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CHAPTER 5:
NATIVE IMMERSION -
5,001+ Words
Congratulations - you've arrived at the 5,000 word level!
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Now things really get interesting.
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Casual conversation between natives starts to become comprehensible at this stage and you can be much more independent in your choices.
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In this chapter you'll learn how to take those first exciting deep dives into the English speaking world.
Youtube, podcasts for native speakers, live radio, Instagram stories, reality shows, Twitch gaming streams, video games, drama series, movies - they all become great options now. It just depends on your interests.
Using the strategies of the previous phase you can continue to improve comprehension from the 5,000 word level right up to 9,000 words and beyond.
And at 9,000 words you can consume almost all content designed for adult native speakers for pleasure, like an extension of your first language.
The Longest Phase
Consider the number of hours of reading required to reach 5,000 words in this chart.
Now compare that with the time it takes to go from 5,000 to 9,000 words.
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That's an extra 1,000 hours of reading!
To put it another way, you have to spend 5 times as long as you did to reach this point before you get to the top level of this scale.
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As you can imagine, personal preference and enjoyment become even more important now. So make your picks, get yourself comfy, and enjoy the riches of the deeps of the English world.
Top Tips For This Phase:
1. Dedicate some time to finding some resources you might like. Repeat this step when necessary.
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2. If you currently consume content for entertainment in your 1st language, try to distribute it more evenly with English. E.g. 50:50.
3. Replicate the listening/viewing/reading/socialising conditions you already have in your 1st language for English.
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4. If you follow the 3 tips above but find your motivation falling, the usual culprit is a lack of comprehension. Switch to something easier - you’ll enjoy it more, you’ll do it more and you’ll learn more.
Reading
Many learners have the idea that their reading is already good so they don't really need to prioritise it.
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​When polyglot and co-founder of lingQ.com Steve Kaufmann hears this opinion from learners he asks them one simple question.
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​Have you ever read a novel in English?
Like Kaufmann, the research would suggest that if you answered no, then you could be leaving a lot of language gains on the table.
Aside from:
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Grammar acquisition
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Cultural knowledge
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Learning contextual appropriacy of language
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Pronunciation improvements (yes, even from reading)
Reading allows you to acquire vocabulary at a faster rate than listening (Brown, 2008).
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Novels are particularly rich in language, so if you want to communicate with the most articulate English speakers, reading fiction is one of the best tools in your toolkit.
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If you haven’t read the Controlled Immersion chapter already I encourage you to do so. There you will find three reading strategies that can take your level as high as you want to go.
Audio Books, Printed Books and Ebooks
If you’re not sure where to find English books here is a short list of online stores:
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Amazon.com/Amazon.co.uk (the UK and USA sites have a greater selection of ebooks than many local versions of the website
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Internet Archive - get a free account and borrow millions of books
Listening
Podcasts
This list features a mixture of podcasts for English learners and for native speakers with no agenda other than to inform and provide entertainment.
If you have reached this stage but your listening comprehension is still lagging behind your reading, consider spending some time with the listening resources from the Controlled Immersion chapter before revisting this one.
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Special mention for My Dad Wrote a Porno which has just been inducted into the UK Podcast Hall of Fame.
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The British Podcast Awards website itself is also a great source for ideas.
Digital Radio
Tunein allows you to listen to digital radio stations from around the world via its mobile app and webpage.
You can select stations by country, region, and language as well as use it to find podcasts on topics of interest.
The BBC’s diverse range of stations is a good place to start your journey into radio for native speakers.
Here is the BBC’s own guide to its stations:
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Music radio on Radio 1, Radio 1 Xtra, Radio 2, 6 Music and Asian Network.
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Speech, drama, analysis and the arts on Radio 4
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Classical music and jazz on Radio 3
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News and sport on 5 live and 5 live sports extra
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Local programming from 40 stations in England
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6 dedicated radio services in the nations (Radio Scotland, Radio nan Gàidheal, Radio Ulster, Radio Foyle, Radio Wales, Radio Cymru
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Comedy, drama and children’s programming on Radio 4 Extra
Native TV/Radio/Streaming Services with a VPN
You've just heard about the incredible new Netflix/HBO Max/Disney+/Apple TV+ series everyone's talking about. You're excited to watch it, but when you try to find it...nada...zilch...nothing. It's not available in your country!
This is the frustrating truth with streaming services.
If you suspect you are getting a bad deal where you live you may be right: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1013571/netflix-library-size-worldwide/
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With a VPN (Virtual Private Network) you can sidestep your local restrictions to access content from other countries, as if you were living there.
Here is a short list of language-learning-applicable things I personally use a VPN for:
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Live and on-demand UK TV shows from the BBC, ITV, and Channel 4
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French & Portuguese TV
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Live sport
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Live and on-demand radio
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International Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+
Here are the top three VPN providers in 2024 according to techradar.com:
Best Overall
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Pros:
Easy to use for beginners
Excellent streaming
Ultra-reliable security
Cons:
Relatively expensive
Not as fast as NordVPN or Surfshark
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Among the fastest VPNs
The best for Netflix unblocking
Includes ad blocking and malware protection
Cons:
Fewer server countries than ExpressVPN
Apps can be confusing for beginners
Pros:
Extremely fast
Unblocked everything in techradar tests
The best budget VPN
Cons:
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No notification if your VPN drops
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