Shadowing Practice: 30-Day English Shadowing Challenge – Day 1 | Speak English More Naturally - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Hi everyone!
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Welcome back to The Learning Lab, where English is easy and enjoyable.
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I'm James, and as always, I'm here with my wonderful co-host Jenny.
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And today, today is a big day, like a really, really big day.
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We are starting something huge, something that could actually change the way you speak English forever.
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But first, if you are new here, please hit that subscribe button right now.
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Seriously, do it.
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Stop what you were doing, move your finger to that button, and click it.
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It takes two seconds, and it means the world to us.
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Okay.
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Okay, I'm calm.
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Jenny, are you ready for this?
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I mean, James, you say every episode is a big day.
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Last week, you said learning the word nevertheless was a big day.
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It was a big day.
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That word is incredible.
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Nevertheless.
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Say it with me.
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NEVER-THER-LESS.
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Okay, okay, I know, I know.
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But Jenny, come on, today really is different.
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Tell them, tell them what we're doing for the next 30 days.
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Okay, okay, so for the next 30 days, we are going to practice something called shadowing.
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And if you have never heard of shadowing before, don't worry, that is exactly why we are here today.
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We are going to explain everything from the very beginning, nice and slow, nice and simple.
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So just relax and let's learn together.
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Yes.
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And the best part is you don't need a classroom.
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You don't need a teacher sitting next to you.
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You don't need expensive books or special tools.
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You just need your ears, your mouth and a little bit of courage.
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That's it.
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Three things.
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Ears, mouth, courage.
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You already have all three.
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Well, maybe a phone or a computer, too, to actually hear the audio.
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Right.
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Right.
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Yes.
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OK, four things.
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Ears, mouth, courage and a device.
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But you already have that too, because you're watching this, so you're already winning.
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You know, James has this amazing ability to make everything sound like you've already won a prize just by showing up.
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Because you have.
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Showing up is half the battle, Jenny.
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Half the battle.
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Okay, so let's get into it.
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Jenny, what exactly is shadowing?
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Can you break it down for us? Of course.
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So shadowing is a language learning technique, and it's been around for a long time, actually.
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It was first made popular by a language teacher named Alexander Arguelles back in the 1990s.
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And the idea is actually very simple.
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You listen to someone speaking in your target language, in our case, English, and you repeat what they say at almost exactly the same time.
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Like an echo or like a shadow.
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That's why it's called shadowing.
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You follow right behind the speaker, copying their voice, their rhythm, their pronunciation, everything.
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I love that.
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You're like their shadow.
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You know how when you walk in the sun and your shadow's right there behind you, copying every move you make?
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That's exactly what you're doing with the speaker's voice.
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You are the shadow of their English.
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And honestly, when I first heard about this technique, I was like, wait, that sounds too simple.
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It sounds almost like cheating.
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How can just copying someone's voice actually teach you a language?
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And that is actually a really great question, James.
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And I think a lot of people feel the same way at first.
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because we're used to thinking that learning a language means studying grammar rules, memorizing vocabulary lists, doing exercises in a workbook.
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And all of those things have value.
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They really do.
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But shadowing works differently.
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It works more like the way a child learns to speak.
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Oh, oh, I love this.
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Okay, explain this because I think this is so important.
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Right.
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So think about a baby, a little baby learning to speak for the first time.
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Does that baby open a grammar book?
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Does the baby study the difference between I am and I was?
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No, the baby listens.
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All day, every day, the baby is just listening to the people around them.
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And then slowly, the baby starts to copy the sounds.
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And they get it wrong at first.
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They say things in a funny way, they mix up words.
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But nobody gives them a grade, nobody tells them they failed.
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They just keep trying.
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And slowly, slowly, slowly, it clicks.
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And suddenly, the baby is talking.
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And this is basically what shadowing lets you do as an adult learner.
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It gives your mouth a chance to feel the language.
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Because here's something people don't always think about.
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Speaking a language is actually a physical skill.
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Your mouth, your tongue, your lips, they need to practice making new sounds.
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And if you only ever study English in your head, your mouth never gets that practice.
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It's like reading about how to ride a bicycle.
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You can read every book about bicycles in the world, but until you actually get on the bike and start moving, you don't learn how to ride.
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That's a really good analogy, actually.
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Thank you.
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I'm proud of that one.
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So the research on shadowing is actually really interesting.
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There have been several studies, especially in Japan and South Korea, where a lot of English learners have used this technique,
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that show shadowing can significantly improve pronunciation, listening skills, and even speaking fluency in a relatively short time.
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And 30 days is actually a solid amount of time to start seeing real changes.
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30 days, which is why we're doing this challenge.
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Every single day for 30 days we are going to practice together.
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And each episode, just like today, is going to be a session you can actually follow along with.
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We'll explain, we'll model, we'll shadow together, and by the end of 30 days, I genuinely believe your English is going to sound different,
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better, more natural, more confident.
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And I want to be honest with you.
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It's not magic.
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You do have to actually practice.
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Watching the video is not enough.
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You have to open your mouth.
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You have to make the sounds.
