Pratica di Shadowing: How polyglots learn languages | The book that changed my life - Impara a parlare inglese con i video
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This book once made me believe that I could become a polyglot.
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How I Learn Languages is the reason I fell in love with language learning.
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I first found it at school and it inspired me so much that later I chose to study linguistics at university.
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I speak several languages, I'm learning my seventh language
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and in this video I'm gonna share what I still find inspiring
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and what I don't completely agree with anymore katolom herself was
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a true legend she studied around 28 languages could speak around
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16 of them fluently enough to work as a professional interpreter even a simultaneous interpreter
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which was extremely rare back then especially for a woman she mentions
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that she was no talent for languages she started learning in her adult years
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and proves that progress comes from interest
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and time not from being gifted she even puts it into
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a formula time spent plus interest equals result she says
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that there is no magic pill for learning a language people
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often tell me oh you just have a talent for languages
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but like lump i honestly don't understand it another point
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that lump makes and i really relate to this is how adults block themselves
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when speaking a foreign language They are so afraid of making mistakes that they end up saying nothing at all.
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And I used to be exactly like that.
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When I was learning my first foreign language, I was so embarrassed to make even small mistakes.
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I was just silent.
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But now, after studying more and more languages, I honestly don't care anymore.
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Mistakes are just part of the process and they are evidence that you are actually using the language.
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So let's update the formula, the previous formula, like this.
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Time plus motivation divided by fear equals result.
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There is another interesting moment in the book when she says
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that men are actually more blocked and embarrassed when speaking a foreign language,
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while women are less shy and have a stronger need for communication.
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It's an interesting point, and I'm not sure whether I agree with it or not.
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What do you think?
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So talking about being gifted, about abilities, you don't have to be a linguist or a genius to learn several languages.
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A linguist is a person who studies the theory of language, its grammar, structure, phonetics, everything profoundly.
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And she compares it to a choreographer, like a linguist is a choreographer who studies dance, and a ballerina who actually dances.
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So you can be a ballerina another thing
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that i love about this book is that she writes
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that learning languages shouldn't feel like a burden
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but like a moment of enjoyment
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and in everyday life like it should be your routine
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that makes you enjoy your life
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and this is exactly how i try to teach my students
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i want languages to feel alive connected to their interests
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and never just a set of grammar rules and this is
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when i realized
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that in many ways her words shape my own teaching philosophy
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even before i realized it even before entering the university
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so why do we study languages i think it's pretty clear
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to be engaged with the world with people with different ways of thinking
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and long has a beautiful line about this in her book she writes we study languages
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because language is the only way
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is the only thing that is never useless to know even superficially
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and i couldn't agree more even the smallest knowledge of a
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language a few phrases some basic understanding can open doors create connections
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and change how you see the world
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so you don't have to know all the languages proficiently just start learning a language
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and probably you will move further just by being interested in it, being engaged in the process.
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When it comes to her methodology, I find myself agreeing with her on many points,
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not all but many, especially with her idea that a language should be learned as a whole.
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She compares knowledge to a nail.
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If it isn't driven deep enough, at the first pressure it will fall out.
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And the same with languages, if you only study them passively just by reading
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and listening without practice without output active output these languages won't simply hold another metaphor
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that i love is how she describes language as a building it has four grand holes speaking listening reading
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and writing and you can only call yourself truly at home in this building
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if you have entered all of these four holes
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if you neglect one of them the whole construction feels unstable
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doesn't feel like home i really connect with this idea with this metaphor
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because for me language learning has never been about collecting loose words
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or grammar rules it's about building this solid structure brick by brick making sure
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that every hall is open every room is alive that's exactly
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what i try to give my students not just grammar rules not just fragments
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or loose words as I've said before but a living system where all the parts support each other.
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It is interesting that on the other hand Lam criticizes what we would now call immersion.
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She says it can feel like mindless something as passive as watching tv.
