Shadowing Practice: COMPLETE KET TRACK 55 UNIT 9 - Learn English Speaking with Video

Creating lesson...
1
Unit 9.
2
Listening, Part 2.
3
Exercise 2.
4
For these questions, write the correct answer in each gap.
5
You will hear some information about a concert.
6
Write one word or a number or a date or a time.
7
Thank you, everyone.
8
Now, it's our school concert in our arts hall at the weekend.
9
I hope you're all practising a lot.
10
I heard a student playing the piano on Monday and it sounded great.
11
Anyway, our concert is on Saturday.
12
Are you all ready?
13
The music is always varied and this year we have pop, rock and even some jazz,
14
so it'll be different from last year's, which was all classical.
15
For those of you who are playing, you'll be here all afternoon, I know.
16
But for your parents and friends the doors open at 6 30
17
and the concert itself starts at 7 30 the seats are not numbered
18
so please tell your parents that
19
if they want to be near the front they should get
20
here by quarter past six now as you know we're selling
21
tickets they are ten pounds each for adults students from this school are free
22
but students from other schools pay two pounds finally as there are always questions please ask your parents to contact Mr Bagshaw.
23
That's B A G S H A W and he will be happy to answer them.

Who Should Watch This Video?

This video is perfect for English learners prepping for the KET exam, especially those focusing on listening and speaking skills. It’s ideal for beginners to intermediate students who want to practice understanding real-life conversations and improve their ability to catch details like times, dates, and prices—key skills for both exams and daily life. If you’re using "learn english with youtube" as a strategy, this is a great resource to add to your routine.

Useful Words and Phrases to Learn

The dialogue includes practical terms you can start using right away:

  • Varied: Diverse or mixed (e.g., "The concert has varied music").
  • Doors open: When a venue starts admitting people (e.g., "Doors open at 6:30").
  • Contact: Get in touch with (e.g., "Contact Mr. Bagshaw for questions").
These phrases are common in event announcements, making them essential for everyday communication.

Tips for Perfecting Your Pronunciation

To nail the accent in this video, focus on two areas: Numbers and times: The speaker says "6:30" as "six thirty" and "quarter past six"—practice saying these smoothly. Use a "shadow speak" technique: repeat the phrases immediately after the speaker, matching their rhythm and stress. Names: "Bagshaw" is pronounced BAG-shaw. Break it into syllables and practice until it flows naturally. For extra practice, use a "shadowing app" or "shadowing site" to record yourself and compare it to the speaker. This helps you refine your intonation and pace, key for sounding more natural in English.

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 →