Shadowing Practice: How I Learn Languages Fast (I speak 7+) - Learn English Speaking with Video

That time I recorded an entire video with the cameras on slow motion.

Hate myself!

Anyways, it's been a minute.

Hi everyone, I'm Jo.

If you clicked on this video, odds are you want to learn a new language

or you've abandoned a language that you love and you want to pick it back up.

I got you, boo.

I've been through this once, twice, three times, four times, five times.

I might be on my seventh journey.

I don't really keep count of much of anything.

I've learned many languages and I will continue to learn many languages because it's my lifestyle.

And in honor of my book and language learning journal Fluentish, I will be giving you my best tips,

tricks, and language learning hacks because I want us all to get fluentish.

I'm going to be talking about tons of resources.

I've linked a free language learning starter kit in the description box is totally free in

that language learning kit i'll be showing all of my resources

giving my honest recommendations my goal is to get people motivated about language learning

so that's what we're gonna do now i have created a

method for us not to forget it's called the on par methodology

and it was an acronym i couldn't resist as i was writing this script he is for part one which is Pain,

planning, and patience.

I was testing you.

You saw the patience I was testing you.

So the P is really important because a goal without a plan is just a wish.

It's one of my favorite quotes.

It's very much true for everything in life, but definitely for language learning.

If you're trying to do one of the most difficult tasks as a human being, learn a different language, you gotta make a plan.

I need to warn all of you, it's gonna take a lot longer.

It's gonna take so much longer

and the patience is not just in the obvious like oh it's gonna take time

but the patience is you need to have this resilient mindset

to move past the hurdles of trying trying trying failing failing failing falling on your face

and then one day two years later you finally understand everything they're saying to you that's how it works

and i woke up saying arabic words like

that i learned seven years ago like what i know i'm

sateleta i'm like what i have not said these words since

i was in egypt back in 2014 something is actually happening in my brain

that is reviving memories from years ago that i haven't thought of

and it's waking me up in the middle of the night

this is not a linear path it goes like this honeymoon

stage you're stoked you love the words you're romanticizing the language

you see all of this progress for yourself that's day one to like day 30 then day 31 hits

and all of a sudden you're like oh my god what

did i get myself into i'll I'll never be able to do this.

And then you just hit this overwhelm, this frustration, and this complete self-loathing of I'm not smart enough to do this.

I will never learn this language.

I was just in that stage two weeks ago.

If you're one of the rare people who can push through and persevere, which is the fourth P of part one,

you will then be rewarded with the other stage, which is like suddenly you understand all of Dracula without a translator.

And you don't even know how this happened, but I'll tell you how it happened because of the pain that we started this whole conversation with.

To get over the pain, you need patience and you also need a plan.

The planning is really easy.

All you got to do is carve out time in your schedule that's realistic, time that you will not avoid, whether that's doing something every day while you do your dishes, you're listening to your audio tapes,

or you're reading before bed, or you're texting a friend every single day in your target language.

You need to carve that out.

And of course, if you schedule lessons or actually schedule things in your calendar, it's going to be even better for you.

But planning is essential here.

In Fluentish, I actually included a whole planning section, which I'm going to show you.

And that's because without that accountability, without that checklist of what you need to do every day, it's going to be really hard to stay on top of it.

As always, with anything good, you got to know why you're doing it.

Why are you learning the language?

Make it juicy, make it deep.

Can't be superficial.

It needs to be something that could possibly change your life.

I'll give you an example i'm currently learning flemish

which is dutch spoken in the north of belgium

and it's a language i never in a million years thought

that i would learn and initially it was for my boyfriend

but then i was like hold up this is going to

give me access to dutch speaking places all over the world

all of a sudden i can go to the netherlands

and waltz around and talk to people and learn how they think

or I can go to Suriname and like the world is now more available to me when I learn Dutch.

It's not just for one thing.

And that's how I do it.

But regardless of how I do it, the main thing in this video that you're going to learn is like, it's not all about how I do it or any other polyglo.

You got to know how you learn, which brings me to part two.

Action and accountability.

The A in the on-par Joe Franco language learning method.

I hope this isn't somebody else's method

because I swear it's like too good too easy to do this

so action everything in life

that actually moves needs to take action you gotta take action you gotta wake up do it even

if you don't want to do it you gotta make it work

but then there's accountability which is keeping you on action for a long time it doesn't matter

if you study vigorously for a week

and then you fall off it's actually better if you study smaller chunks smaller doses and then you do it more consistently.