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For her real language learning for adults should rely on conscious effort, logical thinking and deliberate practice.
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Which is right because adults don't actually learn like children.
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We can't just be thrown into a new English-speaking
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or any other language-speaking environment and expect that our brain will absorb everything the way a toddler does.
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It won't work like that because we're not toddlers, we're not babies anymore.
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But But at the same time, reducing immersion to something passive or thoughtless feels very unfair.
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From my own experience, immersion is one of the most powerful tools that we have.
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Like watching movies, watching podcasts, listening to music, surrounding yourself with the language.
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It isn't about switching your brain off.
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It's about letting these language patterns sink in naturally.
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and then reinforcing them in conscious practice.
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So while I understand her skepticism, I think immersion is not the enemy of conscious learning.
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It's its strongest ally.
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Together, they create a great balance for adults when they learn languages.
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Logic gives you structure.
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Immersion gives you life.
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Lam talks a lot about vocabulary in this book, how we should learn it, how we shouldn't learn it.
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She criticizes this old form of learning languages, of learning vocabulary, you know,
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two-column method where we write a word in one column and its translation in another column next to it.
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And I criticize it as well because if we learn the words this way, they will stay isolated.
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They will be detached from the real usage.
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So what you should remember is that words don't live alone.
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They live in context.
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They live in collocations they live in phrases not alone
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but then at the same time she defends the method
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that is called the dictionary method it's about simply learning words
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straight from a dictionary i don't understand this method like i
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don't think it's effective of course dictionaries are essential it's a great great tool
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but again they strip words away from life they're not in context they're not in real usage.
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And I agree with Lom that the more energy we invest in searching for the right meaning using a dictionary,
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the stronger the effect of learning the language, of memorizing the vocabulary.
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I agree with it.
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It's definitely true.
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So what's the best way to work with a dictionary?
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For me, it's not about copying ready-made examples or cramming lists of words.
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It's about taking a writing it down in your notebook
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and immediately creating a sentence with this word your own sentence your own example with it
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so this way the word becomes linked to you to your life to your thoughts to your experience
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and it will be more effective for you to memorize it
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when it comes to grammar i actually agree with long with one of her central points
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that grammar is a system and
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if you want to master a foreign language as an adult
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you simply cannot avoid the system you simply cannot avoid learning grammar
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and again it's not about memorizing about cramming sets of rules
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grammar should be studied in combination with other aspects of language
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through reading through listening through meaningful contexts without this systematic approach adult learners risk ending up with this fragmented knowledge
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that doesn't work in real communication I disagree with LOM on another point.
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She writes that we should extrapolate grammar rules from one language that we already know to another language.
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In other words, we should take a structure that we already know in one language and apply it to a new one, assuming that it will work the same way.
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This cross-linguistic transfer might sound logical to someone and it might work in some cases.
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For example, when we learn the languages that are structurally close like spanish
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and french for example but more often it leads to interference
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and some fossilized errors unnatural usage
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so i don't recommend doing this i have an example from
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my life i try to compare the grammar rules of turkish
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and russian russian is my native language and turkish was the language that i was learning that time
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And it turned out to be a terrible idea because Turkish, unlike any other languages I've studied,
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has a completely different structure and internal reason.
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And at some point I realized the only way forward was to stop comparing
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and to learn Turkish as Turkish on its own terms.
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I believe it's more effective to approach each language as an independent system about reading.
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Katow long placed reading at the very heart of language learning and for her it's not just a tool.
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So books are not just a tool, it's the ultimate source of knowledge
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and I see why she emphasized the importance of reading books
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so much because back in her time learners didn't have this instant access to podcasts, to YouTube, to online learning apps as we do.
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Books were the most reliable way to immerse yourself in a language.
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And I do agree, reading is crucial.
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But what about those people who don't like reading as much as Lomb did, for example?
