# How I Improved My English READING with Podcasts | Simple English Podcast for English Learners🎧

An episode of [Simple English Podcast](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1853750935), 16 Apr 2025, 8:13.

Audio: https://anchor.fm/s/fcaca268/podcast/play/101147836/https%3A%2F%2Fd3ctxlq1ktw2nl.cloudfront.net%2Fstaging%2F2025-3-11%2F96c30b63-7537-5b04-ae7e-e44aa6935f41.mp3

Welcome back to the Simple English Podcast!In today’s episode, we explore a powerful and practical topic: How I Improved My English Reading Skills with Podcasts 📖🎧 Can podcasts really help you read English better? The answer might surprise you! 🎁 Here is the FREE PDF file of today's episode: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1gli64xpqZieFgCQg-TXvoDi-zHVC6wO2/view?usp=sharing This episode is packed with real experience, simple strategies, and easy tips to help English learners improve their reading comprehension using podcasts. You’ll learn: ✅ How listening to podcasts can support and improve your English reading✅ How to combine reading transcripts with audio for faster progress✅ Simple daily habits to build vocabulary and reading confidence✅ How beginners can improve English reading step by step Perfect for English learners, ESL students, and podcast lovers who want to improve reading skills naturally and effectively. 👉 Enjoying the content? Please like, comment, and share your thoughts on how podcasts have helped improve your English reading! ▶ Check out the audio with video and images on this channel**:** https://www.youtube.com/@Simple_English_Podcast #EnglishReading #LearnEnglish #EnglishPodcast #LearnEnglishPodcast #SimpleEnglishPodcast #ImproveReading #ESLPodcast #EnglishForBeginners #PodcastLearning

