Shadowing Practice: Listening Test 1. Part 3: Jess and Tom art project. - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
84 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Part 3.
2
You will hear two students called Jess and Tom discussing their art projects.
3
First, you have some time to look at questions 21 to 24.
4
Now listen carefully and answer questions 21 to 24.
5
How are you getting on with your art project, Tom?
6
OK.
7
Like, they gave us the theme of birds to base our project on, and I'm not really all that interested in wildlife, but I'm starting to get into it.
8
I've pretty well finished the introductory stage.
9
So have I.
10
When they gave us all those handouts with details of books and websites to look at, I was really put off.
11
But the more I read, the more interested I got.
12
Me too.
13
I found I could research so many different aspects of birds in art.
14
Colour, movement, texture.
15
So I was looking forward to the bird park visit.
16
What a letdown.
17
It poured with rain and we hardly saw a single bird.
18
Much less used than the trip to the Natural History Museum.
19
Yeah.
20
I liked all the stuff about evolution there.
21
The workshop sessions with Dr Fletcher were good too, especially the brainstorming sessions.
22
Ah, I missed those because I was ill.
23
I wish we could have seen the projects last year's students did.
24
Hmm, I suppose they want us to do our own thing, not copy.
25
Have you drafted your proposal yet?
26
Yes, but I haven't handed it in.
27
I need to amend some parts.
28
I've realised the notes from my research are almost all just descriptions.
29
I haven't actually evaluated anything, so I'll have to fix that.
30
Oh, I didn't know we had to do that.
31
I'll have to look at that too.
32
Did you do a timeline for the project?
33
Yes, and a mind map.
34
Yeah, so did I.
35
I quite enjoyed that.
36
But it was hard having to explain the basis for my decisions in my action plan.
37
What?
38
You know, give a rationale.
39
I didn't realise we had to do that.
40
OK, I can add it now.
41
And I've done the video diary presentation and worked out what I want my outcome to be in the project.
42
Someone told me it's best not to be too precise about your actual outcome at this stage, so you have more scope to explore your ideas later on.
43
So I'm going to go back to my proposal to make it a bit more vague.
44
Really?
45
OK, I'll change that too then.
46
Before you hear the rest of the discussion, you have some time to look at questions 25 to 30.
47
Now listen and answer questions 25 to 30.
48
One part of the project I'm unsure about is where we choose some paintings of birds
49
and say what they mean to us.
50
Like, I chose a painting of a falcon by Landseer.
51
I like it because the bird's standing there with his head turned to one side, but he seems to be staring straight at you.
52
But I can't just say it's a bit scary, can I?
53
Hmm.
54
You could talk about the possible danger suggested by the bird's look.
55
Oh, OK.
56
There's a picture of a fish hawk by Audubon I like.
57
It's swooping over the water with a fish in its talons
58
and with great black wings which take up most of the picture
59
So you could discuss it in relation to predators and food chains?
60
Well, actually, I think I'll concentrate on the impression of rapid motion it gives Right Do you know
61
that picture of a kingfisher by Van Gogh?
62
It's perching on a reed growing near a stream Yes, it's got these beautiful blue and red and black shades.
63
Mm-hmm.
64
I've actually chosen it because I saw a real kingfisher once when I was little.
65
I was out walking with my grandfather, and I've never forgotten it.
66
Oh, so we can use a personal link?
67
Sure.
68
OK.
69
There's a portrait called William Wells.
70
I can't remember the artist, but it's a middle-aged man who's just shot a bird,
71
and his expression and the way he's holding the bird in his hand suggests he's not sure about what he's done.
72
To me, it's about how ambiguous people are in the way they exploit the natural world.
73
Interesting.
74
There's Gogan's picture via a matty.
75
He did it in Tahiti.
76
It's a woman with a white bird behind her that is eating a lizard.
77
And what I'm interested in is what idea this bird refers to.
78
Apparently it's a reference to the never-ending cycle of existence.
79
Wow!
80
I chose a portrait of a little boy, Giovanni de' Medici.
81
He's holding a tiny bird in one fist.
82
I like the way he's holding it carefully so he doesn't hurt it.
83
Ah, right!
84
Thank you.
Download App
Everything you need to speak fluently
AI PronunciationScore every sentence
IPA PracticeMaster every sound
VocabularyBuild your word bank
Vocab GameLearn while playing
Same Channel
B21
Reading Test 1. Seccion 2: Reducing Injuries on the Farm
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B21
Listening 3. Part 2: Street Play Scheme.
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B22
Reading Test 1 - Seccion 2 Good customer service in retail.
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B15
TEST 1. Part 1: Children´s Engineering Workshops.
