Chào các thính giả yêu mến của chương trình Học Tiếng Anh qua các chủ đề của chương trình học tiếng anh cùng Radiome. Mình là Diệu Hoa.
Chủ đề nghe Tiếng Anh của chúng ta ngày hôm nay có tựa đề là: New Year’s Resolutions có nghĩa là những lời hứa cho năm mới. 
Vì bài nghe khá dài nên mình sẽ tách làm hai phần để các bạn dễ dàng theo dõi hơn nhé!
Các bạn cùng chú ý lắng nghe với tiết tấu chậm rãi của chương trình Spotlight nhé. Note lại những từ bạn nghe chưa rõ và xem lại ở bản text để làm phong phú thêm vốn từ vựng của mình nhé!

Voice 1  

Welcome to Spotlight. I’m Colin Lowther.
Voice 2  
And I’m Liz Waid. Spotlight uses a special English method of broadcasting. It is easier for people to understand, no matter where in the world they live.
Voice 1  
Today’s Spotlight is on New Year’s resolutions. People celebrate the beginning of each year at different times depending on their cultural traditions. But one of the most common times to celebrate the New Year is by the Gregorian calendar. People also call this way of measuring days, months and years the Western or Christian calendar. On this calendar, the first day of the new year is January 1. People call this holiday “New Year’s Day”.
Voice 2  
People love to celebrate New Year’s Day. Some celebrate with parties and music. They may sing traditional songs about old times and good friends. Some people celebrate quietly with family and friends. Other people go to church on New Year’s Day. People may ask each other, and God, for forgiveness for the wrong things that happened the year before. People can leave their mistakes in the old year. Instead, they look to the future. They think about how they can make the new year better, or different, than the year before.
Voice 1  
One common way people try to make a new beginning is by making New Year’s resolutions. A New Year’s resolution is a promise you make to yourself. It usually means a change of behavior or a new goal. For example:
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This year, I promise to eat healthy food.

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This year, I promise to exercise more.
Voice 3  
I promise to give more money to the poor.
Voice 4  
I promise to be kind to my sister.
Voice 3  
I promise to finish school this year.
Voice 2  
People believe that the first New Year’s resolutions were made thousands of years ago by the Babylonians. The most popular New Year’s resolution for the ancient Babylonians was to return borrowed farm equipment! Today, the most popular New Year’s resolutions are usually ways for people to improve themselves. People promise to do things like stop smoking or pay back money that they owe. People also commonly make resolutions about relationships and health.
Voice 1  
On the first day of the New Year people feel great about the changes they hope to make. But what happens after some time has passed? Experts say that most people do not keep their resolutions for very long. The University of Scranton in the United States studied New Year’s resolutions in 2014. They found that one week after New Year’s Day only 75% of people have kept their resolutions. This number drops down to 65% after one month. Less than half of people keep their New Year’s resolutions for more than six months.
Voice 2  
There are many reasons why people often do not keep their resolutions. The main reason is that it is difficult to make changes. But there are a few ways to make it easier to make good changes. Spotlight producers Michio Ozaki, Bruce Gulland and Rena Dam each share a way to make - and keep, resolutions:
Voice 5  
Be realistic and detailed. Many people make a goal that is too big or not clear. Your resolution may be to learn English better. But you may not know how to make that happen! Instead, make a resolution that is smaller and more detailed. For example, “I will listen to a Spotlight English program two times every week.” Or, “I will speak English every day.” Making smaller goals will help you to get better at the exact thing you want to do. It will also make you able to measure your success. And that will be encouraging!
Phần 1 của bài nghe hôm nay tạm dừng ở đây. Các bạn chú ý và theo dõi phần 2 ở những bài học tiếp sau nhé! Cảm ơn các bạn.