Shadowing Practice: Get ready for FLYERS track 26 - Learn English Speaking with Video

This video has 31 sentences and 273 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:57. The speaker talks at a steady 140 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 90% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.

Key vocabulary in this video

15 less common words from the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

• volleyball /ˈvɒlibɔ(ː)l/ (noun) — A game played on a rectangular court between two teams of two to six players which involves striking a ball back and forth over a net.
• collect /ˈkɑlɪkt/ (verb) — To gather together; amass.
• tick /tɪk/ (noun) — A tiny woodland arachnid of the suborder Ixodida.
• excite /ɪkˈsaɪt/ (verb) — To stir the emotions of; to cause to feel excitement.
• jump /d͡ʒʌmp/ (verb) — To propel oneself rapidly upward, downward and/or in any horizontal direction such that momentum causes the body to become airborne.
• lunch /lʌnt͡ʃ/ (noun) — A light meal usually eaten around midday, notably when not as main meal of the day.
• prize /ˈpɹaɪ̯z/ (noun) — That which is taken from another; something captured; a thing seized by force, stratagem, or superior power.
• competition /ˌkɑm.pəˈtɪʃ.ən/ (noun) — The action of competing.
• explain /ɪkˈspleɪn/ (verb) — To make plain, manifest, or intelligible; to clear of obscurity; to illustrate the meaning of.
• winner /ˈwɪnɚ/ (noun) — One who has won or often wins.
• sport /spoɹt/ (noun) — Any activity that uses physical exertion or skills competitively under a set of rules that is not based on aesthetics.
• afternoon /ˌæf.tɚˈnun/ (noun) — The part of the day from noon or lunchtime until sunset, evening, or suppertime or 6pm.
• cross /kɹɑs/ (noun) — A geometrical figure consisting of two straight lines or bars intersecting each other such that at least one of them is bisected by the other.
• teacher /ˈti.t͡ʃɚ/ (noun) — A person who teaches, especially one employed in a school; preceptor.
• onto /ˈɒn.tuː/ — Arriving upon or on top of (speaking of a physical or metaphorical movement).

Phrasal verbs you will hear

• forget about (verb) — To not think about something or someone, to fail to remember, or to disregard someone or something.
• play in (verb) — Of a batsman, to settle and become comfortable with the conditions at the beginning of his innings.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 4 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, 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 volleyball, collect, tick.