This is an English lesson designed to help you improve your English listening and pronunciation. The listening lesson is a short story about something that happened in my life in Canada. There is also a short pronunciation explanation about a word or sound I used in the story.

Story: Gifts for my oldest friend’s first baby!
Pronunciation lesson: How to pronounce the -sts consonant cluster at the end of a word.

If you have trouble with your listening skills, here’s something that may help:
How to practice listening

Listen to the podcast:

Download the podcast in .mp3 from Podbean.com or itunes!

Listening Comprehension Questions:

1. How did I meet my friend?

2. Where does she live now?

3. What is the first gift I bought for her new baby?

4. What’s so special about the sweatshirt?

5. What’s the second gift I bought?

Transcript:

(*Click on the links to learn more about the grammar, vocabulary and expressions used in the story!)

My oldest friend in the world just had her first baby! My friend and I met in the 7th grade when the teacher made us sit next to each other in class. She lived in Canada for another year before she moved back to her native England. We’ve kept in touch ever since!

I wanted to get her new baby a special gift that would remind my friend of her time in Canada. When we were young, the most popular item of clothing was a Roots sweatshirt. Everyone had to have one. Roots is a popular Canadian clothing chain. Even though it’s been a long time since we were young, Roots still makes the same sweatshirts! They even make them small enough for a baby! I got one large enough for an 18-month-old baby, so her daughter can grow into it.

I also had another great idea. There’s a Build-A-Bear Workshop [link to Build-A-Bear Workshop website] not too far from here and I remembered that they had a unique Canadian animal. I searched their website and discovered they had a ‘Patriotic Pup’ – a white dog with red maple leaves all over it! I dressed the pup in special Build-A-Bear 1950s outfit, complete with a poodle skirt – because my friend’s mother made us poodle skirts for Halloween one year! Build-A-Bear things are very good quality, so I hope the Canadian ‘Patriotic Pup’ lasts a long time.

Now I have to pack everything up and send it to England. I hope my friend and her adorable new baby enjoy the gifts and the memories of Canada!

Discussion Questions:

What about you? If you were me, what would you buy as a baby gift for your oldest friend in the world?

Pronunciation:

English words often include something called ‘consonant clusters’ – a group of consonants with no vowel between them. These consonant clusters are often difficult for English learners to pronounce.

One of these difficult consonant clusters is the –sts at the end of a word, like in the words guests, costs, and artists.

Let’s look at how to pronounce the –sts consonant cluster at the end of a word!

Forget about the t. Pretend there is no t in this cluster.

Start by making the ‘s’ /s/ sound. This is an unvoiced sound. That means it’s just air coming out of your mouth… /s/

Then, what you need to do is quickly tap the tip of your tongue on the roof of your mouth, just behind your top teeth. The tip of your tongue quickly goes up and comes back down. This stops the airflow. Again, it’s just a quick tap of your tongue.

Listen carefully…

Can you hear how there is a stop in the airflow? Listen again…

A bit quicker now…

There is no t /t/ sound.

In the listening lesson, I used the word ‘lasts’: I hope the Canadian Patriotic Pup lasts a long time.

Here are some more words you can practice. Listen and repeat after me:
lists
forests
ghosts
dentists
trusts

Listen to words that end in -sts used in sentences:

Paris is a popular destination for tourists.

I have a lot of tests at school this week.

My mother insists that you eat dinner at our house tonight.

Atheists do not believe in God.

Lately the weather forecasts have been wrong.

With more practice, this sound will get easier, until the tongue tap is so quick you can barely hear it!

*More practice words and sentences:
terrorists
wastes
nests
protests
priests
fists
hairstylists
suggests
chests
beasts

He invests his money in gold stocks.

Edward thirsts for Bella’s blood.

The sales analysts in our company are simply the best.

There are too many cyclists on the road these days.

My wrists are sore from playing the piano.

I love making playlists on itunes.

Vocabulary:

my oldest friend in the world
My oldest friend in the world just had her first baby!
= the friend that I have known the longest. In this context, ‘oldest’ does not mean that she is older than me, it means that I have known her longer than all my other friends.

7th grade
My friend and I met in the 7th grade…
= In Canada, students are 12 years old. The 7th grade is considered ‘middle school’ or ‘junior high.’

her native England
…she moved back to her native England.
= My friend was born in England; she moved to Canada for a few years, then moved back to England.

a clothing chain
Roots is a popular Canadian clothing chain.
= there are Roots stores all across Canada; they all sell the same clothing (the Roots brand)

Build-A-Bear Workshop
[link to Build-A-Bear Workshop website]
There’s a Build-A-Bear Workshop not too far from here…
= this is a popular toy store where you can make your own stuffed animal!

patriotic
…they had a ‘Patriotic Pup’ – a white dog with red maple leaves all over him!
= having / showing love for and being proud of your country

a pup
…they had a ‘Patriotic Pup’ – a white dog with red maple leaves all over him!
= short for ‘puppy’ – a baby dog

a red maple leaf
…a white dog with red maple leaves all over it.
= the maple leaf is the symbol of Canada; there’s a red maple leaf on the Canadian flag

a poodle skirt
I dressed the pup in special Build-A-Bear 1950s outfit, complete with a poodle skirt.
= a type of skirt worn in the 1950s; it was usually a solid colour skirt with a picture of a poodle on it!