## Transcript

[0:04] Hi everyone, welcome back to the Simple English Podcast.
[0:08] I'm Lisa, and today we have a super exciting topic that will
[0:11] inspire all of you English learners out there.
[0:13] Now, many people think podcasts are only good for improving
[0:16] listening skills, but what if I told you they can actually help
[0:20] improve your reading too? Sounds interesting, right?
[0:24] Well, today's guest is here to tell us exactly how that works.
[0:28] Joining me today is Emma, who has an amazing story to share.
[0:32] She improved her English reading skills by using podcasts.
[0:35] As always, don't forget to check out the free PDF file in the
[0:38] comments section below to get the full transcript and
[0:42] vocabulary for this episode. Emma, welcome to the show.
[0:50] Thanks for having me Lisa. I'm excited to be here and share
[0:53] my journey. We're excited to hear it.
[0:56] I think many listeners are going to be surprised because when we
[0:59] think of podcasts, we think of listening.
[1:01] So tell us, how did you start using podcasts to improve your
[1:05] reading? Where did this idea come from?
[1:08] It's true, Lisa. Most people associate podcasts
[1:11] with listening practice, which is really helpful, of course,
[1:14] but what I discovered was that I could actually use them to
[1:17] improve my reading in a few creative ways.
[1:19] It all started when I found myself struggling to follow
[1:22] along with longer texts in English.
[1:24] I could read short articles and social media posts, but anything
[1:27] more challenging felt overwhelming.
[1:29] Yeah, I think a lot of learners feel that way.
[1:32] Longer texts can be intimidating.
[1:34] So how did podcasts help you? I began with podcasts that had
[1:38] transcripts. Many educational podcasts,
[1:41] especially those focused on language learning, offer full
[1:43] transcripts of each episode. So I'd listen to an episode and
[1:47] at the same time I'd read along with the transcript.
[1:50] This helped me improve my vocabulary, sentence structure,
[1:53] and overall understanding of written English.
[1:56] It was like combining listening and reading practice at once.
[1:59] That sounds like a great idea. So you could see the words while
[2:02] hearing them being pronounced. Exactly, it made a huge
[2:06] difference. One podcast that really helped
[2:09] me was the ESL pod. They provide both audio and
[2:12] text, and I found it super helpful to read along while
[2:15] listening. It forced me to concentrate on
[2:17] the written words while also understanding how they sound in
[2:20] natural conversation. That's brilliant, I can see how
[2:23] it would help with both pronunciation and understanding
[2:26] complex sentences. Did you use any other strategies
[2:29] with podcasts to boost your reading?
[2:32] Yes, another technique I used was listening to podcasts that
[2:35] discuss books or book summaries. There are some great English
[2:38] podcasts out there that focus on summarizing popular books or
[2:41] discussing their themes. So after listening to an
[2:44] episode, I'd get curious and want to read the actual book or
[2:48] at least read articles about it. It kept me motivated to read
[2:51] more because I had a deeper understanding of the topic
[2:53] before even starting the book. Oh, that's smart.
[2:57] So you'd sort of prepare your mind with the podcast before
[3:00] diving into the book itself. Exactly.
[3:03] It's like having a CHEAT SHEET. For example, I remember
[3:07] listening to a podcast about The Power of Habit by Charles
[3:10] Duhigg. The podcast gave an overview of
[3:12] the key ideas from the book, and when I went to read it later I
[3:16] found it so much easier to understand the text because I
[3:18] was already familiar with the main points.
[3:21] That's such a clever way to combine listening and reading.
[3:24] I bet a lot of our listeners can relate to this because reading
[3:27] books in English can be really daunting, but if you already
[3:31] have an idea of what to expect, it's less scary.
[3:34] Exactly, And another thing I did was listen to podcasts about
[3:37] current events. I'd listen to an episode about,
[3:40] let's say a global news story, and then I'd find a written
[3:44] article on the same topic. This helped me connect what I'd
[3:47] heard with the way things were described in writing.
[3:50] It made me more familiar with journalistic vocabulary and
[3:54] sentence structures. I love that idea.
[3:57] It's a great way to build your reading comprehension and expand
[4:00] your vocabulary at the same time.
[4:02] It's also very practical because current events are something we
[4:05] all encounter in daily life. OK Emma, now it's time for our
[4:14] fun fact segment. So we know that podcasts are
[4:17] super popular, but did you know that podcasts can actually help
[4:21] people improve their brain connectivity?
[4:23] Really. That's fascinating.
[4:25] I didn't know that. Yes, studies show that when you
[4:29] listen to podcasts, it engages multiple parts of the brain,
[4:32] especially when you're following along with a story or learning
[4:35] something new. And when you pair it with
[4:38] reading like you did, you're activating both the auditory and
[4:41] visual areas of the brain. This helps improve your overall
[4:45] comprehension and makes it easier for you to remember what
[4:48] you learn. That makes sense.
[4:51] I definitely feel like my brain was working in OverDrive when I
[4:54] was reading along with the podcast.
[4:56] It's a great mental workout. Exactly.
[4:59] So not only are you improving your language skills, but you're
[5:02] also giving your brain a boost. Wow, Emma, thank you so much for
[5:11] sharing your tips and experience with us.
[5:13] I think a lot of our listeners will be inspired to try out
[5:16] these techniques. Podcasts really are such a
[5:19] versatile tool, not just for listening but also for reading
[5:22] improvement. You've given us some great
[5:24] strategies today. Thank you Lisa, I'm happy to
[5:27] share and I hope it helps others in their English learning
[5:30] journey. Podcasts have been such a game
[5:33] changer for me and I really believe they can help others
[5:35] too, especially with reading. Absolutely.
[5:39] So to all of our listeners, if you haven't yet tried using
[5:42] podcasts to improve your reading, give it a shot.
[5:45] Look for podcasts with transcripts, listen to book
[5:47] summaries, or explore current events.
[5:50] There's so much you can do to make learning English more fun
[5:53] and effective. If you enjoyed today's episode,
[5:56] don't forget to subscribe to the Simple English Podcast.
[5:59] And as always, leave us a comment to let us know your
[6:01] favorite podcasts or how you're improving your English skills.
[6:05] Until next time, keep learning, keep improving, and have fun
[6:09] with your English journey. Now it's time to learn some
[6:16] important vocabulary related to the topic.
[6:19] The first word of today is transcript.
[6:22] It means a written or printed version of spoken material.
[6:26] Example, I followed along with the transcript while listening
[6:30] to the podcast to improve my reading.
[6:32] Next word is comprehension. It means the ability to
[6:36] understand something. Example Reading along with
[6:40] podcasts has helped me improve my English comprehension.
[6:45] Next word is summarize. It means to give a brief
[6:49] statement of the main points of something.
[6:52] Example the podcast episode summarized the book making it
[6:57] easier to understand when I read it later.
[7:00] Next word is motivation. It means the reason or reasons
[7:05] for acting or behaving in a particular way.
[7:08] Example podcasts about self improvement provided me with the
[7:12] motivation to keep reading more books in English.
[7:15] Next word is pronunciation, It means the way in which a word is
[7:19] spoken. Example, reading along with
[7:23] podcasts helped me learn the correct pronunciation of
[7:26] difficult words. Next word is retention, it means
[7:30] the ability to remember information over time.
[7:33] Example, listening to podcasts while reading increased my
[7:37] retention of new words and phrases.
[7:39] The last word is engage. It means to involve or occupy
[7:43] someone's interest or attention. Example.
[7:47] I find that reading along with podcasts helps me engage more
[7:50] deeply with the content. Thank you for listening to our
[7:58] episode of the Simple English Podcast.
[8:01] I hope you learned something new and helpful today.
[8:03] If you find this video helpful, please give us a like, share it
[8:07] and comment below on what you'd like to hear in the next
[8:09] episode. We'd love to hear from you.
[8:11] See you next time and bye.

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