Peter, Mary, Sarah, Elizabeth, Deborah, Julie, Martha, Rachel, Ruth and others.

• Naming of places - Many cities and towns have used biblical names such as: Philadelphia, Mt. Zion, Carmel, Temple City, Joshua Tree, Bishop, Galilee, Nazareth, Calvary, and others.

• Familiar Expressions - The Bible has influenced the language in everyday expressions, many have come directly from the Bible such as: Apple of his eye, blind leading the blind, eye for an eye, Good Samaritan, handwriting on the wall, my brother’s keeper, out of the mouth of babes, signs of the times, strait and narrow, sweat of your brow, thorn in the flesh, drop in the bucket, at your wits end, holier than thou, and others.

• American Film - Some notable movie themes are stories from the Bible, such as: The Ten Commandments, The Passion of the Christ, King of Kings, The Bible, King David, Solomon, Moses, Ben Hur, Quo Vadis, and others. The most notable biblical theme is Good versus Evil where this theme is among the most profitable for movie producers, some movie examples are: Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, Spiderman, Batman, Superman and others.

• Judicial System - The Old Testament of the Bible influenced some US laws based on the Ten Commandments.

• Financial System - US bankruptcy laws has some biblical principles and US money has “In God We Trust” printed on coins and paper money.

• Calendar Method - The US and many countries use the Gregorian calendar which relates years to the period before Jesus Christ (BC) and after the death of Jesus Christ (AD-in the year of our Lord). Therefore, the year of 2014 means it’s been approximately 2,014 years since the death of Christ.

• English Literature - Besides the religious aspect, the Bible contains some worthy English literature. It includes history, prose, drama, poetry, and prophecy in one book. Actually the Bible is not a continuous book but a collection of 66 books written by approximately 40 authors over a period of about 1,500 years.

Detailed information on culture is provided in the Culture Forum 

http://englishbaby.com/lessons/6488/member_submitted/culture_forum?page=17

The basis of phrases, idioms, and slang

First let’s define what a phrase is. A phrase is a group of words that do not have a subject and verb. For example, the phrase, “on the way” means you’re coming, or the phrase, “up in the air” means something hasn’t been decided.

An idiom is a word or group of words that doesn’t mean what each word mean. For example, “the blues” means you’re feeling sad” or the idiom “pay the piper” means you have to face the consequences of your actions.

A slang word is a word created by pop culture to substitute for the actual thing. Many in the subculture have used words that are not traditional but are understood among that particular group.

For example, the slang word “hang out” means to spend time with someone or the slang word “chill out” means to relax.

American culture finds its way into the various phrases, idioms, and slang.There isn’t a rule or logic to these types of expressions, although some do have a logical basis of their existence or a basis according to the following reasons:

1. Shortcuts- Instead of speaking complete sentences or communicating detailed information, a shorter way is created to express the same thought. 

2. Expressing negativity- You will find more ways to communicate something that is displeasure or complaint against someone than you will find about expressing something positive.

For example, the phrase “I was ripped off” means you were cheated in a transaction with someone or a business. Another example, “he was thrown under the bus” means someone that was faithful was sacrificed to save another person or organization.

3. Humor- Making a joke out of expressing a thought is another basis for the use of phrases, idioms, or slang.For example, the expression “laughing all the way to the bank” means someone made a lot of money from something that seemed unlikely.

Concluding thoughts

The main thing to know is that American and British English is full of phrases, idioms, and slang. This type of English is used in mainstream society and it varies depending on the audience.Therefore it is advisable not to limit your study of English to standard English; otherwise, you will not be able to understand native speakers.

A strategy to learn these expressions is to be active in your exposure to English in everyday life. If you’re watching a movie and hear a phrase that you are not aware of, write it down and search out the meaning by asking an English speaker or on the internet.

Englishbaby regularly provide lessons on everyday expressions; therefore, start a list of these words and their meanings.

Step 7 will be an overview, final thoughts, and additional information on the last step of this English Blueprint series.

Afterwards I intend to resume writng on the “Do you understand this dialgoue” and other forums on my profile page.

Thank you for your patience.

Hello Samine, it was good to hear from you again. Thanks for your compliment and feedback as we learn English together drawing from many sources, especially the contributions of the readers and the Englishbaby website.

Step 6 is a challenge for me to write, please bear with me in posting it.

hello Mr altson.

these lessons are great as your other lessons.thanks to share them here with us.

Meyban, keep hope alive. I’ll think on it.

your welcome Alston. time is differences but we can be in connection every where, we are waiting for your ID group :)

Hello Meyban, your idea seems good, however, the time differences and personal time commitments will be the challenge. Thanks for your suggestion.

Hi Mr.Alston. Thank you for your sharing. but i cant watch that movies. I have a propose for u and other guys.  all of us have a smart phone i,m sure about it. so why we don,t use it? we can install telegram and have a online disscusion there. so we can try in our pronunciation and other options. 

Justina, you hit the nail on the head. As long as we keep trying, we’ll succeed. Fear is a tremendous disabler in any endeavor. Continue until you get your “break-through.”

Amira, I hope you see the benefit of continuing to write over time. Because of your previous writings you’re able to go back and see your progress. If you had only read the lessons and not be engaged in writing, you would only have a memory. You go, girl!

Sourapple, I owe you one!

The list is great alston, thank you😃

Hi Mr. Alston, thanks for the feedback. It helped me to know where I am and how to move forward. I’ll keep working on my speaking skills while still looking for a right partner.

