Shadowing Practice: Kids Can Be Role Models | Jack Bonneau | TEDxBoulder - Learn English Speaking with YouTube
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I am not a role model.
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I am not a role model.
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I'm not paid to be a role model.
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I get paid to wreak havoc on the court.
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Parents should be role models.
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Just because I can dunk a basketball doesn't mean I should raise your kids.
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These are the famous words from the 1993 Nike commercial with NBA Hall of Famer
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and NBA analyst Charles Barkley from 25 years ago.
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Webster's dictionary defines role model as a person whose behavior in a particular role is imitated by others.
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Parents are role models, certainly minor for me, but who can kids look to outside of their parents, teachers and mentors to inspire us,
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to provide a direction to achieve the heights that we hope to?
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Our society has been focused around entertainment, media, sports and political figures as role models.
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stars like LeBron James and Steph Curry are looked up to by millions,
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and icons like Lance Armstrong and Tiger Woods have disappointed millions with professional and personal problems.
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Entertainment stars like Ellen and Oprah aspire to our better selves versus the Harvey Weinsteins and the Bill Cosbys,
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who are examples of those who were once held in high esteem, only to find out some terrible truths.
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Superheroes, you should just be white guys like Spider-Man and Iron Man.
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But now we have Black Panther and Wonder Woman, and it's great that minorities and women are finally being represented in these superhero roles,
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but they are just fictional characters.
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The Kardashians have a huge social media following, over 100 million, and are looked up to by many.
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But their biggest accomplishment is being famous.
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Is this something that a kid like me should aspire to?
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Or should we look to someone, a role model, who is more inspiring, more relatable, that us kids can see ourselves in them?
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I believe that kids can be their own best role models.
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Kids who have no fear to start something that they're interested in or passionate about.
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Kids who have been on amazing experiences and journeys and are examples to all of us.
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Kids like Michaela Ulmer, who when she was four, was stung by a bee twice.
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So she learned about the bees and saw the challenges that they were facing.
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So she took her 1940 Granny Helen's flaxseed lemonade recipe and sweetened it with local honey.
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She went from a simple lemonade stand, and now she's 13, has four different types of lemonade, and has them in hundreds of Whole Foods across the country,
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and donates a percentage of her profits to international organizations working to save the bees.
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Or Australian Jade Hammeister, who by age 16 was the youngest girl
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and the first girl to ski the North Pole and the South Pole and across the largest polar ice cap in Greenland.
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Or Mosiah Bridges, who I know personally.
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Mo wanted to wear bow ties, but didn't like any of the bow ties that he saw.
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So he asked his grandmother how to sew them.
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Started his own business, got on Shark Tank, didn't get a deal, but kept at it and now has a multi-million dollar deal with the NBA.
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Yeah.
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Or the Parkland teenagers like Emma Gonzalez, David Hogg, and others.
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Or Malala, who won the Nobel Priest Prize.
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And all of these kids were teenagers when they achieved these great peaks.
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I could go on, but these are just a few of the examples of kids
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whose lives can serve as role models for other kids and adults to aspire to in their own lives.
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These kids can be great role models for other kids, because they show what is possible as a kid.
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But how does a kid go from being just a normal kid to aspire to their own path, journey and experiences, just like a few of the kids that I just mentioned?
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For me, I would say, just go do it.
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My story started five summers ago when I wanted the Lego Star Wars Death Star.
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I asked my parents if I could get it.
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They said I could, but I would have to pay for it.
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I was eight years old and it cost $400.
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I was like, well, how am I going to make that much money?
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I'm eight years old.
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I couldn't get a paper route, and a lemonade stand at the end of my street would take forever.
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So my dad suggested that I put my own lemonade stand at my local farmer's market.
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I had my parents and farmer's market manager encourage me to treat this like a real business, with proper permits and licenses.
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After one year, I sold $2,000 worth of lemonade, and after expenses, made $900 in profit, and yes, I got my Lego Death Star.
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I had such a great experience that I wanted to share this with other kids, so I created my own business where kids
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and their families could sign up at a website to sign up for a date
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and a time and a location to operate my stands.
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I was getting so many customers that I also reached out to other young entrepreneurs to sell their products at my stands.
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In both cases, I just did it.
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Mo didn't give up on finding the type of bow tie that he liked.
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With the help of his grandmother and his mom, he started designing and making the bow ties that he liked.
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He just went ahead and did it.
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Michaela didn't let you be seen and stop her.
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With the support of her parents, She's a successful social entrepreneur, the ambassador, educator, and student.
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She just did it.
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Jade, when she was 12, made the trek to Everest Base Camp and was inspired by two women she met there to go on her own quest, Jade's Polar Quest.
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These kids had no expectation of being role models to us in the world.
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They just had the courage to just go do it and to just figure it out with the support of their parents, school, and mentor along the way.
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It was a simple effort of having interest, a passion, the needed cause or solving a problem, and the courage to just go do it.
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There are so many kids that we can look to, to see ourselves in their shoes, their journey to inspire us to embark on our own journey, our own path.
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We can see ourselves in them because they are just like us.
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They are us.
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I am inspired by Michaela, Mo, Jade, Emma, and David, and I see myself in them.
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If they can do it, then maybe we can do it, Whatever our it is.
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Thank you.
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Context & Background
The TEDx talk titled "Kids Can Be Role Models," delivered by Jack Bonneau, challenges the traditional notion of role models in society. Bonneau emphasizes that while parents and teachers are primary figures, kids themselves can also act as role models through their unique achievements and aspirations. He references well-known figures from sports and media, contrasting them with young achievers like Michaela Ulmer and Mosiah Bridges, who have made significant impacts at a young age. Bonneau's insights inspire children to pursue their passions and realize their potential, making them relatable role models for their peers.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- "Kids can be their own best role models." - This phrase encourages self-efficacy among children.
- "I get paid to wreak havoc on the court." - A humorous way to dismiss the pressure of being a role model.
- "I asked my parents if I could get it." - A simple expression of desire and initiative.
- "How does a kid go from being just a normal kid to aspire?" - Reflects on the journey from normalcy to achievement.
- "Just go do it." - A motivational phrase promoting action and determination.
Step-by-step Shadowing Guide
Shadowing is a proven method to enhance your English speaking practice, improve your pronunciation, and gain fluency. Here’s a step-by-step guide to tackle the challenges presented in this TEDx talk:
- Step 1: Watch the Video - First, watch the video in its entirety. Focus on understanding the main ideas and context.
- Step 2: Select Specific Sections - Choose segments that resonate with you or contain phrases you wish to practice. Bonneau's talk is rich with expressions relevant to motivation and self-empowerment.
- Step 3: Listen and Imitate - Play the selected sections and listen closely to Tonal variations and pronunciation. Try to imitate Bonneau’s tone and speech pattern.
- Step 4: Repeat Aloud - Pause after each sentence and repeat it aloud. This will not only improve your English pronunciation but also your confidence in speaking.
- Step 5: Record Yourself - Use your device to record your shadowing session. Listening to yourself will help identify areas for improvement.
- Step 6: Reflect and Refine - Compare your recordings to the original talk, noting areas where you can enhance your delivery. This process is vital for effective IELTS speaking practice.
- Step 7: Engage in Discussions - After practicing, discuss the themes of the talk with peers or online discussion groups to cement your learning and improve your conversational skills.
By utilizing this structured approach, you can leverage this engaging content to learn English with YouTube, enhancing both your language skills and your ability to engage with motivational themes!
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.
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