Hi, my name is Florencia and I come from Paraguay.

When I tell a story, I always use the word "and". Sometimes I want to use some other words because otherwise, my English sounds a little bit boring.

Good question.

I'm going to tell you something about myself with lots of "and" in it and give you some alternatives along the way.

The key thing to think about is: What is "and" doing in each sentence?

Listen carefully.

I love singing and dancing.

This is "and" in a list, it's the most basic usage.

So you could replace it with "as well as".

I love singing as well as dancing.

Or "also" if we change things around a bit.

I love singing. I also love dancing.

Next one.

The first time I sang on stage, the crowd screamed really loudly and when I finished, they seemed very happy.

This is "and" in a list of actions.

So we could say "then". Simple.

The first time I sang on stage, the crowd screamed really loudly, then when I finished they seemed very happy.

Or "after".

After I finished they seemed very happy.

Next one.

And singing makes me feel really good about myself.

What we're doing here is giving more information, so you could use one of these though, they're a bit formal.

Furthermore/moreover/in addition, singing makes me feel really good about myself.

Last one.

And I just think singing is great in every way.

What I'm doing here is summarizing, I'm giving my conclusion, so you could use one of these:

To conclude/to sum up/as I've just said, I think it's great to use your talents.

And after all that it's time to sing.

Thanks for your tips and shame about your singing.

Was that you said, and I thought we were friends.

Of course we are.