Shadowing Practice: 3 Practical Tips to Enjoy Learning English - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Do you think you need to live in an English-speaking country to get fluent?
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No, I have a friend who lives in England and she's still not fluent.
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Why is that?
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Before I answer, I have a challenge for you.
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There's a secret word on this card.
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Can you try to figure out what it is before the end of the video?
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If you can, you will understand one of the most important ideas for becoming fluent in English.
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So, shall we explore Kuala Lumpur?
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Everything around you is English, if you choose to see it that way.
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And the way I do it is simple.
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Name it, describe it.
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Two questions.
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What is it and how would I describe it in one sentence?
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For example, instead of just remembering vocabulary like digital billboard, you would name it and describe it.
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So, this is a digital billboard, and it's showing an advert for Malaysia.
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The advert is showing fish underwater.
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I actually have a little rule.
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A word isn't really yours until you can use it.
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So, let's do some more examples together now.
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Up there is a skyscraper and it's enormous.
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At the top of the skyscraper there are twinkling lights.
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This is a traffic jam.
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It's a busy Saturday night in Kuala Lumpur
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and there are many cars on the roads roads which is causing a traffic jam.
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This is a fountain.
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Water is spurting out every side of the fountain.
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These are mannequins.
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The mannequins are standing in the shop window staring into space.
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I wonder what they're thinking.
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So now guys, we are walking down the road, an area in Kuala Lumpur, famous for its beautiful streets,
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beautiful restaurants, and apparently a very nice view of the Patronus Twin Towers, which we're going to look for.
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But first, look at this.
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There's a cat asleep.
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The cat is sleeping on the floor.
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It looks dead.
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That's one way of describing it.
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Another way of describing it could be the cat has a spotty brown back.
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One more way of describing this could be I love cats
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because they remind me of my four black cats when I grew up as a kid.
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So there I described the cat in three ways, three different simple sentences.
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The first way was slightly humorous, I compared the cat being asleep to being dead.
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The second way was describing its physical characteristics, the brown spots on his back, and the third way
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that I described a cat was linking it to how I feel about cats
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and what I think about cats
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and that's a wonderful tip for any of you guys out there linking your English sentences to your thoughts
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and your feelings when you can do that then you can share your ideas when you can share your ideas then
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you're one step closer to fluency.
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So this is a shop and the shop is called Vitra.
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If I were to describe this scene in one simple sentence
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I would say there are many colorful lamps on display in the shop window.
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I could also say I want to buy that orange lamp because I think that would look wonderful in my My home.
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All right, let's keep going.
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Hey, look at that, Chang.
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We found it.
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What have we found?
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We have found the Patronus Twin Towers.
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These famous towers are one of the most popular landmarks in Malaysia.
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And Chang is getting a photo of me.
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No, she's not.
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Yes, she is.
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This is for next week's video, guys.
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I'm waving.
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Posing for a photo.
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She's taking a picture of my ugly mug.
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We've just left the busy area to come chill at this cafe to rest our little legs and get a drink.
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I hope by now that you have internalized this simple exercise of name it,
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describe it, and I would encourage you to use it.
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actually the idea behind the vocabulary feature on Sprouts.
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You are given a word and then you are encouraged to use it in a sentence.
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That is how a word becomes part of the way you speak.
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Now it's getting late so after we have these drinks we're gonna head back to the hotel
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because tomorrow is an exciting day.
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we're gonna go to the bookshop and there's something I want to show you.
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I love mornings like this.
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They slow everything down.
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They remind us that big changes are built slowly from small habits we make every day.
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Learning English is the same.
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One of the biggest myths is that you have to move abroad to become fluent.
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But I don't believe that's true.
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The secret is much simpler than that.
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Well guys, we've arrived in the largest bookshop in South East Asia.
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There are over one million books in this bookshop.
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That's a lot of books.
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Now let's break down the anatomy of a book.
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So just like the anatomy of the human body, a book has a spine.
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Just like the spine that we saw on the whale on the way into this bookshop.
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This part here is the spine.
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It has a front cover with an illustration on and a back cover.
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On the back cover, we have writing and that's called a blurb.
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The blurb is a small piece of writing that tells you about the book.
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So if you love to read, you really like reading, you can say I'm a bookworm.
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But not many people know the alternative to that, which is an avid reader.
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An avid reader is also somebody who loves books, but it's a lot more common in the UK.
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Are you an avid reader?
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So right now I am browsing these books, which means I'm looking at them and I'm trying to find one to buy.
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Now I'm browsing in the non-fiction section and non-fiction is books about facts and information,
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unlike fiction, which is story and imagination.
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Now within fiction and non-fiction, you have different genres.