KidsTeensDaily Conversation
B22
IELTS 17 Academic: Listening Test 3 - Part 2.
IELTS PrepHigh School StudentsUniversity Students
B1Listening Test 2. Part 1: Copying photos to digital format.
TOEIC PrepBusiness EnglishWorking Adults
B15
TEST 1. Part 2: Ronald Stevenson Company
TOEIC PrepBusiness EnglishHigh School Students
C1Listening Test 3. Part 4: Microplastics
IELTS PrepTOEFL PrepUniversity Students
B1Listening Test 3. Part 1: Junior Cycle Camp.
KidsTeensDaily Conversation
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
B211
27 sentences
CET-6 Listening Long Conversation: Changing a Dissertation Topic
American AccentBritish AccentCET-4/6 PrepDaily ConversationUniversity Students
![[CAM 11] Test 2 Section 3](https://img.youtube.com/vi/HSliUM64x2g/mqdefault.jpg)
B23
91 sentences
[CAM 11] Test 2 Section 3
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B22
44 sentences
Complete Ielts Student's Book bands 5-6.5 (Track 11)
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B21
250 sentences
Cambridge 19 Listening Test 1 With answers | HD 1080p |
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B1322 sentences
Tactics for Listening Third Edition Developing Unit 12 Campus Life
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B11
59 sentences
Bài tập luyện nghe Aptis Listening General Part 1 Test 4 | Aptis Easy
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B22
97 sentences
Empower B2 Unit 4 class video
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B22
92 sentences
CAM17 TEST1 P1
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
B188
52 sentences
B1 English Listening Practice with Test - Leisure Time
TeensDaily ConversationHigh School Students
B16
43 sentences
Stories of school and education – B1 English Listening Test
Cambridge Exam PrepDaily ConversationHigh School Students
B22
157 sentences
UNIT 9 CD2 TRACK 3 COMPLETE FIRST
Cambridge Exam PrepDaily ConversationHigh School Students
C12
80 sentences
Cambridge 13 Test 1 Section 3 Listening
Daily ConversationUniversity Students
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 84 sentences and 788 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:24. The speaker talks at a steady 146 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. Only 80% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| proposal noun | /pɹəˈpoʊzəl/ | A scheme or design. |
| carefully adverb | /ˈkɛɹf(ə)li/ | With care; attentively, circumspectly. |
| outcome noun | /ˈaʊtkʌm/ | That which is produced or occurs as a result of an event or process. |
| realise verb | Non-Oxford British standard spelling of realize. | |
| portrait noun | /ˈpɔɹtɹət/ | A painting or other picture of a person, especially the head and shoulders. |
| refer verb | /ɹɪˈfɜː/ | To direct the attention of (someone toward something). |
| aspect noun | /ˈæspɛkt/ | Any specific feature, part, or element of something. |
| evolution noun | /ˌiːvəˈluːʃ(ə)n/ | A manoeuvre of troops or ships. |
| rapid adjective | /ˈɹæp.ɪd/ | Very swift or quick. |
| scary adjective | /ˈskɛə.ɹi/ | Causing fear or anxiety |
| impression noun | /ɪmˈpɹɛʃn̩/ | The indentation or depression made by the pressure of one object on or into another. |
| wildlife noun | /ˈwaɪldlaɪf/ | undomesticated animals, especially mammals, birds, and fish, which live in the wild. |
| explore verb | /ɪkˈsploɹ/ | To examine or investigate something systematically. |
| presentation noun | /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/ | The act of presenting, or something presented. |
| relation noun | /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/ | The manner in which two things may be associated. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get on with verb | To proceed with; to begin or continue, especially after an interruption. | |
| go back to verb | To stem from; to originate in. | |
| look forward to verb | To anticipate, expect, or wait for, especially with a feeling of approval or pleasure; to be excited or eager to. | |
| put off verb | To postpone, especially through procrastination. | |
| take up verb | To pick up. | |
| work out verb | /ˌwɝk ˈaʊt/ | To calculate. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 21 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, I've, I'll. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: evolution /ˌiːvəˈluːʃ(ə)n/, impression /ɪmˈpɹɛʃn̩/, presentation /ˌpɹɛzn̩ˈteɪʃn̩/, relation /ɹɪˈleɪʃ(ə)n/, shade /ʃeɪd/
- Long words — get the stress right: evolution /ˌiːvəˈluːʃ(ə)n/, ambiguous /æmˈbɪɡ.ju.əs/, introductory /ˌɪntɹəˈdʌktəɹi/
How to practise with this video
- Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
- Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
- Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like proposal, carefully, outcome.
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.