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Even if it feels weird, even if it feels embarrassing, even if you're sitting alone in your room and you feel a little bit silly talking to your phone.
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That is totally normal, by the way.
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Oh, completely normal.
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I still feel silly sometimes, and English is my first language.
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Okay, so before we actually start our first shadowing practice today, I want to talk about how to shadow correctly, because there's a right way to do it and a wrong way to do it.
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Jenny?
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Yes.
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So there are a few key things to keep in mind.
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The first one, and this is really important, is that you need to shadow out loud, not in your head, not in a whisper, out loud, full voice.
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The whole point is to train your mouth and your ears together.
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So give yourself permission to be loud.
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Close the door if you need to tell your family, I'm practicing English.
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Please don't come in.
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Whatever you need to do, just get that voice out.
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Seriously, your neighbors might think something is happening in your house, but that's okay.
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You're learning English.
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That's more important.
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The second thing is don't worry about understanding every single word at first.
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This is really different from normal studying.
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When we read or listen to English usually, we try to understand the meaning of everything.
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But with shadowing, your first job is just to copy the sounds, the rhythm, the melody of the sentence.
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Meaning comes later, sound comes first.
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This one was hard for me to accept
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when I first started teaching shadowing to students because students always want to stop and ask, wait, what does that word mean?
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And I have to tell them, not yet, keep going.
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Just let the sounds come out of your mouth.
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You can think about meaning after, but when you're shadowing, stay in the flow.
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Right.
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And the third thing is, start slow.
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Don't try to shadow fast, complicated native speech on day one.
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That would be like trying to run a marathon on the very first day of exercise.
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You would hurt yourself.
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So we always start simple.
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Clear speech, normal speed, common vocabulary.
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Exactly what you're hearing right now, actually.
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Which is actually perfect because the way Jenny and I speak in this show, we do it on purpose.
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We speak clearly, we use simple words, we don't rush.
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So this podcast or video is actually a great thing to practice shadowing with, which is kind of the whole point of the series, right?
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Exactly.
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This whole 30-day series is designed so that you can shadow right along with us.
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Each episode is going to have practice sections where we slow things down even more
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and we give you time to repeat after us.
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So it's not just listening, it's participating.
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You are part of the show.
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You are a star.
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Okay, so let's talk about one more thing before we do our first actual practice, and that is the mindset.
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Because I think mindset is honestly the most important part of any language learning journey.
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And I want to say something to everyone listening right now, especially if you feel shy about your English or if you've tried to improve before and it didn't work, or if you've given up in the past.
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I want you to hear this clearly.
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It is okay.
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It is completely okay.
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Learning a language as an adult is genuinely hard.
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It is one of the hardest things a human brain can do.
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And if you've struggled before, that doesn't mean you're bad at languages.
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It might just mean you haven't found the right method yet.
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And that's such an important point.
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A lot of adult learners carry around this feeling that they're just not good at English, like it's something fixed about them, something they were born with or without.
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But that's not how the brain works.
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The brain is flexible.
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It can learn new things at any age.
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What matters most is consistency and the right kind of practice.
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And that is exactly what we're building here together over these 30 days.
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30 days of showing up.
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That's all we're asking.
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You don't have to be perfect.
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You don't have to get every sound right.
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You just have to show up every day and try.
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That's the deal.
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All right.
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Are we ready to do our first practice?
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I am so ready.
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Okay, everyone, here's what we're going to do.
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Jenny is going to say some simple sentences, nice and clear, nice and slow.
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And I want you, yes, you, to say them out loud right after her.
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Don't late.
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Don't think too much.
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Just listen and repeat.
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Ready?
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Jenny, go ahead.
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Okay.
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I'll say each sentence two times.
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You say it after me.
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Let's start.
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I am learning English every day.
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Good!
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Now you say it.
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Say it out loud.
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Don't be shy.
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My English is getting better and better.
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Oh, I love that one!
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Say it like you mean it, because it's true.
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It is getting better.
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Keep going, Jenny.
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Jenny?
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I practice speaking English for 30 minutes every day.
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I practice speaking English for 30 minutes every day.
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Beautiful.
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Okay, how did that feel?
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Was it a little weird?
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Was it uncomfortable?
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Good.
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Weird and uncomfortable means your brain is working.
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It means something new is happening.
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That feeling is actually the feeling of learning.
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So if you felt a little awkward just now, Congratulations!
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You are officially learning!
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I like that.
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Awkward means it's working.
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That should be on a t-shirt.
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I would wear that t-shirt every day.
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Okay, let's do one more little practice round, and this time we're going to do something slightly more advanced.
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We're going to shadow a small paragraph.
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Jenny, do you want to read it?
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Sure.
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I'm going to read this slowly and clearly, and I want you to try to say it along with me, at the same time if you can, or just a tiny bit after me, like a shadow.
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Here we go.
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Every morning, I wake up and I practice English.
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I listen to words, I repeat them out loud, and I try to speak clearly.
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It is not always easy.
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Sometimes I make mistakes.
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But I keep going because I know that every day I am getting a little bit better.
