Shadowing Practice: Daycare Stories - Learn English Speaking with Video

Oh, hello my geeks and peeps, my explainers and entertainers, my little oodle-allies.

Rebecca Parham here.

So, did you know I was a daycare kid?

Probably not, because I've never mentioned it before.

Makes sense, given that mom and dad were both working parents, and leaving one's infant at home alone is generally considered.. problematic.

Now, I know it might be hard to believe, but I haven't always been the pinnacle of refinement and maturity that you see before you today you today.

No, no. As a kid, I was a bit of a rascal.

For example, the box story.

Now at this daycare, we had a big playroom, and in this playroom, there was a dark little alcove where custodial stuff and equipment was kept all the time.

And one morning during playtime, I noticed someone had left a large box there, big enough for a child to hide behind.

Now there's a concept that I call kid logic, and it's basically just a name for that randomness that kids possess, or the absurdity that is their reasoning sometimes.

For example, when I saw that box, that's when my kid logic kicked in,

and I said, I'm gonna hide behind that box for as long as possible and see what happens.

This is a great idea.

So when the adults weren't looking, I slunk behind the box and crouched down, hiding myself entirely.

I must have stayed there for half an hour before playtime ended, and they ushered all the kids away to a different room for a new activity.

And funny enough, the adults were none the wiser I was gone.

I've beat the system.

Now this is what gets me.

It took an hour of me hiding before an adult came back to the room and visibly began looking around for something.

Couldn't imagine what it might be.

Now where did I leave that small child?

Must be around here someplace.

I peeked my head up over the edge of the box to watch, but that proved to be my undoing.

I was spotted!

I've been compromised!

I got in big trouble for that, of course.

I was clearly not good at getting away with things when I was a kid, as you'll see in the next story.

Now one time at this daycare, they brought in a whiteboard, and you were only allowed to draw on it with adult supervision.

Okay, I won't draw on the board.

Instead, I stole a green dry erase marker when no one was looking, and proceeded to decorate my face.

Hey, listen, I didn't break the rules.

They specifically said don't draw on the board.

They said nothing about my face.

I put the marker back and walked away, but was promptly spotted by an adult.

Becca, did you do this to yourself?

No. Did somebody do this to you?

Yes.

Who did it?

Well, sheesh, I hadn't thought I had that far.

And I honestly didn't even think to blame another kid.

Instead, that good old kid logic kicked in.

And I came up with the most foolproof story that was sure to get my hide out of trouble.

I was minding my own business looking for something to play with

and then the Marcus came over and marked on my face Nailed it.

I will never understand how that daycare worker kept a straight face, but off to timeout I went.

So what are you in for?

Disrupting the status quo?

Whoa, I stuck gum up my nose.

Something I haven't mentioned yet is that my sister Rachel also went to this daycare

and because she's two years years older than me, she got to be in the big kids program called the Superstars.

And I was so jealous that I took to calling them the stupid stars.

Extra crispy on that burn there, little Becca.

But one thing that will always be a significant memory to me is the day I discovered

that the Superstars had a Nintendo.

Better yet, they had Super Mario Brothers.

And that, my little oodle was the first time I ever saw a console video game.

I thought I was looking at magic.

And that became the only thing I ever wanted to do at playtime, was go over to the big kid area and watch them play Super Mario Brothers.

Don't you dare tell me that gamers aren't real entertainers.

I was watching people play video games long before the Appliers and SepticEyes and D-Pies of the world made it a thing.

But when playtime was over, the daycare staff had to pry me away kicking and screaming from that TV set.

One day, however, I came up with a brilliant idea.

When they pulled me away from the big kids corner and sat me down with the other little kids, I proceeded to scream and cry that I miss my big sister

and nothing was gonna console me except being allowed to be with her in the big kid area.

I guess the adults didn't know what else to do, so they actually let me go back over.

Holy Crayola, that actually worked.

Sure enough, I made a beeline for the Nintendo.

Screw you, sis, I got video games to observe.

It didn't take long for an adult to catch on, and I was eventually pulled away again.

When I tried the same schtick, they gently said, Becca, you say you miss your sister, but every time you go over there,

you just watch them play video games.

Okay, maybe they had me there.

Not gonna lie, that's a pretty solid accusation.

Alright, grown-up, I'll concede to you this time.

But one day, I'll be grown-up, and I'll watch all the video games I want.

Don't you mean play them?

No. Now, I've saved the best story for last.

Even when I started kindergarten, there was no escaping this daycare.

Because one of the services they provided was picking up children from my elementary school school

and taking them back to the daycare where the parents could pick them up later.

So every day, I didn't get picked up by a parent or get on a normal yellow school bus.

I waited for a big white van.

That sounds rather nefarious now that I say it out loud.

But yeah, Rachel and I would wait for the van, pile in with the other kids, and go wait to get picked up at the daycare.

And this was a routine my kindergarten teacher knew.

She was a very good teacher and kept track of the way each of her students were supposed to go home.

So she would make sure I got in that van.

Well, I was getting a little bored of the routine.

And here's good old kid logic again, because many of my classmates would get to walk home.

And for some reason, I decided that was the cool thing to do.

I aspired to walk home.

