Outline essay

 

1.    Introduction

As a newcomer to the United States, have you ever had a difficult time understanding normal spoken English on TV, at work, or in school?  If you have, you are not alone.  Many beginning students of English have a difficult time learning to listen in English.

Thesis Statement:

These strategies could be broken down into pre-, while-, and post-listening strategies.

2.  Body Paragraph One:

Topic Sentence:  Try asking yourself these questions before listening:  What is the topic?  What do I already know about the topic?  What do I need to know before I listen?  What can I predict will be said?

          Supporting Ideas or Examples:

A.   The process of preparing yourself to listen to a TV program or classroom lecture is sometimes just as important as the actual practice of listening.

B.   If you know that a lecture or TV program is going to be on a particular subject, you can practice the strategy of predicting.

C.   Predicting is when you try to guess what you will hear before you actually hear it.

D.   If you think about a subject before you listen and predict what is going to be said, you will understand more of the lecture or TV program as you listen.

3.  Body Paragraph Two:

Topic Sentence:  An excellent while-listening strategy is the practice of making guesses about what you hear.

          Supporting Ideas/Examples:

A.   Oftentimes, people do not need to understand or hear every word of a lecture, conversation, or TV show to understand the main idea of what is being said.

B.   Some ways of making good guesses in listening is to first pay attention to the speakers’ gestures and facial expressions.

C.   These things can often communicate more than the words people say.

D.   To practice this strategy, try listening to a video without sound.

E.   Pay careful attention to the speakers’ gestures and facial expressions.

F.    As you watch, try guessing what the speakers are saying.

G.   When you are finished watching, rewind the tape to see if your guesses are correct.

H.   You will probably be surprised at how much you were able to understand just by guessing!

4.  Body Paragraph Three:

Topic Sentence:  An important post-listening strategy that will help you become a better listener is evaluating.

          Supporting Ideas/Examples:

A.   You need to check to see if you what you understood from the TV program, lecture, or conversation is correct.

B.   To do this, you can ask a classmate or co-worker to summarize what you just heard.

C.   By doing this, you will be able to determine whether or not you are making progress in your listening skills or if you need to adjust your goals and expectations.

5. Conclusion

The strategies of predicting, guessing, and evaluating can less some of the frustration. Try these strategies today and see if you notice improvement in your listening skill.