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Because I have that type of students who don't enjoy reading thick novels, and that's okay, I think, because you can read just some short articles,
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texts, or even like social media posts
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and yeah it's still about engaging with meaningful content it's still about engaging with reading
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so if novels feel like a burden you don't have to force yourself
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if you don't like reading this kind of book start with
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short stories with news with even subtitles of some series or
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or films can be considered to be reading another thing
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that long insists on is that when you read you shouldn't translate every single word.
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She says that stopping at each unknown word kills the flow of reading and turns it into torture.
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And because the real benefit of reading is when you let the book, the books carry you, even if some words slip by,
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it's not that important to translate every single word.
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If you do translate every single word, it means
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that the book is not suitable to you to your level probably you should change it to something simpler but
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if you don't know some words it's not necessary to translate
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everything we can just instead try to figure out the meaning
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through your mental effort you know this moment of discovery
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when you realize what this word means can bring you this joy of you know like cracking a puzzle
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or something so it's even more satisfying and the satisfaction gives you the opportunity to learn to memorize the word more effectively.
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So when I read in a foreign language, I don't aim for translating every single word for a perfect translation.
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I don't actually translate.
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I just aim for understanding the story and understanding the characters, the message.
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I do write down some collocations that I find useful, interesting.
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I write them down in Quizlet.
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This is the app that I use for learning words.
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There is another interesting point that I don't really share.
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She writes that textbooks, the best textbooks, are written in the learner's native language.
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I can't understand her point because back in her time the most popular
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and even the most logical approach was that kind of approach when you used your native language to clarify the explanation.
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Probably it was the safest way to avoid confusion.
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But today modern research shows the opposite in my own experience as well.
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I work with Cambridge and Oxford textbooks
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and most of my students are Russian speakers
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and these books are not in Russian so we don't use the mother tongue and yet they are extremely effective.
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In fact I almost never switch to Russian when I when I teach in class.
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And this is what some studies in second language acquisition say.
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Early and consistent exposure to the target language helps learners think directly in it instead of constantly translating in their heads.
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Also, these modern textbooks are created by qualified specialists.
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They are built on solid methodology with a very clear and logical structure system.
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So this makes them accessible even for beginners without the need for constant translation into your native language.
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So while I respect her perspective as a reflection of her time.
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I believe the most effective textbooks are those that immerse learners in the language, in the target language from the very start.
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So we've just talked about reading textbooks and learning grammar vocabulary, but none of these tools will really work without consistency.
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That's where discipline comes in.
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Of course, motivation is important and she emphasizes it again and again in her book.
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She writes that language learning works best when it's connected with your genuine interest
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when you approach it through things that you really like doing
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that you enjoy doing and i completely agree with her of course
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if you are curious if you love the content
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that you absorb you will naturally spend more time with the
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language you won't force yourself relying only on motivation is a bad idea motivation comes
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and goes some days you feel inspired other days you don't that's why i believe in the power of self-discipline
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so you need to make learning a habit?
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How do you actually do this?
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For me, the answer is small regular steps.
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Over time, these little routines, these little steps will become as natural as brushing your teeth.
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This is how I actually feel about learning French or Spanish or any other language.
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So motivation brings you to the language.
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Discipline keeps you there.
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And patience allows you to see the results, some lasting results.
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Ketelom also writes about some easy and difficult languages.
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And there is this stereotype that English is really easy.
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Like it's the easiest language to learn.
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And Chinese is labeled as impossibly hard.
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But if we look closer, we will see that it's a misconception because let's take English.
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The grammar is relatively simple, but then we face a jungle of phrasal verbs,
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idioms, multiple meanings of the same word.
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We realize that it's not as simple as everybody thinks it is.
