Having good listening skills is useful when learning a second language. It can help you improve your pronunciation, develop your vocabulary, and more. In addition, good listening skills can help you communicate comfortably in English. Whether talking to another English speaker or listening to a meeting at work or lecture at school, you will use your listening skills often.

There are many techniques you can use to improve your verbal understanding of English. Here are three ways you can improve your English listening comprehension.

Listen to English Movies, Songs, Podcasts, and More

To learn any language quickly, you need to be very involved in it. This is important with English as well. With television and the Internet, it’s easier than ever to do this if you need to improve your listening skills.

Watching English television can be a great way to improve your verbal comprehension

You can watch the news in English, listen to English-language podcasts and songs, and watch movies and television shows in English. When watching television in English, you can keep captions on so that you can see the words written in English as well. Even if certain words are above your level of comprehension, this can be an opportunity to improve your vocabulary as well as your listening skills.

Focus on the Main Ideas First

Whether you are listening to your teachers during your English language learning, listening to other English speakers during a conversation, or simply enjoying a favorite song, it’s a good idea to pay attention carefully.

However, when listening to others it’s important to focus on the main message instead of trying to understand every word. Trying to listen to every word at once can sometimes feel overwhelming when learning a new language. By listening for the main message instead, you can understand the message even if you miss some words. With time and practice, your listening skills will improve until you can hear most words in a conversation.

Listen to Videos Played at a Slower Speed to Improve Your English Language Learning

Listening to others speak in their native language can be confusing for those still learning English. This is often because they’re talking too fast. As a result, those in an ESL class won’t be able to keep up with how quickly those people talk.

If necessary, slow English videos down to better understand them

To help you improve your listening skills, it can be helpful to listen to videos at a slower speed. You want a speed and pace that is slow enough for you to understand as much as possible, before eventually increasing that speed. For example, you could watch an English-language YouTube video at 0.5x or 0.25x its normal speed, and then move it back to its original pace when you feel ready. Understanding spoken English takes time, practice, and patience, but with the right training and support you can do it!

Do you want to learn English?

Contact ASC English to learn about taking English language courses in Boston.