But that wasn't gonna happen with Miss Responsibility Pants botching my whole operation.

So like the little devil I was, I waited until we had a substitute teacher.

Alright, here's your evil genius learner's permit, kiddo.

When school ended that day, instead of getting into the daycare van, I hid behind a brick pillar and waited for the van to leave without me.

Funny how my sister never said anything.

She must have been like, alright, I guess she died.

As soon as the van left, I headed off on foot.

100

My house was within walking distance, only about a mile away.

101

But I began to think as I walked that no one was actually going to be at the house, and I had no way of getting inside.

102

Probably should have thought of that before.

103

So instead of walking home, I made the executive decision to walk to the daycare instead.

104

Now, I knew, I knew what I was doing was against the rules, because every single time I saw a white vehicle of any sort coming in the distance,

105

I would duck behind a tree or bush as fast as I could.

106

When I was so close that I could see the daycare up ahead, I noticed what was most definitely a white van approaching.

107

And the only tree immediately available was thinner than me.

108

So not only was this tree already insufficient at hiding me, but when I jumped behind it, I didn't think to put the tree between me and the line of sight of the van.

109

So when the daycare staff approached, this is what they saw.

110

I'm revoking that evil genius learner's permit.

111

They stopped the van, made me get inside, and guess who I found in the back seat?

112

The snitch that ratted me out!

113

My own sister!

114

How could you?

115

We were brothers, you and I!

116

Wait.

117

And that is just a handful of examples of what a little monster I was.

118

I talked to my sister about this script

119

and she came up with even more stories about this daycare So if you guys like this video, then maybe there'll be another one in the future. Who knows?

120

Alright, have fun out there oodle-allies and avoid white vans.

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Thank you so much for tuning in, but now I gotta tune out.

122

Bye!

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118 sentences

Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This video has 122 sentences and 1565 words to shadow. The speech runs for 8:20. The speaker talks fast, about 188 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.

Key vocabulary in this video

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

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
routine noun	/ɹuˈtin/	A course of action to be followed regularly; a standard procedure.
genius noun	/ˈd͡ʒin.jəs/	Someone possessing extraordinary intelligence or skill; especially somebody who has demonstrated this by a creative or original work in science, music, art…
tune noun	/tjuːn/	A melody.
permit verb	/pɚˈmɪt/	To allow (something) to happen, to give permission for.
proceed verb	/pɹəˈsid/	To move, pass, or go forward or onward; to advance; to carry on.
scream verb	/skɹiːm/	To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, sharp outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to screech, to shriek.
ally noun	/ˈæl.aɪ/	A person who co-operates with or helps another; an associate; a friend.
console noun	/ˈkɑn.soʊl/	A stand-alone cabinet designed to stand on the floor; especially, one integrated with home entertainment equipment, such as a TV or stereo system.
marker noun	/ˈmɑː(ɹ)kə(ɹ)/	A felt-tipped pen, a marker pen.
kindergarten noun	/ˈkɪndəɹˌɡɑːɹt(ə)n/	The elementary school grade before first grade.
thin adjective	/ˈθɪn/	Having little thickness or extent from one surface to its opposite.
worker noun	/ˈwɝ.kɚ/	One who works: a person who performs labor for a living; traditionally, especially, manual labor.
steal verb	/stiːl/	To take illegally, or without the owner's permission, something owned by someone else without intending to return it.
discover verb	/dɪˈskʌvə/	To find or learn something for the first time.
script noun	/skɹɪpt/	A writing; a written document.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Meaning
come up with verb	To manage to produce, deliver, or present (something) by inventing, creating, thinking of, or obtaining it.
grow up verb	To mature and become an adult.
pick up verb	To lift; to grasp and raise.
come over verb	To affect in a sudden, unprecedented or surprising manner; to overwhelm a person's ordinarily contrary impulse.
get away with verb	To get away, or escape, taking (something) with one.
go over verb	To look at carefully; to scrutinize; to analyze.
hide behind verb	To use someone or something as a shield in order to avoid taking responsibility for something; to avoid attention by using someone or something as a shield.
pull away verb	To move ahead.

Grammar in this video

The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:

Structure	In the video
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	was kept · was spotted · I've been compromised
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	I've never mentioned · haven't always been · I've been compromised

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 33 contractions and reduced forms, such as didn't, gonna, I've. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “sh” and “zh” sounds: supervision /ˌs(j)uːpəˈvɪʒən/, insufficient /ɪnsəˈfɪʃənt/, accusation /ˌæk.jʊˈzeɪ.ʃ(ə)n/, usher /ˈʌʃəɹ/, sheesh /ʃiːʃ/
Long words — get the stress right: kindergarten /ˈkɪndəɹˌɡɑːɹt(ə)n/, elementary /ˌɛləˈmɛntəɹi/, supervision /ˌs(j)uːpəˈvɪʒən/, maturity /məˈtjʊəɹɪti/, problematic /ˌpɹɑ.bləˈmæt.ɪk/

How to practise with this video

Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
Start at 0.75× speed, shadow it sentence by sentence, then go back to normal speed once it feels easy.
Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like routine, genius, tune.

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 →

Shadowing Practice: Daycare Stories - Learn English Speaking with Video

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