Listening plays a huge part in learning any language. The first thing you did as a child was listen - you couldn't talk, or write or speak, so you listened. Unfortunately as we grow up a lot of us lose the skill of listening, but like most things, it is something you can improve on.
The first thing to do is learn to listen actively. Learning a language is a lot like learning to play a musical instrument. You can listen to music for enjoyment, but if you want to study the music you have to listen more critically. It's the same with languages; you need to make a conscious effort to hear not only the words that someone is saying but, more importantly, pay attention, and try to understand the complete message behind the words.
Watching films, TV shows or videos is a good start. If you're not sure what films to watch, look at our recommended films pages.
If you enjoy reading, why not listen to some of your favourite books? Audio books are available in many different formats, and you can even borrow some audio books from libraries. If you like the classics you will find many available to listen to online, for free.
Films and TV shows are scripted, so listening to talk radio or chat shows can be a bit more challenging. It's all good practise.
Listening to popular music is a great way of learning some new vocabulary and expressions. There are many free radio stations out there, and you can look up the lyrics online. Our favourite radio station is Learn English Radio.
Go to some TTS (text to speech) web sites and use their free services. Some of the results are surprisingly good.
Start visiting virtual worlds, for example Second Life or Open Sim. Virtual worlds are the one place we've found where you're pretty much guaranteed a conversation, you won't always want to listen to the people you meet, but for every blood sucking vampire who asks if they can bite you, there are at least ten, nice people who just want to socialise, the rest you can easily block. If you want a list of nice places to go, just contact us on the forum or look at some of the places we have already visited (sometimes Sims close, so it's best to ask us).
