{"podcast":{"title":"Plain English","slug":"plain-english-227674","podcast_index_feed_id":227674,"rss_url":"https://feeds.captivate.fm/plain-english/","website_url":"http://www.plainenglish.com/","image_url":"https://artwork.captivate.fm/1be30c3a-462f-40a7-883f-935113d5f17f/pe-podcast-main-show.png","author":"Jeff at Plain English","episode_count":904,"summary":"Improve your English and learn about the world at the same time. Plain English brings you short, modern stories about culture, science, travel, business, and everyday life, all told in clear, natural English designed for learners. You’ll grow your vocabulary, improve your listening skills, and build your confidence one episode at a time. Like the show? Sign up free at PlainEnglish.com and get a personalized learning path.","last_synced_at":"2026-07-13T22:20:04.466794+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/plain-english-227674"},"episode":{"title":"Summer vacation: a short history","slug":"summer-vacation-a-short-history","published_at":"2026-07-13T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/plain-english-227674/summer-vacation-a-short-history","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/plain-english-227674","url":"https://plainenglish.com/881","audio_url":"https://episodes.captivate.fm/episode/e29b1c44-1b9a-49a5-ac99-5e6289e26a3f.mp3","summary":"Today's story: Have you ever heard that “summer vacation” from school started so kids could work on the farm? That common story is not true. The modern summer break began in cities, where wealthy families wanted to escape hot weather and schools adjusted their calendars. Over time, countries standardized school schedules, paid holidays became more common, and the family summer vacation became a tradition. Transcript & Exercises: https://plainenglish.com/881 Get the full story and learning resources: https://plainenglish.com/881 -- Plain English helps you improve your English: Learn about the world and improve your English Clear, natural English at a speed you can understand New stories every week Learn even more at PlainEnglish.com Mentioned in this episode: Hard words? No problem Never be confused by difficult words in Plain English again! See translations of the hardest words and phrases from English to your language. Each episode transcript includes built-in translations into Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Polish, and Turkish. Sign up for a free 14-day trial at PlainEnglish.com","meta_description":"Today's story: Have you ever heard that “summer vacation” from school started so kids could work on the farm? That common story is not true. The modern su…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":824,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/plain-english-227674/episodes/summer-vacation-a-short-history/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/plain-english-227674/summer-vacation-a-short-history.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}