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This comes from the French genre, and in non-fiction you have genres such as business and economics,
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you have psychology, biographies, and a personal favourite, self-help.
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In fiction, you have genres such as science fiction and fantasy, or crime, thriller, and mystery.
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For me, I prefer the non-fiction genre.
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Ah, nice.
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This is a book on curiosity, and I'm a very curious person.
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I like to ask questions, both to myself and to other people.
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Speaking of asking questions, a wonderful small talk question
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that you can use with other people to have engaging conversations is ask them what is your favourite genre?
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Now you can use this for books, films or music.
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What's your favourite genre of book?
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What's your favourite genre of movie?
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What's your favourite genre of music?
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I think I'll get this.
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One thing that you might not know about me is that I love to write and illustrate picture books.
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So it's my dream in the future to publish my very own children's books.
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What is your dream?
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Being in a place like this always makes me think about what to read.
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And people ask me that a lot.
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What should I read in English?
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My answer is always the same.
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Read because you enjoy the topic, not because you're learning English.
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I love self-improvement books because they challenge the way that I see myself.
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One book that really changed my life was the book called Breaking the Habits of Being Yourself by Joe Dispenza.
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And I read that book when I was living in Spain.
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I actually read that book in Spanish.
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It's about how your personality isn't fixed.
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It's not rigid.
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you can actually rewire who you are through changing the way you think, how you feel and how you act.
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Now I didn't read that book to improve my Spanish, I read it because I enjoyed the topic.
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I loved the topic of neuroscience and that's what I was fascinated in at the time.
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When I was reading that book, I felt like I became someone new.
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If your English isn't ready for something like that yet, then you can take a smaller step.
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You can start with something shorter, more simple, and something that you already enjoy.
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So you could read articles about things you're interested in, or simple short stories if you enjoy fiction books.
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As your English grows, you work your way up the ladder.
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You become better through reading what you enjoy.
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If you're just starting out, I would recommend The Giving Tree by Shel Silverstone.
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That's a great book.
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I'd also recommend the author Roald Dahl.
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Now, a lot of people think Roald Dahl is a children's book, author, but actually a lot of adults enjoy his books too.
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The humour is slightly dark, pretty clever, and there's always something underneath the story,
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some hidden message or hidden meaning.
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My mum's favourite book is The SEO Trot,
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which is a book by Roald Dahl about a who wins a woman's love through making her tortoise bigger.
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My mum always laughs when I mention that book and when we talk about it.
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OK, guys, the food has just arrived.
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So we're about to dig in.
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We're about to begin eating.
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Let's go.
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We have arrived at the Batu Caves, which are 400 million year old limestone mountains.
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And behind me, there are rainbow steps, around 272 rainbow steps, which we are going to climb.
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But before we do, I want to share the last simple speaking habits
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that you can adopt to bring English into your everyday life.
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And that habit is to speak with the five senses.
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Ask yourself, what can I see?
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What can I hear?
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What can I smell?
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What can I taste?
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and what can I feel?
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I can see a flock of pigeons on the ground
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and I can hear their wings flapping as the tourist runs through them, waving her arms.
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Before we go up there,
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we're gonna hydrate it's very hot very thirsty how do you feel do you feel ready to go those stairs
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that pause tells me no right ready
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here we go so guys a word here this is very steep these stairs are very steep
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and there are monkeys feeding on the stairs.
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Look at that, there's a tiny baby monkey on the handrail at the side.
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Very cute.
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In front of me there's a monkey sitting in a funny position with its hands flopping in front of it.
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I can hear it chewing on something.
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Maybe it's nuts, maybe it's fruit, maybe it's chocolate.
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I can feel my legs burning as I walk up the steps.
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Nice skirts.
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Almost there.
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Nearly at the top.
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Alright, a few more to go.
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Slightly out of breath.
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Out of breath means I'm panting, like a dog. But...
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Ah, made it.
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Feeling accomplished.
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So, we just arrived to the top, and I want to hit the next few senses.
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So, first of all, I can feel a drop of water on my shoulder.
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It's wet.
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I can...
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Mmm.
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Taste this dairy milk ice cream.
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I can taste the smooth chocolate,
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the crunchy hazelnuts and it is spot on.
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Spot on is a very British phrase for it tastes really good.
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I can smell the dampness of the cave.
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Let's go inside.
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I can hear the silence of the cave.
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Here I can see the little girl trying to blow out the candle, and the parent ushered her away.
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Right, now we're heading into the main cave, and this is unreal.
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So guys, with the five senses method, you can do this anywhere.
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You can do it while you're out and about, like me, or you can wait till you get back home
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and describe your day using the five senses method or if you prefer to speak with someone
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i'm out of breath you can talk to j.i and simply describe what you see hear and feel around you
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he will listen ask you questions and give you feedback afterwards
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At the beginning of this video, I said that you don't need to live in an English-speaking country to get fluent.
