How to Learn Southern US English With Comprehensible Input

Southern US English has a few words and habits of its own, like y'all, which means you all, and fixin' to, which means about to. A list can tell you the meaning, but you only start to catch a word after you've heard it in many sentences you already understand. That is comprehensible input: Southern English you mostly follow, where the words you know explain the new one.

About one new word in each sentence, while you still follow the meaning.

.

.

.

If you read "Are y'all ready to go?" and you know every other word, the group of people in the sentence tells you what y'all means. Read a few sentences. If most have about one new word, keep going. If most have two or three, pick something easier.

Bubblegum has six levels, and each starts with a sentence in a learner's own words. Pick the one closest to you. The courses and shows in the rows don't use these levels, so treat each row as a first guess.

1. Level 1

   I’m starting with a few English words.

   Choose one of two ways to start. The easiest way is Bubblegum, where Poppy, your AI tutor, writes short Southern US English lessons at your level about your interests and goals and explains the grammar as you go. The other way is USA Learns, a free English course with video lessons.

   USA Learns →
2. Level 2

   I can read simple everyday sentences.

   If you use Bubblegum, read its Level 2 lessons with the translation hidden, and look up only the words that stop you. Lessons at this level can have a speaker say y'all to a group. VOA Learning English has a Beginning level with video and audio programs, in American English.

   VOA Learning English →
3. Level 3

   I can follow short stories and simple explanations.

   Read a few Level 3 lessons a week in Bubblegum, which reuses the words you saved. Try the Intermediate level on VOA Learning English, and play each story twice.

   VOA Learning English →
4. Level 4

   I can follow longer explanations and different opinions.

   Read Bubblegum lessons at Level 4 about things you're into. Texas Standard is a news show about Texas, so pick one short story at a time and play it again for the parts you missed.

   Texas Standard →
5. Level 5

   I can read about complex topics and notice changes in tone.

   Listen to Gravy, a podcast of food stories from the South, and notice who sounds serious and who sounds playful. Guess new words from the sentence before you look them up. Poppy can write your Level 5 lessons about anything you're into.

   Gravy →
6. Level 6

   I can follow subtle meanings and precise arguments across different kinds of writing.

   Listen to news and podcasts from the South, and notice how speakers say things like might could. Read Bubblegum lessons at Level 6 about the things you care about too. The International Dialects of English Archive has free recordings of English speakers that you can search by state.

   Dialects archive →

Try the next row once this one feels easy. If most sentences need the dictionary, go back one row.

Here's a sentence written for this guide: We're fixin' to eat, so y'all come sit down. If you know the rest of it, the scene tells you what the new part means: dinner is about to start, and the speaker is calling a group to the table.

Bubblegum is a language app where your AI tutor, Poppy, writes Southern US English lessons for your level about topics you choose. Voices labeled Gulf Coast and Inland Southern read every lesson aloud, and you can look up words and ask her about grammar. Words you save come back in new lessons through Regenerative Review™.