I know being here helped me and still helping me get better at English. A couple of weeks ago, I was rereading the forum “Do you understand this dialogue” tracking my comments from the beginning – which is 4 years ago or so – and I have to say I saw progress and I never admitted that. So, I want to say that I really owe E,baby and your contributions Mr. Alston a lot :)

Thank you

I really like this lesson ! Thank you so much ! I notiiced what my writing and reading is better then speaking, because I feel the fear of talking. I afraid to make mistakes,but I am trying to thought in english and it helps :) But it’s hard to record myself and then to listen, because I don’t like to listen my voice, but I promise to myself that I will try ! And I hope that all you guys will try !

Hi Amira and thanks for your feedback.

In regards to your question, I think with your tenacity about your English studies, you can come pretty close to matching your reading and writing skills. However, you will lack the feedback from an English speaker to offer corrections for you. Furthermore, the nuances of everyday English mixed with phrases and slang you may not understand.

For example, if two people saw a nice sports pass by and one says to the other, “Wow, that’s a bad car!” What was meant by saying it was a bad car?

Bad in this case doesn’t mean literally “bad, defective, no good.” It means it was a very cool car and they may have been giving “high fives” to each other.

You can’t get this type of knowledge from books, you have to communicate with someone who’s there.

I think you get my point. However, continue to pursue your present course and try to find a partner to communicate with from the links in the previous steps.

Keep on keeping on.

Thank you Mr. Alston for this forum. It came so helpful aiding me to help my brother learn good English away from the academic education of the language at schools.

The part about being fluent in reading and writing while speaking is on a lower level seemed as a sensitive spot to me, but I’m correcting that by practicing speaking loudly to myself and sometimes in front of the mirror, sometimes reading a book loudly. I even got a new app only for listening and speaking and it’s providing recording so I can hear my own speaking and make comparisons. So I wonder if that’s going to be ever enough to escalate my speaking level to equal my other skills!?

Step 5 – How to Speak English

The purpose in speaking is to communicate a thought to someone in that language. To be able to do that requires knowing the appropriate word(s) and how they are pronounced. The solution is to start speaking from a very basic level.

Basic Words

There are basic words that are a common denominator to whatever the conversation is about. It is essential to learn these words and how they are used. I posted a list of 100 commonly used English words on April 1, 2017. You can make a copy of these words and become familiar with them.

In addition to listening for these commonly used words in English conversation, analyze the context in English written materials such as on the internet, magazines, newspapers, etc. One of the keys to learning how to speak English is to take a few basic words and start speaking them, even if it’s speaking to you.

The Sounds of the English Alphabet

There are 26 letters in the English alphabet and each letter has a unique sound, however, there are 44 sounds in the English language. It is essential to master these sounds to pronounce words correctly, otherwise, you may know the correct word to say but not be understood by the listener. 

There is forgiveness on pronouncing some words but not others. Therefore, if you spend time on the basic pronunciation of each letter, you can begin to build your foundation. To that end, here are a few links that will assist you with the sound of each letter and the 44 sounds of English.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d4VEsx4ERqE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4CVFn3qEf2Y

If you cannot access Youtube, here some other sources: https://www.englishclub.com/

http://www.watchknowlearn.org/Category.aspx?CategoryID=1076

Like grammar, don’t get frustrated trying to memorize all of the information. I provided this information to give you exposure to it. Once you start communicating with a partner, you will automatically understand.

Please note that you cannot read, listen, and study your way to English fluency. It is important to not skip the part of talking to someone in English at least twice per week, otherwise, you will become fluent in reading and writing English but there may be a weak spot in speaking or understanding spoken English.

Self-Speaking Exercises

1. Identify every item where you are located and learn the English name for them.

2. Use a digital voice recorder (many smartphone has them) to record you speaking the names of the items.

3. Write down a relationship of the items to each other and read aloud your writing when you have time.

For example: “I am on the train and there are many people seated. Some people are standing because there are not enough seats. My destination stop is near, I have to go for now.”

Listen to your recording and critique it. If you have a question about it, ask someone who speaks English. If you have no one, you can ask me on the forum or by email.

Final Thought

The main thing is to think in English and then practice, practice, practice by actually speaking to someone. Be creative in locating someone to engage in conversation such as calling an English speaking Embassy, University, Chamber of Commerce, etc. Just ask a basic question and listen carefully to the answer. Keep it short.

Remember, the human brain is powerful and you can do what you set your mind to do.

I thank you for your patience in receiving Step 5.

Step 6 is the relationship between English, culture, and the basis of phrases, idioms, and slang.

You’re welcome Anne, and thanks.

Justina, here’s a link for information on the preposition “of”

http://www.talkenglish.com/grammar/prepositions-of-to-for.aspx

Hello ! I can’t to understand how to use the preposition “of”...maybe you have any websides where I can look information about this preposition? 

Thank you for helping me out, Teacher Alston, as always. :)

Happy Monday everyone!

Meyban, ditto to you.

Hi Anne,

“Do you have the time” is better but you are leaving the listener hanging because “the time” means a specific time to do something. For example: If you asked your boss “Do you have the time to talk to me about a promotion?” is a complete thought. However, if you only said to your boss “Do you have the time?” the boss’ response would be “for what?”

If you wanted to use the article “a” before time, you could use it if you construct your sentence to accommodate it. For example, if you aksed your boss: “Can you set aside a time for me to talk about a promotion?” This would be acceptable in this case because it is not requesting a definite time but a non-specific time according to your boss’ schedule.

I hope this helps.

Step 5 “How to Speak English” is coming, please stay tuned.