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You just need to recreate that environment yourself.
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And that environment has a name.
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The name is immersion.
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Immersion means to be completely absorbed in something.
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And that is what you have been doing today.
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Walking around the city, reading books that you enjoy, and describing the world through your five senses.
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That's also why Chang's friends moved to England and still isn't fluent.
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Location doesn't create immersion.
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You do.
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Fluency isn't about where you live.
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It's about how much of your life you choose to live in English.
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So, what will you choose?
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 211 sentences and 2133 words to shadow. The speech runs for 19:31. The speaker talks slowly, about 109 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 82% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
- fiction /ˈfɪkʃən/ (noun) — Literary type using invented or imaginative writing, instead of real facts, usually written as prose.
- genre /ˈ(d)ʒɑnɹə/ (noun) — A kind; a stylistic category or sort, especially of literature or other artworks.
- fluent /ˈfluənt/ (adjective) — That flows; flowing, liquid.
- arrive /əˈɹaɪv/ (verb) — To reach; to get to a certain place.
- habit /ˈhæb.ɪt/ (noun) — An action performed on a regular basis.
- topic /ˈtɑpɪk/ (noun) — A subject; a theme; a category or general area of interest.
- reader /ˈɹi.dɚ/ (noun) — A person who reads.
- breathe /bɹiːð/ (verb) — To draw air into (inhale), and expel air from (exhale), the lungs in order to extract oxygen and excrete waste gases.
- cave /keɪv/ (noun) — A large, naturally-occurring cavity formed underground or in the face of a cliff or a hillside.
- stairs /ˈstɛɹz/ (noun) — A contiguous set of steps connecting two floors.
- monkey /ˈmʌŋki/ (noun) — A member of the clade Simiiformes other than those in the clade Hominoidea containing apes, generally (but not universally) distinguished by small size, tails…
- spine /spaɪn/ (noun) — A series of bones situated at the back from the head to the pelvis of a human, or from the head to the tail of an animal, enclosing the spinal cord and…
- avid /ˈæv.ɪd/ (adjective) — Enthusiastic; keen; eager; showing great interest in something or desire to do something.
- encourage /ɪnˈkʌɹ.ɪd͡ʒ/ (verb) — To mentally support; to motivate, give courage, hope or spirit.
- remind /ɹəˈmaɪnd/ (verb) — To cause one to experience a memory (of someone or something); to bring to the notice or consideration (of a person).
Phrasal verbs you will hear
- live in (verb) — To reside on the premises of one's employer (used especially of domestic staff such as nannies, cooks, maids, etc.)
- look at (verb) — To observe or watch.
- book in (verb) — To check in (to a hotel).
- think about /ˈθɪŋk əˌbaʊt/ (verb) — To ponder.
- blow out (verb) — To extinguish something, especially a flame, especially by means of a strong current of air or another gas.
- book on (verb) — To register (for duty).
- break down (verb) — To stop functioning.
- come from (verb) — To have as one's origin, birthplace or nationality.
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 37 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, we're, isn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “th” sounds: breathe /bɹiːð/, smooth /smuːð/, myth /mɪθ/, underneath /ˌʌndɚˈniθ/, thriller /ˈθɹɪ.lə/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: fiction /ˈfɪkʃən/, genre /ˈ(d)ʒɑnɹə/, imagination /ɪˌmæd͡ʒəˈneɪʃən/, publish /ˈpʌblɪʃ/, accomplish /əˈkɑm.plɪʃ/
- Long words — get the stress right: anatomy /əˈnætəmi/, vocabulary /vəˈkæb.jə.lə.ɹi/, economics /ˌiːkəˈnɒmɪks/, psychology /saɪˈkɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/, imagination /ɪˌmæd͡ʒəˈneɪʃən/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like fiction, genre, fluent.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Conditional sentences if + clause, will/would + verb — a condition and its result | If you can, you will understand · If you're just starting out, I would recommend |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | friend who lives · roads which is · that, which is |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have found · We've just left · have internalized |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | is called · are given · are built |
What is the Shadowing Technique?
Shadowing is a science-backed language learning technique originally developed for professional interpreter training and popularized by polyglot Dr. Alexander Arguelles. The method is simple but powerful: you listen to native English audio and immediately repeat it out loud — like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1–2 second delay. Unlike passive listening or grammar drills, shadowing forces your brain and mouth muscles to simultaneously process and reproduce real speech patterns. Research shows it significantly improves pronunciation accuracy, intonation, rhythm, connected speech, listening comprehension, and speaking fluency — making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.