The consistency is what you need to be doing here.

Damn, can I squeeze a C in there somewhere for consistency?

Unpark consistency and community.

That's coming up in part two of this video.

We got to talk resources here

and I created an entire guide in the free language learning starter kit that breaks down all the resources that I recommend.

And this is a living, breathing document.

I add resources to this list when I find new ones.

The thing that I outline in that resource document is

that you are going to need to know the very important question of how do you learn?

Doesn't matter what I do, doesn't matter what he does, doesn't matter what she does, doesn't matter what they do.

Are you an auditory learner?

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Are you a visual learner?

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Are you a kinesthetic learner?

102

You gotta get your hands and they gotta take some action.

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Are you a reading and writing style learner?

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Are you a verbal learner, social learner?

105

Once you've identified two out of those methods of learning, I want you to curate your learning resources based on how you learn.

106

And that's homework that you have to do i can't do it for you

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so think back to the first thing that you learned

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and what made it stick and then try to recreate

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that in your language learning approach you also need input

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which means receiving the information i used to be a big duolingo hater

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and then i realized i was just being a hater

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because the app has gotten significantly better now here's something

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that i got to tell you yes it's good to do duolingo daily yes it's great

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that i am the obsidian queen however

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if all you ever do is stick to your crutches your

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apps you won't go from streak 1000 to fluent doesn't matter how many days you do those apps

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if you're not creating sentences for yourself you're not actually building a path to fluency

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so have your apps have those games on your phone it's better than not doing something but

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if you really want to take your language to the next

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level you have to write your own sentences you have to say the thing

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that you're doing out loud as you're doing it

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so it's a combination of the resources that's going to take

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you from flat to fluent pimsleur is one of my personal favorites it's an audio resource

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that i have used many times while working out

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while doing the dishes while painting my nails and its input

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that allows you to regurgitate what the local speakers are saying one i'm a multitasker my life is busy

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and i bet yours is too so it allows you to do things at the same time driving and learning Arabic, whatever it is, it's great for the busy people.

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You pay a subscription fee or you could buy courses directly.

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And I actually like that because once you put some money in the game, you put skin in the game, you're going to show up more than maybe the free apps.

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Language Reactor, which was formerly known as Learning Language with Netflix,

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is a Chrome extension that pimps out your Netflix and other streaming platforms to become language learning empires, basically.

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You get double subtitles, you can slow things down.

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It's awesome.

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So Language Reactor is is definitely something to check out.

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Downloading a VPN to browse different media outlets in different countries.

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I'm watching Belgian shows because I'm basically in Belgium based on my VPN and it's stuff that I wouldn't get access to.

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It literally is blocked if I'm logging in with my US phone.

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But the minute that I use the VPN, I get VRT Max, which is like Belgium's public service TV.

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I'm sorry, y'all.

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I won't pay taxes, I swear.

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Of course, you gotta love the streaming platforms that allow you to look up different music in different countries.

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And a lot of these songs have the lyrics function, which I love because I turn my Spotify into karaoke.

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I highly recommend it.

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And it's not just the input.

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You gotta massage the material, right?

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So right now, I'm reading Dracula.

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I could sit here and be like, But then I'm going to be like, damn, did I understand everything?

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And if I didn't understand everything, I'm going to take out a translator and then I'm going to write it down.

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So it's input and then output, which is next on this list of juicy information.

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Damn, we just getting started.

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Okay, let's see output.

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Once you have the input in your brain, once you've massaged your brain, you're ready for the acupuncture.

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What?

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Like this analogy doesn't make any sense.

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Output is regurgitating the information that you're learning.

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It's taking the next step to write in a journal, right?

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It's keeping a notepad on your computer, whether you're a typer or a writer by hand.

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It's verbalizing these sentences.

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It's asking questions.

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It's then diving into conversations with locals.

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There's italki, which is the platform where you can find affordable language tutors.

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You also have Preply, which is a similar platform.

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I use both, depends.

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I have a life, like a labor.

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Life is not labor.

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What is life?

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It is, yeah.

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It is?

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If you say I have a life, you say I have a life, yeah?

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I have a social life.

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Ah, I have a social life.

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Different teachers work on different platforms.

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You can also sign up for something like Lingoda, which are group classes that are more structured.

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This is great for somebody who is just learning how to learn a language because it's structured for you, so it's not this awkward silence when you're working with a tutor.

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You'll just dive in.

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There's course material before and after the classes.

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Lingoda is only offered in a few languages, but definitely recommend that as well.

