Pratique du Shadowing: IELTS Actual listening Map title Home Improvement Store Plan - Apprendre l'anglais à l'oral avec la vidéo

Création de la leçon...
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Question 2.
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You will hear the supervisor of a home improvement store giving a tour of the store to some new staff.
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First, you have some time to look at questions 11 to 15 on page 4.
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Now listen carefully and answer questions 11 to 15.
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Welcome to today's staff orientation at the Home Improvement Store.
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My name is John.
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I look after new staff and I'll be with you here in the training room all morning.
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We are the biggest hardware store in the country and, as home improvement is now so popular,
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hundreds of customers visit our store each week to buy products to improve every part of their house, inside or out.
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First, let me introduce you to the most popular sections of our superstore.
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Can you all take a look at the store plan you have in front of you?
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We stock every kind of flooring, including carpets, wooden flooring and tiling.
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Our paint department is next to flooring, that's it in the bottom right hand corner of the map.
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We offer advice to customers on colour combinations for inside or outside before they purchase.
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We've become well known in the last few years for selling the latest kitchen designs for all budgets
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and we also stock quality appliances recommended by top chefs.
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These products can be found right in the middle of the store just next to electrical goods.
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You may not be aware that one reason we are such a popular store is our great cafe, which serves cheap, nutritious lunches.
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That's in the top right of your map.
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Staff should also make customers aware of the children's play area, which is between the cafe and flooring, so mum and dad can get something to eat or drink
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or even continue their shopping while the kids are safe with our trained childcare workers.
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Now, what else should I mention?
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Ah, yes, we recently moved our stock of showers
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and baths from the left side of the store to the area along the back wall next to the tool section.
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We offer practical advice to customers about their bathrooms before they buy, such as where to locate a new toilet or shower.
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I have left my favourite area till last, gardens.
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It's marked on the left side of the map, after the staff area and before the tool section.
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There you'll find our extensive range of plants, flowers and related products for inside or outside.
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If you get to work there, I'm sure you'll find it a very pleasant section to work in.
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Right, well, that's it for the store plan.
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Before you hear the rest of the talk, you have some time to look at questions 16 to 20 on page 5.
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Now listen and answer questions 16 to 20.
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Now, there is some other general information I need to give you before you start your specific training.
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The first thing staff need to know is what makes us different to our competitors.
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Our main advantage, due to our size, is that we can cut our costs and offer the best deals.
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Of course, we are proud of the great service we provide to our customers, especially through our help desk.
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We also have an excellent choice of goods, so that we can provide plenty of options to our customers, but of course that isn't unique to us.
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The Home Improvement Store has 60 stores nationwide and we promote our stores and products in a range of different ways.
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First there's our catalogue which lists all our items.
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It's been around for years but we still have a policy of staff use only.
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The most important marketing material and the one you want to ensure is given to every customer is our store magazine,
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showing the latest products, workshops and offers.
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The website is being redeveloped at the moment, so customers can't access it right now.
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The Home Improvement Store is a great place to work.
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Like most of the staff, I'm sure you'll appreciate the fact that you can choose your hours to fit your lifestyle, family or study.
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We hope you'll find that there's a nice atmosphere here.
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We are thinking of introducing a staff discount on our products, so that would be a real benefit to all staff.
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Every weekend, we offer workshops to help customers carry out their own home improvements.
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range from indoor painting to outdoor gardening and plant ideas.
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This coming weekend, there'll be one on mending a broken fence.
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Please remind customers of the workshops, especially if there is one related to your section.
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Finally, I wanted to let you know about a special deal for people renovating their kitchen.
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As you know, we sell all products and appliances connected to the kitchen, and we also have a delivery service.
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If customers buy one of our total kitchen designs, we will install it free of charge.
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So, let's take a short break and then we'll start...
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That is the end of Section 2.
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You now have half a minute to check your answers.
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Thank you.

About This Lesson

In this lesson, you will practice your listening and speaking skills by focusing on the orientation tour of a home improvement store. The audio features a supervisor explaining the layout of the store and its various sections, including flooring, paint, kitchen designs, and gardens. You will develop your ability to understand spoken English in a practical context, improve your note-taking skills during listening exercises, and enhance your pronunciation by mimicking the speaker's tone and inflection.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

  • Home Improvement Store: A retail establishment selling tools, materials, and products for home renovation and repair.
  • Flooring: Materials used for covering floors, including carpets, hardwood, and tiles.
  • Kitchen Designs: Various styles and layouts for kitchen interiors, incorporating appliances and fixtures.
  • Childcare Workers: Individuals responsible for supervising children in safe environments so parents can shop or relax.
  • Stock: The inventory of products available for sale in the store.
  • Workshops: Classes or sessions offered to teach customers practical skills, such as gardening or painting.
  • Customer Service: The assistance and advice provided to customers before, during, and after their purchases.
  • Cafe: A place within the store where customers can buy food and drinks while shopping.

Practice Tips

To effectively use the shadowing technique while practicing English through this lesson, listen closely to John's voice in the transcript. Start by playing a short segment, pausing after each sentence. Then, try to repeat what he says as closely as possible in terms of tone and speed. This is particularly useful when mimicking how he describes different sections of the store. Aim to capture not just the words, but also the rhythm and emphasis of his speech, which will enhance your english speaking practice.

As you shadow, focus on phrases that convey specific meaning, like "We stock every kind of flooring" and "our great cafe." When repeating these lines, pay special attention to the inflections in John's voice, as they can significantly impact how your sentences are perceived. Incorporating the shadowspeak method into your daily routine will sharpen your listening skills and improve your pronunciation, making your English sound more fluent and natural.

By consistently applying these strategies in conjunction with the audio from the video, you'll be well on your way to mastering the nuances of everyday English conversations. Happy practicing!

Qu'est-ce que la technique du Shadowing ?

Le Shadowing est une technique d'apprentissage des langues fondée sur la science, développée à l'origine pour la formation des interprètes professionnels. Le principe est simple mais puissant : vous écoutez de l'anglais natif et le répétez immédiatement à voix haute — comme une ombre suivant le locuteur avec un décalage de 1 à 2 secondes. Les recherches montrent une amélioration significative de la précision de la prononciation, de l'intonation, du rythme, des liaisons, de la compréhension orale et de la fluidité.