Shadowing Practice: IELTS Speaking: THIS method to develop your answers - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
1
Where do you live?
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London.
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Do you work or study?
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Study.
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Do you prefer studying alone or with others?
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Alone.
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Do you have a favourite pair of shoes?
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No. Do you prefer mornings or evenings?
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Evenings.
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Do you like cooking?
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Yes.
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Do you enjoy travelling?
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No. How often do you exercise?
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Never.
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Instead of giving short answers in the IELTS test, use the RPPF method to expand your answers.
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Here's what you do.
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First, respond.
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Give a short answer.
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This can just be one or two words like yes, no, not really.
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Then think about the past.
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You can use grammar like used to or the past simple.
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Then contrast it with the present and maybe even finish by talking about the future.
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Let's try that again.
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Do you enjoy traveling?
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Not really.
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In my 20s I used to love traveling and exploring new cities as it felt exciting and a bit unpredictable.
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However, these days I value stability much more and I realize that I'm much happier in my daily routine.
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Perhaps in the future I'll get the travel bug again but for now I'm quite content staying put.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This speaking lesson is built on the video “IELTS Speaking: THIS method to develop your answers”. This video has 28 sentences and 190 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:15. The speaker talks at a natural 152 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 85% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English; the rest is worth studying before you start. 9 of its 28 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.
Key vocabulary in this video
14 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| contrast noun | /kənˈt(ʃ)ɹæst/ | The degree of this difference. |
| routine noun | /ɹuˈtin/ | A course of action to be followed regularly; a standard procedure. |
| expand verb | /ɪkˈspænd/ | To change (something) from a smaller form or size to a larger one; to spread out or lay open. |
| explore verb | /ɪkˈsploɹ/ | To examine or investigate something systematically. |
| stability noun | /stəˈbɪlɪti/ | The condition of being stable or in equilibrium, and thus resistant to change. |
| shoe noun | /ˈʃu/ | A protective covering for the foot, with a bottom part composed of thick leather or plastic sole and often a thicker heel, and a softer upper part made of… |
| grammar noun | /ˈɡɹæm.ə(ɹ)/ | A system of rules and principles for the structure of a language, or of languages in general. |
| unpredictable adjective | Unable to be predicted. | |
| excite verb | /ɪkˈsaɪt/ | To stir the emotions of; to cause to feel excitement. |
| prefer verb | [pɹɪˈfɝ] | To be in the habit of choosing something rather than something else; to favor; to like better. |
| exercise noun | /ˈɛk.sə.saɪz/ | Any activity designed to develop or hone a skill or ability. |
| cook verb | /kʊk/ | To prepare food for eating, typically by heating it, combining it with other ingredients, seasoning it, preparing it for serving, etc. |
| favourite adjective | /ˈfeɪv.ɹɪt/ | Most-liked. (In other words, [person]'s favorite [noun] = the [noun] that [person] likes the most.) |
| respond verb | /ɹɪˈspɑnd/ | To say something in return; to answer; to reply. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Do you work or study?
- Do you prefer studying alone or with others?
- Do you have a favourite pair of shoes?
- Do you prefer mornings or evenings?
- How often do you exercise?
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 3 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: contrast /kənˈt(ʃ)ɹæst/, shoe /ˈʃu/
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 contrast, routine, expand.
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.