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For instance, the verb turn can branch into dozens of expressions like turn up,
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turn down, turn turn over and each must be learned in contexts
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because their meanings can really match the logic of our native language is english
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that easy probably at the beginning but then when you
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reach a certain level it doesn't seem to be so easy
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and on the other hand chinese is often feared
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because of its writing system
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but once you go deeper you find a strong internal logic every character carries meaning often connected to visual roots
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and once you recognize these patterns the system begins to make sense
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and that leads to her central point about the difficulty of languages talking about languages as easy
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or difficult is misleading because every language balances its challenges
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and advantages and what you lose in one area you gain in another area So instead of asking which language is easier,
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a much better question is which language inspires me more to keep learning.
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Because when you choose a language that you genuinely love,
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it's so-called difficulties turn into puzzles that you actually want to solve.
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An uncorrected mistake is a disaster and this is why we need a teacher.
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Because if we keep repeating the same mistake, it just doesn't stay but it becomes stronger it becomes fossilized
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and later unlearning this mistake unlearning this wrong form is even harder than learning it right from the beginning
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so this is why the best way to study is to
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study with a teacher a good teacher notices the things
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that you don't notice their feedback and correction can save you hours or even months of re-learning in In a way,
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a teacher is like a compass who makes sure you're not heading in the wrong direction, the wrong way.
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She also mentions her personal experience in this book.
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She said that she found it easier to learn languages with female teachers
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because it was simpler for her to chat and build contact.
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This detail may sound funny, but there is a truth behind it that you should find the teacher
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that you feel at ease with because you will speak more, you will not be afraid to make mistakes, and this way you will learn faster.
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Also, she had to sign for Polish classes once, and instead of joining the beginners group, she went straight into the advanced one.
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She insisted on it, even though she didn't know the language at all, like a single word.
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And in her case, it worked, because she is strongly motivated it she had no choice
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but to keep up with the rest of the group in spite of the pressure
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that she had but for some students this strategy is not good like it cannot really work
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because it's like throwing yourself into fire
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and learning to survive it sounds really stressful
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and as a teacher i have to say
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that it's not always the right decision to take this kind of students
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because one unprepared student can slow down the rest of the group
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and in this case the teacher has to spend extra hours just explaining basic things to
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that student who is not aware of anything.
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A good teacher should place students where they can progress gradually, consistently, without damaging the experience of the rest of the class.
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So I do not understand why that Polish teacher accepted her to that advanced level of classes.
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So this book once made me believe that I could become a polyglot.
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honestly it changed the whole course of my life
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because it inspired me to study linguistics it pushed me to explore several languages
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and it shaped the way I teach my students now although
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I don't share all of her views the influence is undeniable it gave me the spark of motivation
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that I really needed in order to decide where I want
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to what I want to study in the future what I to do in the future.
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I wouldn't be the person I am today if I hadn't found this book in a library.
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So if you enjoy this kind of videos make sure you subscribe because I'll be sharing some more interesting stories,
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insights and strategies that will inspire you your own language journey, I hope.
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Vocabolario e note di pronuncia per questa lezione
Questo video contiene 259 frasi e 3321 parole da ripetere con lo shadowing. Il parlato dura 20:48. Chi parla ha un ritmo naturale di circa 160 parole al minuto, vicino a una conversazione quotidiana. Il 83% delle parole rientra nelle 3.000 più comuni dell’inglese; conviene studiare le altre prima di iniziare.