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Classes give you the accountability check-in that you need.

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And so I always book a package of classes.

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It's an investment, but an investment that I will commit to because it's an investment.

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And again, when you learn a language, it opens so many doors to new relationships, new job opportunities, new financial abundance.

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And so it's not just this hobby thing.

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It could turn into a whole new life.

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For me, it's turned into a whole new life and publishing a damn book.

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And that wouldn't have happened had I not pushed through and persevered.

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Then there are apps where you could talk to locals.

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So you could use an app called HelloTalk, which is a free messaging app designed for language exchanges.

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Tandem is similar.

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Another resource that I just found out, thanks to one of my Joe Club members, is called Refold.

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And it's a free resource that you sign up for.

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And then you just get a massive amount of more free resources.

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And for me, as somebody who's learning Flemish, which is a version of Dutch that's not popularly studied,

193

It was one of the only platforms that acknowledged the fact that when you're learning Dutch, there's going to be different dialects.

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There's going to be different accents.

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And that shocked me.

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I've done this a lot.

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And many platforms just either ignore the lesser spoken languages or just kind of glaze over them.

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So Refold, highly recommend.

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It is in my language learning kit that hopefully all of you will be downloading by signing up to my newsletter.

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Let's see what else I got for y'all.

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And of course, something I love doing is making actual friends all around the world

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and making sure that I keep tabs on them, sending them lengthy voice notes on what to have.

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I'm the queen of the long voice note.

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Luckily, you can play those on 2X because my Italian stuttering ain't cute.

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Having real connections is going to breathe life into your language learning process.

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And it's going to remind you that learning a language is for human connection it's for empathy, it's for emotional intelligence, it's just for this like warm

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and cozy feeling that you want to get with more people around the world.

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That's why I learn languages.

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It's for those small but meaningful moments with strangers around the world that give you hope in humanity.

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Am I intense?

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Absolutely.

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Do I have a good reason for it?

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I hope so.

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Part three of my on par method is the R's for on par.

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Review, repetition, reward.

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Now this part is the glue is essential.

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You need to repeat, repeat, repeat.

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And this is where time just does what it does.

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If you're doing what you do, time is going to be on your side.

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If you just stick to the goals that you started out this journey with, this is why having an accountability tracker is really important.

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That daily habit tracker essential.

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Joe club and fluentish.

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This is what we're all about.

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It's like sticking to the daily tiny nothingness that creates the everyday everythings.

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There's this concept called the forgetting curve.

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So here's my analogy to explain the forgetting curve.

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When you get a seed and you plant it, if you've ever done this, you might notice that in the very few weeks, the beginning stages of the seed, you need to water it often.

228

You need to give it a lot of light, a lot of attention, even place some Bob Marley for that seed, and it'll start to sprout.

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And as it's sprouting, you need to continue that care, very diligent care.

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If you forget to water it one day kaput it's dead

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but then if you continue to nurture this seedling it'll grow into a proper plant

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and the minute

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that it has a full mature leaf on it you won't

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need a watered as much learning language is the exact same

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in the beginning stages you are nurturing a seedling you need constant attention constant study constant review

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but the longer you study the more space you'll be buying yourself

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so that if you've been studying every day for six months and you don't remember to study one day, you're not going to forget everything.

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But if you only study intensely for a week and then you stop studying for a day, you will forget a lot of it.

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There's information about the forgetting curve that I highly recommend that you look up.

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For the sake of this video, just know, in the very beginning stages, having yourself committed is essential.

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And as you continue to learn, it's going to fossilize in your brain and you're going to be buying yourself more time.

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For instance, Manon, je peux vous parler en français et ça va.

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J'ai pas étudié.

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It's just blocked in my brain because I've studied that language for many, many years, consistently.

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It's like because I started learning Italian later in my journey,

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so even though I can still speak it, it's clunkier than my French.

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And that's just how it goes.

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So the longer you stick to your habit of learning a language, the more time you'll buy for that language to retain in your head.

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And if you fall off, don't worry, you could always get back on.

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And it's just like riding a bike, but with your brain, which is a lot more difficult but I believe in you.

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I have many many more tips on how to learn languages

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that I will be sharing with you on this channel

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and also via my newsletter so don't forget to sign up for the language kit

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and then you'll get the newsletter and all of the good tips and tricks and whatever that I talk about there.

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The main thing is that you got to challenge yourself and

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if you push yourself a little tiny bit each

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and every day for a long time one day you'll wake

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and we'll be doing this video in a different language and it won't be because of artificial intelligence.

