1.1.4 Rule #3: Cutting
Power Listening consists of cutting an audio file into portions of 2, 3 or 4 seconds and listening to these portions 5, 10 or even 15 or 20 times (examples: slow audio, normal audio). As you listen, read the French text and check the English translation constantly. In this way you’ll be able to:
- figure out which word corresponds to which sound;
- learn the meanings of the words;
- memorise the spelling of the words.
To “cut” your audio file, use the “AB” button (see figure below). At first, you may listen to every single portion of an audio up to 10 times – the playing time of an audio of 2 minutes thus would be 20 minutes (let’s call this an AB round).
Figure 1.1 – Screenshot of the Ear2Memory AB Player (www.Ear2Memory.com).
The first round of 20, 25 or 30 minutes is just the beginning. You may repeat this exercise 5, 10 or more times for every single audio file. We advise you to repeat an audio file the next day, two days after, and then at intervals of 3 to 5 days. Do not stop before reaching your goal: to understand every single word and guess the correct spelling without reading the text, with eyes closed. In less than a month you’ll do it!
Figure 1.2 – Worksheet. Daily documentation of the time dedicated to Power Listening for each lesson.
Documenting your Power Listening times in a worksheet will help you check your progress. In the example above (Figure 1.2), daily listening time is about 40 minutes. If you have time, add another lesson or two until you reach 60 minutes a day. In our personal experience, 60 minutes is easy; 120 minutes requires a certain discipline; and 180 minutes or more is possible only if no other important activities are happening around you.
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