Shadowing Practice: Learning English for Beginners: My top tips - Learn English Speaking with Video

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Hello. My name is Emma; and in today's video, we are going to talk about English for beginners. I will tell you my top tips to help you learn English.
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So, let's get started. My first tip: Learn common words first. So, learn the popular English words. For example, there are 50 verbs or action words that are very common in English. Here is the 50 most common verbs in English — I recommend you learn these verbs first. So, let's go through this list. Think: "What verbs do I know? What verbs are new?" Learn the new verbs. Okay? So, the top 50 most common verbs in English. Number one... Well, so, alphabetical.
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These are alphabetical. There is: "ask", "be", "become", "begin", "call", "can", "come", "could", "do", "feel", "find", "get", "give", "go", "have" — this one is very important — "hear", "help", "keep", "know", "leave", "let", "like" — again, this is also very important — "live", "look", "make", "may", "mean", "might", "move", "need", "play", "put", "run", "say", "see", "seem", "should", "show", "start", "take", "talk", "tell", "think", "try", "turn", "use", "want" — very important one — "will", "work", and "would". So, what should you learn first? I recommend learn verbs; learn action words. These are the most common action words in English. Most English sentences have one of these verbs; they are the most common words or verbs in English. So, that's my first tip: Learn these words. Okay?
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So, tip number two: You don't need perfect grammar. Okay? You can make mistakes — it's okay. Communication is more than grammar. Sometimes people make mistakes, and we can still understand them, so you don't need perfect grammar.
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My third tip: In English, there are twelve different verb tenses in English.
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So, there are about twelve different verb tenses in English. Many students find it difficult to learn the twelve verb tenses. When you start learning English, at the beginning, the three most important tenses are the simple present, the simple past, and the simple future. These three verb tenses are the tenses you should learn first. Okay? So, learn one, two, three. The first three tenses you should learn. Here is the simple present: "On Mondays, I work" — the verb "work" is in the simple present tense. So, "work" is the verb and it is in the simple present tense. So, right now, on Mondays, I work. The second verb tense you should learn is the simple past. The "past" is before. "Yesterday" is the past, "last month" is the past, "2000" is the past. So, before is the past. In English, it's important to be able to talk about the past — we use the simple past tense for this. Here is an example: "Yesterday, I worked." So, the verb is the same. This verb is in the simple present; this verb is in the simple past — it has "ed". So, those are the first two tenses to learn. The third verb tense to learn is the future. "Tomorrow" is the future, "in 50 years" is the future, "next year" is the future. It's important to be able to talk about the future in English. So, here is an example of the simple future: "Tomorrow, I will work." When we talk about the future, we can use the verb "will": "I will work." So, the first three grammar tenses to learn, the first three verb tenses: The simple present — check, the simple past — check, simple future — check. And then you can learn the other verb tenses in English. So first, these three, then the other nine tenses.
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Tip number four: When you start learning English, it's difficult to listen. My recommendation is: Listen for a short amount of time. So, listen for a small amount of time; not a long amount of time. So, a small amount of listening is good. Small. Movies in English are about two hours. If you watch a movie in English, this is not small; this is long. It's difficult to listen to a movie in English for two hours. I recommend: Don't do this. I recommend short listening for maybe ten seconds of English to one minute of English — this is better for you to learn how to listen in English. Let me tell you some more tips on how you can learn English as a beginner.
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Here is tip number five: Start with English that is important for your life.
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The English for your life might be different than the English for my life.
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So, for example, think about your family. What family words do you need?
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Do you need words for children? Maybe for "mother", "father", "sister", "brother". Think about your family, and learn words about family that are meaningful to you. Think about work: What words are important for your work?
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Learn these words first. Think about your life every day: "What do you do every day? Do you brush your teeth?" Probably. "Do you clean your house? Do you...? Do you watch TV?" Think about your life, and learn the vocabulary or the words for your own life for the routines you do. Weather words are very common words. It's good to learn weather words as well. In English, we talk about the weather a lot. I recommend learning weather words, like: "It's cold", "it's hot". These are very important words. So, learn the English that is meaningful Okay. My last tip, number six, is: Practice. Practice English. A little practice every day is important. Ten minutes of English every day will help you a lot in your learning. So, practice makes perfect. Review new words often.
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If you learn a family word on Monday — review or study it again on Tuesday, study it again on Wednesday. To remember a word, you need to see the word many times, so review many times. Test yourself — this is a good way to help you learn new words. When you learn a new word, wait a minute, and then think: to your life.
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"What is the word I just learned?" Test yourself, and that will help you to remember new words.
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Finally, visit www.engvid.com You can practice your English on this website.
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You can learn about vocabulary, you can learn about grammar, about listening, about pronunciation, about writing, or reading. There are many things you can learn about English on this website. Thank you so much for watching. You can also subscribe to my YouTube channel to learn more English. Again, thank you for watching; and until next time, take care.
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Why practice speaking with this video?

Practicing your speaking skills using this video is an excellent way to immerse yourself in practical English. Emma's tips for beginners focus on essential vocabulary and commonly used structures, allowing learners to engage with real-life contexts. By using the shadowing technique, you can enhance your fluency and pronunciation while mimicking Emma's speech patterns and intonation. Repeating phrases aloud will not only help you to become more confident but also make your speaking more natural.

This shadowing app allows you to sync your practice with the video, making it easy to repeat Emma's words immediately after she speaks. Doing so creates a conversational rhythm that is crucial for communication in English. You’ll find that the more you practice, the more comfortable you will become with fundamental English expressions, which are highlighted in the video.

Grammar & Expressions in Context

Emma uses several essential grammatical structures that beginner learners should familiarize themselves with:

  • Simple Present Tense: Expressions like, "I work" convey actions that happen regularly. Understanding how to use the simple present helps you describe daily routines.
  • Simple Past Tense: The phrase "Yesterday, I worked" indicates actions completed in the past, crucial for recounting experiences.
  • Simple Future Tense: Expressions such as "I will work" outline actions expected to occur in the future, allowing you to plan and discuss upcoming events.

By reviewing these key structures, you will not only learn grammar but also acquire the vocabulary relevant to your daily life, making your learning experience practical and applicable.

Common Pronunciation Traps

As you practice, be mindful of some tricky words that may present pronunciation challenges. For instance, the verbs "want" and "will" can often be mispronounced by non-native speakers. Additionally, words like "future" might become problematic if you are not familiar with the “ju” sound in English.

Listening to Emma’s pronunciation during the video can help you pinpoint where to adjust your articulation. Utilizing her insights, consider using a shadow speak approach by repeating phrases exactly as she delivers them. Recording yourself alongside the video and comparing your pronunciation with Emma's can further enhance your learning. Overall, practice diligently, and don’t be discouraged by mistakes; they are part of the learning journey!

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 →