Your basket is currently empty!
Author: Ariel Goodbody
How the Narwhal Got Its Tusk
—
Genre: Children’sSetting: GreenlandNew Vocabulary: Bolt of lightning, Exile, Flesh, Grumble, Harpoon, Igloo, Keen (ear), Migrate (illness), Narwhal, Raven, Rot, Tusk, Whittle, YankWord Count: 2831Original Author: Howard NormanA blind boy lives in Greenland with his parents and his aunt. The aunt is always complaining, so the boy’s mother sends her away, but one night, there is a storm and the boy hears his aunt being struck by lightning. The aunt goes mad, and only the blind boy can save her, but he’ll have to travel far from home to do so…
The Giant Turnip
A woman grows a really big turnip. She wants to pull it out of the ground but she can’t. Her husband helps her, but together they still can’t pull the turnip out of the ground. How much help will they need?
The Water Monster
—
Genre: HorrorSetting: FairytaleNew Vocabulary: Bend someone’s will, Brine, Flesh and blood, Froth, Make to do something, Mild, Seaweed, String of pearls, Swirl, Tea (food)Word Count: 753Original Author: Karel Jaromír ErbenDownload this episode as a PDF. Transcript Welcome to Easy Stories in English, the podcast that will take your English from OK to Good, and from Good to Great. I am Ariel Goodbody, your host for this show. Today’s story is for intermediate learners. The name of the story is The Water Monster. You can […]
Doggo and Kitty Tear Their Trousers (Advanced)
It’s a lovely day, and Doggo and Kitty go for a walk in the forest. But when Doggo gets into a fight with a rabbit, he tears his trousers, and now everyone is laughing at him! How can they mend his trousers when they’re just a dog and a cat?
How to Teach a Language
—
Genre: OtherSetting: OtherNew Vocabulary: Aid, Build upon, CI, Clip chat, Cognate, Command, Crosstalk, Mime, Physical, Story listening, Target language, Word wallWord Count: 3061Original Author: Ariel GoodbodyIn this episode, I explore methods you can use to teach your language to your friend or partner. It builds upon the information in the previous episode How to Learn a Language, so I highly recommend listening to that episode first.
The Path of Pins and Needles
—
Genre: HorrorSetting: FairytaleNew Vocabulary: Get the better of you, Intestines, Pins and needles, Sense (verb), Sneak, Stray from, Tickle, Wet yourself, Wolf downWord Count: 2024Original Author: Ariel GoodbodyRed loves playing tricks on the adults in her village, so one day her mother sends her to bring bread and milk to her grandmother. On the way, Red meets a strange man, Wolf, who suggests they play a game: he’ll walk the path of pins, she’ll walk the path of needles, and they’ll see who gets to Grandmother’s house first. But when Red arrives, she finds something very different to what she expected.
The Three Goats
—
Genre: Children’sSetting: FairytaleNew Vocabulary: Annoying, Drown, Eldest, Flow, Goat, Greedy, Middle child, Narrow, One by one, Silly, TrollWord Count: 1232Original Author: Fairy TalesThree goats live happily in a field eating grass. But one day, there’s no more grass. They decide to cross a bridge to another field. But when they try to cross, a monster jumps out, and he wants to eat them!
Simon’s New Job
—
Genre: ComedySetting: ModernNew Vocabulary: Chase, Control, Deodorant, Put the heating on, Scream, Smell, Stick to, Still, Sweat, Tear (pulling)Word Count: 1033Original Author: Ariel GoodbodySimon gets a new job, but everything goes wrong. He doesn’t wear enough deodorant and smells at work. He tries walking, taking the bus, the train, a taxi, but he always gets there too early or too late. One day, it all becomes too much…
How to Learn a Language
—
Genre: OtherSetting: OtherNew Vocabulary: Abstract, Affective filter, Bibliography, Cognate, Comprehensible input, Conscious, Controversial, Criticise, Data, Figure out, Hypothesis, Innate, Make a deal, Memorise, Monitor, Negative emotions, Output, Panic, Researcher, Second language acquisition, Spark an interest, State (say), Subconscious, TheoryWord Count: 5130Original Author: Ariel GoodbodyIn this episode, I explain the theory behind second language acquisition, or the way that we learn languages and how best to study languages. I introduce Stephen Krashen’s Theory of Comprehensible Input and discuss the five hypotheses that make it up, and then explain how I used this theory when creating Easy Stories in English.
The Piper of Hamelin (Beginner)
Rats come to the town of Hamelin, three times as big as normal rats. The townspeople don’t know what to do. But then a piper comes to town and says he can get rid of the rats with his music. The only problem? The price! But when the mayor refuses to pay him, the piper plays a different kind of music…