Vocaboli chiave di questo video
15 parole del video che vale la pena imparare, con pronuncia e significato:
| Parola | Pronuncia | Significato |
|---|---|---|
| grammar sostantivo | /ˈɡɹæm.ə(ɹ)/ | grammatica |
| motivation sostantivo | /ˈmoʊ.tə.veɪ.ʃən/ | motivazione |
| textbook sostantivo | /ˈtɛkst.bʊk/ | libro di testo |
| translate verbo | /tɹænzˈleɪt/ | tradurre |
| compare verbo | /kəmˈpɛɚ/ | paragonare |
| logical aggettivo | /ˈlɑd͡ʒɪkəl/ | logico |
| dictionary sostantivo | /ˈdɪk.ʃəˌnɛ.ɹi/ | dizionario, lessico |
| vocabulary sostantivo | /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/ | vocabolario |
| formula sostantivo | /ˈfɔː.mjʊ.lə/ | formula |
| translation sostantivo | /tɹænzˈleɪʃən/ | traduzione |
| column sostantivo | /ˈkɒləm/ | colonna |
| discipline sostantivo | /ˈdɪsəplɪn/ | disciplina |
| usage sostantivo | /ˈjuːsɪd͡ʒ/ | utilizzo, utilizzi |
| conscious aggettivo | /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/ | cosciente, conscio |
| criticize verbo | /ˈkɹɪtɪsaɪz/ | criticare |
I phrasal verb che sentirai
| Parola | Significato |
|---|---|
| end up verbo | andare a finire, finire |
| figure out verbo | scoprire, rendersi conto |
| keep up with verbo | tenere dietro a |
| slow down verbo | rallentare, decelerare |
| turn down verbo | rifiutare |
| turn over verbo | ribaltare, capovolgere |
| turn up verbo | presentarsi, apparire |
| write down verbo | sottoscrivere, annotare |
La grammatica di questo video
Le strutture che chi parla usa di più, con le parole esatte del video:
| Struttura | Nel video |
|---|---|
| Frasi condizionali if + frase, will/would + verbo — una condizione e il suo risultato | if we look closer, we will see |
| Forma passiva be + participio passato — conta ciò che accade, non chi lo fa | being gifted · be engaged · being engaged |
| Present perfect have/has + participio passato — un’azione passata che conta ancora adesso | have entered · has never been · I've said |
| Frasi relative who / which + frase — un’informazione in più su una persona o una cosa | person who studies · people who don · students who don |
Pronuncia a cui fare attenzione
Chi parla usa 54 contrazioni e forme ridotte, come don't, doesn't, I'm. Pronunciale nella forma breve, così come le senti.
- I suoni “th”: methodology /ˌmɛθ.əˈdɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/, thick /θɪk/, seventh /ˈsɛvənθ/
- I suoni “sh” e “zh”: motivation /ˈmoʊ.tə.veɪ.ʃən/, dictionary /ˈdɪk.ʃəˌnɛ.ɹi/, translation /tɹænzˈleɪʃən/, conscious /ˈkɑn.ʃəs/, explanation /ˌɛkspləˈneɪʃən/
- Parole lunghe — attenzione all’accento: motivation /ˈmoʊ.tə.veɪ.ʃən/, dictionary /ˈdɪk.ʃəˌnɛ.ɹi/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, naturally /ˈnæt͡ʃ.(ə.)ɹə.li/, difficulty /ˈdɪfɪkəlti/
Come esercitarsi con questo video
- Ascolta tutto il video una volta senza parlare e annota le parole che non conosci.
- Inizia a velocità 0,75×, fai shadowing frase per frase e torna alla velocità normale quando diventa facile.
- Registrati e confronta con l’originale, facendo attenzione a parole come grammar, motivation, textbook.
Cos'è la tecnica dello Shadowing?
Shadowing è una tecnica di apprendimento delle lingue supportata da studi scientifici, originariamente sviluppata per la formazione dei traduttori professionisti e resa popolare dal poliglotta Dr. Alexander Arguelles. Il metodo è semplice ma potente: ascolti un audio in inglese di madrelingua e lo ripeti immediatamente ad alta voce — come un'ombra che segue il parlante con un ritardo di solo 1–2 secondi. A differenza dell'ascolto passivo o degli esercizi di grammatica, lo shadowing costringe il tuo cervello e i muscoli della bocca a elaborare e riprodurre simultaneamente i modelli di discorso reale. La ricerca dimostra che migliora significativamente la precisione della pronuncia, l'intonazione, il ritmo, il discorso connesso, la comprensione dell'ascolto e la fluidità del parlato — rendendolo uno dei metodi più efficaci per la preparazione alla prova di speaking dell'IELTS e per la comunicazione reale in inglese.