4 Must-Listen Podcasts to Instantly Boost Your English Skills!

Hello, everyone! My name is Ms Umi, and I’m an English Teacher here at Lil’ but Mighty. Today, I’m going to share with you 4 must-listen Podcasts that you can enjoy listening to in your free time, while helping you improve your English at the same time! Talk about killing two birds with one stone!

Benefits of Listening to Podcasts

Now you may be wondering how listening to podcasts may benefit you. It turns out that there are actually many benefits to listening to podcasts. Podcasts are different from movies, TV programmes, or even YouTube videos because they require you to focus completely on the audio. How does this help an English language learner like yourself?

First of all, it makes you a better listener because in order to follow and understand the topic being discussed during the podcast, you need to listen closely and pay attention to the words being said. Not only that, it can help to improve your concentration as you tune out environmental distractions in your effort to make sense of what you are listening to. As a learning tool, podcasts can be especially effective because the hosts are usually speaking in a more conversational – and hence more natural – way, unlike the actors in movies and shows, who often follow a scripted dialogue.

Next, since there is no visual image to support what you are hearing, you will find yourself paying more attention to the rich language used in the descriptions to bring the message and details across. Feel free to pause or rewind any part which you had found captivating in terms of content or language and you can even record down in a notebook any descriptions which you had enjoyed.

Additionally, listening to podcasts allows you to reduce screen time, which means you can escape from the negative effects of prolonged screen time use, such as sleep disruption and suffering from eye strains. Besides, if you listen to podcasts on topics such as stress management and mindfulness, it can help you improve your mental health and your English at the same time! I know as students all of you are very busy and often find yourselves always on the move, but the great thing about podcasts is that you can listen to them wherever (on the bus, in the train, at home etc.) and whenever (while travelling to your tuition class, before you go to sleep etc.) you want to, so it provides you with a flexible way to grow your mind while being on the go.

Curious to learn what my top 4 podcasts picks are? Let’s go!

#1: BBC’s 6-minute English

Average Episode Duration: 6 min

This is the BBC’s long-running podcast series. Not only do you get to learn new vocabulary with every episode, but you can also increase your general knowledge as they cover a wide range of topics, like pets, history, places, and many more.

Listen here: BBC

#2: Ridiculous History

Average Episode Duration: 30 to 60 min

If you’re a history buff (like me!), you may be interested in this podcast series. Hosts Ben Bowlin and Noel Brown talk about some of the weirdest stories from throughout the history of human civilisation. Not only do you get to learn a weird thing or two about the past, but you can also listen to how they converse naturally with each other. Each episode is 30 to 60 minutes long but you can always pause and continue.

Listen here: Spotify | Apple | iHeart

#3: Cabinet of Curiosities

Average Episode Duration: 9 to 12 min

Each episode features two short unbelievable, unsettling or bizarre stories. From rat packs to dinosaurs, you will definitely not be bored listening to this! In fact, one of the episodes led to the story about the creator of Pokemon which will definitely pique the interest of young listeners. Each episode is 9 to 12 minutes long and the bite-sized stories will keep listeners glued right until the end.

Listen here: Spotify | Apple | iHeart

#4: The Story Seeds Podcast

Average Episode Duration: 30 to 40 min

Rather than tell a story, this award-nominated podcast shows you how a story is created. It takes the story seeds (story ideas) of children aged 6-12 and grow them through collaboration with diverse, beloved children’s authors such as Katherine Applegate, author of The One and Only Ivan. Each episode features an immersive story time read aloud by the author and children will be inspired by the creative stories and rich, descriptive language.

Listen here: Apple

So there you go! I really hope you enjoy my podcast recommendations. If you have any insights on the different podcasts or if you have any suggestions to add to this list, feel free to leave a comment! Happy listening!