Shadowing Practice: π An English Lesson about Gifts and A Short Trip to a Jewelry Store π - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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Hi, Bob the Canadian here.
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Hi, Bob the Canadian here.
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Welcome to this English lesson about gifts.
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Gifts are one of the nicer things that people do for each other on this planet Earth.
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And I really love gifts, and I love it when people give gifts.
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And I love giving gifts myself.
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And I thought I should do a little English lesson for you about gifts.
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I was out this morning actually buying a gift for my daughter for Christmas.
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By the way, if you want to see that watch the video right until the end because I did take my camera with.
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And I did make a video while I was buying a gift for my daughter where I have a conversation with a native English speaker as I buy that gift.
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It's just a short little segment, but I think you will enjoy it.
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But anyways, back to the topic.
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I wanted to talk about gifts and do a little English lesson on it.
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Let me, first of all, list all of the times or celebrations, occasions, or holidays where we buy gifts in Canada.
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I'm sure these are very similar around the world.
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In fact, most of them will be the same, but maybe you don't know all the English words for them.
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So, number one, we definitely buy gifts when someone has a birthday.
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We buy gifts when people get married.
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So, when we go to a wedding we will definitely buy a gift.
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We will also buy a gift for someone when they have an anniversary.
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That's a pretty common time to buy a gift.
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We will buy a gift when someone graduates.
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So, when there is a graduation we will buy a gift.
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We will buy a gift when there is a birth of course.
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So, if we know someone, a couple, who has had a new baby we will definitely buy them a gift then as well.
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There's a few holidays when we buy gifts.
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We buy gifts of course for Christmas.
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So, we give gifts at Christmas.
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We give gifts on Valentine's Day, which is a very, very nice romantic holiday in February.
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And we usually give gifts on Mother's Day and on Father's Day.
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And I think one other time when we would give a gift is what's called a housewarming gift.
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So, if someone buys a new house or apartment and they have a party to show everyone their new place, we will sometimes bring them a housewarming gift.
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So, those I think are most of the times in life when we would buy someone a gift.
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But how do you know what to get someone?
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Well, there's a couple ways to figure out what gift to get someone.
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One way is to just be a really good listener.
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So, I'm going to challenge you as English learners to pay attention.
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When you pay attention to someone it means you listen to what they're saying so you can figure out the things that they like.
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So, sometimes for a week or so before someone has a birthday you may need to pay attention to what they are saying so that you can figure out.
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When you figure out something it means that you determine or discover something.
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So, you need to figure out what they want.
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Once you've figured out what gift to get you need to go obviously and buy the gift.
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A lotta times these days people buy gifts online, but you may go to a store and buy a gift.
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Another option instead of buying a gift is you could make a gift.
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In my family we try to make a gift for each other at Christmas instead of buying something.
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This could be somewhat hard if you're like me, and you're not very good at making things.
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But besides buying a gift or making a gift, you can also do something called regifting.
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When you regift it means you take a gift that someone else gave you for a past birthday or from a past Christmas, and if it's something that you didn't use you just wrap it up and you give it to a new person.
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Once you have the gift you usually wrap the gift, and you wrap the gift using wrapping paper.
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If you want an easier method, what I like to do is to put the gift in a gift bag and you just put some tissue on top that's a different color.
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So, those are the two options.
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You can wrap the gift, or you can put it in a gift bag.
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When you give a gift you will most likely also want to give a card.
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So, if you are giving a birthday gift, you probably want to give a birthday card.
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If you are giving a Valentine's Day gift, you probably want to give a Valentine's Day card as well.
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Same with Father's and Mother's day, you will probably want to give a card for that occasion as well.
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And then there's only two things left to do.
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You need to give the gift to someone, and then you get to watch them open it.
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Often times when our kids are opening gifts, especially for their birthdays, we also take pictures of the occasion.
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So, that was a little lesson about giving gifts in English.
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Before you go though just stick around, and here's a little clip of me buying a gift for my daughter at a store.
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So, let's head into the jewelry store, and let's see if I can find some earrings for my daughter.
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Could you show me where the earrings are (laughs)?
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- [Employee] Of course.
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They're all these different styles here.
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- Okay, thank you very much.
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I'll just have a look, - No problem.
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- and see what I need.
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- [Employee] All right, perfect.
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- Thank you.
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- [Employee] No problem.
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- So, we have quite a selection here of earrings.
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I don't know if you can see all of them.
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I need to buy something that's cute because it is for my younger daughter.
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So, I think I'm going to look at these earrings here.
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This is a good one.
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I think I will buy this one.
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Let's head over to the checkout.
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- All good to go?
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- I will take these.
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- Perfect. Thank you. - Thank you.
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(cash register beeping) - Would you like a little bag for that as well?
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- Yes, please.
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- Perfect. All right, so your total's going to come to $18.65 please.
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Perfect. Thank you.
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(cash register beeping) All right, and $1.35 will be your change.
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- Thank you very much.
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- No problem.
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There you go.
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And voila. - Awesome, thanks a lot.
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- No problem, have a great day.
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- See ya. Well, hey, that was just a little English lesson about gifts and gift giving.
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I'm Bob the Canadian.
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Thank you so much for watching.
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If you're new here don't forget to click that red Subscribe button below, and give me a thumbs up if this video helped you learn just a little bit more English.
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Context & Background
In this engaging lesson, Bob the Canadian shares his love for giving and receiving gifts, offering a thoughtful approach to English language learning through everyday topics. Bob invites viewers to explore the significance of gifts during celebrations and encourages them to enhance their English speaking practice by immersing themselves in real-life conversations. This makes the lesson both relatable and practical, providing learners with opportunities to learn vocabulary around gifts while also developing their listening and speaking skills.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- βWhat would you like for your birthday?β - A common question when discussing gift preferences.
- βI have a gift for you!β - A delightful phrase to use when presenting a gift.
- βLetβs celebrate your graduation!β - Perfect for discussing milestone celebrations.
- βDo you have any gift ideas?β - A useful query when seeking suggestions for others.
- βI made this gift myself.β - A wonderful expression of personal effort and creativity.
Step-by-step Shadowing Guide
To effectively improve your English speaking skills using this video, follow this step-by-step shadowing guide:
- Watch and Listen: Begin by watching Bobβs video without interruption. Pay close attention to his pronunciation and intonation when he discusses gifts and celebrations.
- Pause and Repeat: After each segment, pause the video and try to repeat what Bob has said. Focus on mimicking his tone and cadence to enhance your shadow speech.
- Take Notes: Write down the key phrases and vocabulary listed above. This will aid in retention and make it easier during your practice.
- Practice with a Partner: If possible, find a language partner to practice these phrases within the context of gift-giving scenarios. This simulates real conversation, enhances fluency, and boosts confidence.
- Utilize a Shadowing App: For additional practice, consider using a shadowing app or site that allows you to record and compare your speech with native speakers. This technique can greatly improve your English speaking practice.
By following these steps, you can effectively bridge the gap between listening and speaking, making each lesson with Bob not just a language exercise, but a practical application in everyday life. Enjoy the process of learning and connecting through the art of giving gifts!
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 β like a shadow following the speaker with just a 1β2 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 β making it one of the most effective methods for IELTS Speaking preparation and real-world English communication.
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