Harry Houdini never met Bonnie and Clyde. But you'll find both of them in our inaugural Phrasal Verb Challenge.

It’s announcement time. Our next challenge will start on Monday, October 30th.

This will be a daily 21-day challenge which will help you sort out phrasal verbs once and for all.

Phrasal verbs are one of the most frustrating parts of English.

Just by adding one word after a verb, you can completely change the meaning. 

Take a look:

• Get by: to manage or survive
• Get ahead: to progress or advance in one's career or life
• Get across: to successfully communicate an idea
• Get over: to recover from something
• Get into: to become involved in
• Get out: to leave or escape
• Get up: to rise from a sitting or lying position
• Get down: to lower oneself or to begin doing something seriously
• Get off: to leave a form of transport like a bus or to be acquitted in court
• Get along: to have a good relationship with someone
• Get through: to manage to contact someone or to survive a difficult period

You could try to learn lists of phrasal verbs but–let’s be honest–this is as boring as it is inefficient.

So let me tell you about a better way.

Instead of trying to memorise lists, you can learn phrasal verbs while learning about something that's actually interesting.

This is the idea behind our first Phrasal Verb Challenge.

Here's how it'll work:

Every day you'll receive a new piece of audio about a different podcast episode of English Learning for Curious Minds.

We’ll cover everything from The Life of Gladiators to The Story of Red Bull, Harry Houdini to Bonnie & Clyde, and you'll hear the stories narrated by 21 different voices (with a wide range of accents and styles of speaking)

Each short piece of audio will contain 10 phrasal verbs. 

You’ll listen to the audio once (spoken at native-level speed) and then watch a video lesson where I will go through it more slowly and explain each phrasal verb for you.

And your task is to write a short piece of text (fictional or non-fictional) that contains each of those 10 phrasal verbs.

But that’s not all...

Everyone will get instant personalised feedback and corrections from Da Vinci, our in-house AI-powered English tutor.

And you'll do this all together with a group of curious minds, sharing and supporting each other on this journey.

Ready to go?

1. Make sure you have an active Pro Membership
2. Register for the challenge

Who will enjoy this challenge?

• You want to build your vocabulary
• You want to be accountable to others
• You want to get feedback on your work
• You want to learn while having a lot of fun
• You want to learn as part of an engaged community
• You want to have a reason to spend time using English every day
• You want to connect with others from different countries and cultures
• You want to get personalised feedback and learn from your mistakes

Who can take part in this challenge?

• Participation is included for free for all Pro members of Leonardo English (or anyone who became a member before 1st March 2023)

I’m not on the “Pro” membership. Where can I get it?

• If you are not a member of Leonardo English, you can become a Pro member here
• If you are a “Starter” member, go to this page and click “GET STARTED” on the Pro membership. Changing your membership is very easy and you will clearly see the cost of changing from Starter to Pro.

Note: if you became a member before March 1st 2023, you are automatically entitled to take part for free.

Can I get feedback and corrections?

• Yes, everyone who takes part will have the option of receiving free personalised feedback from our in-house AI-powered English tutor, Da Vinci.
• All feedback will be ‘public’, so you will learn from others’ feedback, and they will learn from yours.

Who is "Da Vinci"?

Da Vinci is our in-house AI-powered English teacher. We have spent a long time training it to provide accurate and helpful feedback. Da Vinci will be free for everyone taking part in the challenge.

Can I choose not to receive corrections?

Yes, when you sign up there is an option to not receive corrections.

Why should I do this?

Getting into good habits is hard, and doing something over a 21-day period with a group of people is one of the best ways to get into the habit of something.

Sharing a journey with other people is incredibly motivational, and by doing this challenge with a group you will have a far better chance of success.

It will also be a lot of fun, you will learn a lot, and your confidence, writing skills and use of language will improve.

Plus, you will get personalised feedback from a 24/7 English teacher.

How long do I need to spend doing this?

There is one task every day, and it requires you to write no more than 250 words. How long this will take depends on your level. Realistically it should be 30-60 minutes per day.

You do not need to read and engage with other participants' tasks, but you may enjoy doing so. Of course, this will take more time.

I'm shy and would rather not share in public

I understand - people don't generally like sharing their work, especially with strangers. But it can be incredibly motivational, and everyone will be going through the same process.

The sharing is the magic. It's also not completely 'in public' - only other members of the challenge will see it.

OK, I’m ready. How do I register?

You can register here.

Note, you will need to have an active Pro Membership to take part.

I have another question

Please email challenges@leonardoenglish.com