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Wow!
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Okay, that was beautiful.
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Did you do it?
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Did you actually say it out loud?
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I hope you did, because even if it felt messy, even if you stumbled on some words, That was practice.
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That was real, genuine English practice, and you just did it.
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Day one.
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Boom.
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And I want to mention something about that paragraph, because I wrote it intentionally.
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Did you notice the sentences are short?
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Simple words, nothing complicated.
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I wake up, I practice English, I make mistakes, I keep going.
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That kind of simple, clear English is actually perfect for shadowing when you're starting out, because you can focus all your energy on the sounds and the rhythm,
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not on figuring out difficult vocabulary.
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And as we go through the 30 days, the sentences will slowly get a little longer, a little more natural sounding, a little faster, but never too fast.
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We're going to grow together, nice and steady.
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Exactly.
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So to wrap up today, let's go over the three big things we learned.
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Number one, what is shadowing?
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It's a technique where you listen to someone speaking English, and you repeat what they say almost at the same time,
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copying their sounds, rhythm, and pronunciation.
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Number two, why does shadowing work?
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Because it trains your mouth and your ears together, the same way a baby learns to speak through listening and copying, not through memorizing rules.
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And number three, how do you start?
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You start simple, you speak out loud, you don't worry about perfection, you just keep going.
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Or, which Jenny didn't say but I think is just as important, you come back tomorrow.
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Day two is waiting for you.
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And the day after that, and the day after that.
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30 days.
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We are doing this together.
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I was going to say that, James.
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I know, I know.
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I just got excited.
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I can't help it.
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Okay.
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Before we go, I do want to say one more thing to anyone who is feeling nervous about this challenge.
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It is okay to be nervous.
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It is okay to feel unsure.
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But I want you to think about something.
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A year from now, you will wish you had started today.
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Not tomorrow, not next week, today.
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And the good news is, you already started.
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You watched this video.
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You made it to the end.
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That means something.
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That means you are serious about this.
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And we are serious about helping you.
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Jenny and I, we genuinely love this.
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We love language, we love learning, and most of all, we love this community.
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Every comment you leave, every message you send, it makes our day.
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So please, after you watch this, leave a comment below and tell us.
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Did you try the shadowing practice?
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How did it feel?
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Were you shy?
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Were you brave?
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Were you a little bit of both?
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We want to know.
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And if you have any questions about shadowing, anything at all, ask us in the comments.
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We read every single one and we answer as many as we can.
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Also, and I'm going to say this again because it really matters, matters.
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If you haven't subscribed yet, please do it now.
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This 30-day series is going to be incredible and you do not want to miss a single day.
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Every episode builds on the last one.
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So hit subscribe, hit the bell notification, and we will see you tomorrow for Day 2.
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Day 2 is going to be really fun, actually.
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We're going to focus on the music of English, what we call the rhythm of sentences.
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And I promise, once you start hearing it, you'll never listen to English the same way again.
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Ooh, that gives me chills.
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I love that one.
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Okay, thank you so much for being here today, everyone.
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Seriously, from the bottom of our hearts, thank you.
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Now go practice those sentences one more time, out loud, full voice, no excuses.
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We believe in you.
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We really do.
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See you tomorrow.
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See you tomorrow.
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Bye, everyone.
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Bye.
About This Lesson
Welcome to the first day of our 30-Day English Shadowing Challenge. In this lesson, you'll start your journey to improve English pronunciation through a powerful method known as the shadowing technique. This technique allows you to mimic native speakers as closely as possible, perfectly matching their rhythm, intonation, and pronunciation. By the end of this challenge, you will not only be able to shadow speak effectively but also develop a more natural speaking style that feels comfortable and confident. Let's embrace this engaging and exciting way to enhance your English skills!
Key Vocabulary & Phrases
- Shadowing: A language learning technique where you listen to audio and repeat it out loud.
- Pronunciation: The way in which a word is pronounced, crucial for clear communication.
- Intonation: The rise and fall of the voice in speaking, essential for conveying meaning.
- Rhythm: The pattern of sounds in speech, important for sounding natural.
- Practice: Consistent repetition and engagement, key to mastering any skill.
- Courage: The bravery needed to speak and make mistakes as part of the learning process.
Practice Tips
To make the most out of your shadowing experience, follow these tailored tips:
- Start Slow: Begin with slower audio clips to ensure you catch every word and can imitate them accurately.
- Rewind and Repeat: Don’t hesitate to pause or rewind the audio if a section is challenging. Go over it multiple times until you feel comfortable.
- Focus on Tone and Emotion: Listen not just to the words but also to how the speaker conveys emotions through tone. This adds depth to your shadow speech.
- Speak Along: Try to speak along with the audio rather than waiting until it finishes. This instant reaction helps in developing your fluency.
- Record Yourself: Occasionally record your own shadowing practice. Listening to yourself can help identify areas for improvement.
Remember, the goal of this shadowing site is to create a fun and effective atmosphere for learning. By practicing consistently, you will unlock the secrets to sounding more like a native speaker in no time!
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.