Voice chat with Americans or British

klinsman   Thu May 24, 2007 2:14 pm GMT
Hi everyone,

I've been trying to search for English speakers (Americans or British) to voice chat with on skype. But I'm not sure if they would just talk with strangers.

(And to Guest, did you know the Americans or British you chatted on skype personally? Or were they just someone who had happened to be online at that time and were dialled-up randomly? By the way, you wrote about your experiences in chatting with Americans and Brits in the thread titled "speak as you write" on this forum).

I don't want to look like a weirdo or prick by dialling up somebody out-of-the-blue on skype.

How do I properly get Americans or Brits to voice chat with on skype??
Any tips?

Thanks.
Guest from that thread   Thu May 24, 2007 3:19 pm GMT
<<I don't want to look like a weirdo or prick by dialling up somebody out-of-the-blue on skype. >>

You can always say them that you are learning their language and if they dont mind, can they give you five minutes out of their busy schedule? Starting with five minutes they would probably end up talking with you 30 minutes or so. If you are ready to spend $100 then you can sign up for thelinguist.com - they offer skype discussions. Most teachers are Americans and Canadains. On top of that, you can use many other features that their system has to offer. I did not try their system yet, but it sounds good on the face of it.

Well, to be honest, nothing comes free. Nowadays I talk with an American teacher, he speaks English to me and on the other hand, I teach him my language as well(very painstaking stuff, salute you teachers). Our conversations are normally done via vonage(www.vonage.com) service. Your phone calls transferred through internet and you have to pay only $30 a month. You are free to talk as long as you want to, no time restrictions and the quality of voice is top notch.

That way, you can easily talk with Americans and Canadians in any part of the world as long as they have a vonage facility at their home.

To be honest, I notice that you pick up much more language from other resources than from a native speaker. I hardly gained any vocabulay from that American teacher, on the other hand, I might have bolstered his vocabulary in his language. :) My listening skill is good. I dont have a problem understanding him on the phone because( prior to talking to him)I had already watched probably 130 hollywood movies. Trust me, talking to native speakers is not a sure-fire way to improve your listening and speaking skills. It is only good to pick up the music of the language - and to know how native speakers talk in real life.

As long as you can write well on the forum, watch movies with ease.T ake it from me you wont have a problem in communicating with native speakers.
Guest   Thu May 24, 2007 3:24 pm GMT
<<And to Guest, did you know the Americans or British you chatted on skype personally? Or were they just someone who had happened to be online at that time and were dialled-up randomly>>

I did not know them personally. It was a random thing. Join American Accent Training yahoo group(created by Anne Cook). I am subscribed to their service. There are some American native speakers who are willing to provide free skype discussions on a pre-scheduled time table.
klinsman   Sat May 26, 2007 8:55 am GMT
Thank you for the tips, Guest!

And if there's anyone else out there who would be so kind to share their experiences or knowledge about this topic, please write. Thanks.
klinsman   Fri Jun 01, 2007 11:57 am GMT
I guess the non-response or lack of response to this thread was due to the fact that the more interesting bunch of writers/contributors to this forum have gone to other more liberal english forums.
saravana kumar   Thu Jun 07, 2007 10:00 am GMT
I want to speak english fluently.My yahoo messenger id is ssk_kvp@yahoo.co.in
komal   Thu Jun 14, 2007 12:58 pm GMT
i want to learn american accent as my english is good enough i am teaching currently if u a\van help me with some good information i will be very thankful.
my email id is komukhushi_1989@Rediffmail.com
komal   Thu Jun 14, 2007 12:59 pm GMT
i want to learn american accent as my english is good enough i am teaching currently if u can help me with some good information i will be very thankful.
my email id is komukhushi_1989@Rediffmail.com
Mohd Ikram Uddin   Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:50 am GMT
hey i want speak american english hey it would be nice if any one try help me in improving english
Mohd Ikram Uddin   Fri Jun 15, 2007 3:52 am GMT
hey i want speak american english hey it would be nice if any one try help me in improving english my id is wassup_kool_hunk@yahoo.com
sergio   Mon Jun 25, 2007 4:20 am GMT
Hi everybody I´m looking for people who can speak english I´m mexican I´m 20 years old ´and I´m a student if you are interested in add me ánd if you want to learn spanish, my e-mail is sergiodaniel86@hotmail.com
NoTrust   Mon Oct 08, 2007 12:43 am GMT
hi
victor   Wed Dec 12, 2007 5:37 pm GMT
i want to learn american accent as my english is not that. Please do help me.
my email id is victor6v@yahoo.com
prasanna   Sun Dec 16, 2007 6:55 am GMT
I would like to talk in voice chat
ada   Wed Dec 26, 2007 10:49 pm GMT
hello everybody I'm studying English language and because there are not English speakers around me I hope I can get friends here to help me to enhance my English language. thank you in anticipation
ada555mm@yahoo.com