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It will be your brain intelligence, your raw intelligence, our eye.

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And now I leave you with a question.

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Where will you be in three months time?

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What language will we be speaking?

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What will we be learning?

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And I can't wait to see everybody out there on their fluentish journeys.

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I'm the Graf Dracula, says he.

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When I'm holding his hand, I feel that he's cold.

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Heel cold.

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I'm real.

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What is this for a man, I think.

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Dracula, he's laughing at me.

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He's laughing at me.

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Time to go.

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It's Dracula!

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “How I Learn Languages Fast”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: language, learning, learn. This video has 273 sentences and 3198 words to shadow. The speech runs for 16:09. The speaker talks fast, about 198 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 82% 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

The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
learner noun	/ˈlɜɹnəɹ/	One who is learning; one receiving instruction.
accountability noun	/əˌkaʊn.təˈbɪl.ə.ti/	The state of being accountable; liability to be called on to render an account or give an explanation; liability to be held responsible or answerable for…
patience noun	/ˈpeɪ̯.ʃəns/	The quality of being patient.
newsletter noun	/ˈn(j)uzˌlɛtɚ/	A periodically sent publication containing current events or the like, generally on a particular topic or geared toward a limited audience.
consistency noun	/kənˈsɪs.tən.si/	Local coherence.
curve noun	/kɚv/	A bend, such as in a road.
carve verb	/kɑɹv/	To cut meat in order to serve it.
flemish verb	/ˈflɛmɪʃ/	Often followed by down: to arrange (a rope) into a neat, flat spiral coil.
nurture noun	/ˈnɜːɹ.t͡ʃəɹ/	The act of nourishing or nursing; tender care
persevere verb	/ˌpɝ.səˈviɹ/	To persist steadfastly in pursuit of an undertaking, task, journey, or goal, even if hindered by distraction, difficulty, obstacles, or discouragement.
seedling noun	/ˈsiːdlɪŋ/	A young plant grown from seed.
sprout noun	/spɹaʊt/	A new growth of or on a plant, whether from seed or other parts.
fluent adjective	/ˈfluənt/	That flows; flowing, liquid.
tracker noun	/ˈtɹækə(ɹ)/	A person employed to follow and monitor a political rival.
tutor noun	/ˈtjuːtəː/	One who teaches another (usually called a student, learner, or tutee) in a one-on-one or small-group interaction.

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Word	Pronunciation	Meaning
fall off verb		To become detached or to drop from.
look up verb	/ˌlʊk ˈʌp/	To have better prospects.
push through verb		To force (legislation or a plan) to be passed or agreed to or a decision to be reached.
wake up verb	/ˌweɪk ˈʌp/	To stop sleeping; to awake.
back up verb		To move backwards, especially for a vehicle to do so.
break down verb		To stop functioning.
check out verb		To record the departure or withdrawal of someone or something (such as guests, employees, books, etc.).
do out verb		To decorate, tidy, or clean (a place).

Sentences worth repeating

Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:

Why are you learning the language?
Are you an auditory learner?
Are you a visual learner?
Are you a kinesthetic learner?
Are you a reading and writing style learner?

Grammar in this video

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

Structure	In the video
Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now	you've abandoned · I've been · I've learned
Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing	one which is · people who can · stage, which is
Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it	be rewarded · is blocked · is only offered

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 108 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, I'm, gotta. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

The “th” sounds: kinesthetic /ˌkɪnɪsˈθɛtɪk/, loathe /ˈloʊð/, empathy /ˈɛmpəθi/, methodology /ˌmɛθ.əˈdɑ.lə.d͡ʒi/
The “sh” and “zh” sounds: patience /ˈpeɪ̯.ʃəns/, flemish /ˈflɛmɪʃ/, massage /məˈsɑ(d)ʒ/, repetition /ˌɹɛp.əˈtɪʃ.ən/, superficial /ˌsupɚˈfɪʃəl/
Long words — get the stress right: accountability /əˌkaʊn.təˈbɪl.ə.ti/, consistency /kənˈsɪs.tən.si/, analogy /əˈnæləd͡ʒi/, acupuncture /ˈæ.kjuˌpʌŋk.t͡ʃɝ/, auditory /ˈɔː.dɪˌtɔɹ.i/

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 learner, accountability, patience.

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 →

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

Key vocabulary in this video

Phrasal verbs you will hear

Sentences worth repeating

Grammar in this video

Pronunciation to watch

How to practise with this video

What is the Shadowing Technique?