Shadowing Practice: Academy Stars 1 Reading Time 2 - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
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The king of the forest.
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1. Tiger isn't happy.
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He's hot and hungry.
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2. Look!
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Tiger is happy now.
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He can see fox.
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Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr says fox are you scared
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asks tiger no i'm not scared says fox i'm the king of the forest Ha!
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Everyone is scared of me.
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Ha!
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Ha!
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Ha!
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Says Tiger.
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You're funny.
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Four.
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Can you run fast?
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asks Fox.
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Yes, I can, says Tiger.
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Fox and Tiger can run fast.
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You can't catch us, say the rabbits.
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Look, says Fox, the rabbits are scared of me.
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6. Now the goats can see Tiger.
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You can't catch us, say the goats.
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Look, says Fox.
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The goats are scared of me.
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7. Now the monkeys can see Tiger.
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You can't catch us, say the monkeys.
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Look, says Fox.
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The monkeys are scared of me.
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You are the king of the forest, says Tiger.
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Now I can't eat you.
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1. Tiger isn't happy.
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He's hot and hungry.

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 33 sentences and 153 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:07. 81% 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

8 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

WordPronunciationMeaning
tiger noun/ˈtaɪɡə/Panthera tigris, a large predatory mammal of the cat family, indigenous to Asia.
scare verb/skɛɚ/To frighten, terrify, startle, especially in a minor way.
monkey noun/ˈmʌŋki/A member of the clade Simiiformes other than those in the clade Hominoidea containing apes, generally (but not universally) distinguished by small size, tails…
goat noun/ɡoʊt/Any ruminant of the genus Capra.
hungry adjective/ˈhʌŋ.ɡɹi/Affected by hunger; having the physical need for food.
rabbit noun/ˈɹæbɪt/A mammal of most genera of the family Leporidae, with long ears, long hind legs and a short, fluffy tail. (Those of the larger kind are instead called hares)
catch verb/kæt͡ʃ/To capture or snare (someone or something which would rather escape).
forest noun/ˈfɔɹəst/A dense uncultivated tract of trees and undergrowth, larger than woods.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 9 contractions and reduced forms, such as can't, I'm, isn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

How to practise with this video

  1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
  2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
  3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like tiger, scare, monkey.

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →