Shadowing Practice: Michael Scott Celebrates Diversity Day (Clip) | The Office | TBS - Learn English Speaking with Video
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1
You know what?
2
This is a color -free zone here.
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Stanley, I don't look at you as another race.
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Uh, see, this is what I'm talking about.
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We don't have to pretend that we're colorblind.
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Exactly.
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That's fighting ignorance with more ignorance.
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We're not colorblind.
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No, with more ignorance.
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Right, exactly.
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Instead, we need to celebrate our diversity.
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Let's celebrate.
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Right.
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Okay.
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Celebrate good times.
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Come on!
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Let's celebrate diversity, right?
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Yes, exactly.
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Now, here's what we're going to do.
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Uh, I've noticed that, uh...
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You know what?
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Here's what we're gonna do.
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Why don't we go around and everybody, everybody, say a race that you are attracted to sexually.
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I will go last.
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Go!
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I have two.
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Nice.
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White and Indian.
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Actually, I'd prefer not to start that way.
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Michael, uh, I would love to have your permission to run this session.
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Can I have your permission?
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Yes.
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Thank you very much.
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And it would also help me if you were seated.
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Okay.
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Thank you.
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Okay.
38
Now, at the start of the session, I'll had you write down an incident that you found offensive in the workplace.
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Now, what I'm going to do is choose one, and we're going to act it out.
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Okay, a few other ground rules, just real quick.
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Hey, why don't you run it by me, and I'll run it by him.
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Okay, can we steer away from gay people?
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I'm sorry, it's an orientation, it's not a race.
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Plus, a lot of other races are also intolerant of gays, so paradox.
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Well, we only have an hour.
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Okay, why don't we just defer to...
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No case.
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To Mr. Um...
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Mr. Brown.
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Ah.
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Oh, all right.
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Okay.
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First test.
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I will not call you that.
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Well, it's my name.
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It's not a test.
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Okay?
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Um, so, looking through the cards, I've noticed that many of you wrote down the same incident, which is ironic, because it's the exact incident I was brought in here to respond to.
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Now, how many of you are familiar with the Chris Rock routine?
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Hmm.
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Very good.
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Okay.
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How come Chris Rock can do a routine and everybody finds it hilarious and groundbreaking, and then I go and do the exact same routine,
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same comedic timing, and people file a complaint to corporate?
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Is it because I'm white and Chris is black?
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So we're going to reenact this with a more positive outcome.
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I will play the Chris Rock guy.
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I would like to see someone else pull this off.
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Well, let's have someone who wasn't involved do the reenactment.
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Okay, I will play Guy Listening.
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Great, Guy Listening.
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Okay, anyone else remember?
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I remember.
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Great.
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You're the Chris Rock guy, and you're Guy Listening.
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Okay.
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Kevin is a great guy.
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He's a great accountant.
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He is not much of an entertainer.
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Basically, there are two types of black people, and black people are actually more racist because they hate the other type of black people.
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See, every time the one type wants to have a good time, then the other type comes in and makes a real mess for them.
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Okay, I'm sorry.
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I'm sorry.
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He's ruined.
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He's butchering it.
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Could you just let me...
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Every time, every time black people want to have a good time,
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some England ass I take care of my kids always want credit for something they're supposed to do!
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Stop it!
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What you want, a cookie?
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This B2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Michael Scott Celebrates Diversity Day”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: Chris, celebrate, Rock, race, type. This video has 90 sentences and 573 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:20. The speaker talks at a natural 172 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.
Key vocabulary in this video
The 15 most advanced words in the video, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| ignorance noun | /ˈɪɡ.nɚ.əns/ | The condition of being uninformed or uneducated; lack of knowledge or information. |
| comedic adjective | /kəˈmiː.dɪk/ | Relating to comedy. |
| entertainer noun | /ˌɛntɚˈteɪnɚ/ | A person who entertains others, esp. as a profession, as a singer, actor, presenter, dancer, musician, magician, comedian, etc. |
| groundbreaking adjective | /ˈɡɹaʊndˌbɹeɪkɪŋ/ | Innovative; new, different; doing something that has never been done before. |
| intolerant adjective | /ɪnˈtɑləɹənt/ | Unable or indisposed to tolerate, endure or bear. |
| reenact verb | /ɹi.ɪˈnækt/ | To enact again. |
| reenactment noun | The process of enacting again. | |
| paradox noun | /ˈpæ.ɹəˌdɒks/ | An apparently self-contradictory statement, which can only be true if it is false, and vice versa. |
| steer verb | /stɪɹ/ | To guide the course of a vessel, vehicle, aircraft etc. (by means of a device such as a rudder, paddle, or steering wheel). |
| butcher noun | /ˈbʊt͡ʃə/ | A person who prepares and sells meat (and sometimes also slaughters the animals). |
| accountant noun | /əˈkaʊn.tənt/ | One who renders account; one accountable. |
| ironic adjective | /aɪˈɹɑ.nɪk/ | Characterized by or constituting (any kind of) irony. |
| workplace noun | /ˈwɝkˌpleɪs/ | The place where someone works. |
| orientation noun | /ˌɔː.ɹi.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/ | The determination of the relative position of something or someone. |
| cookie noun | /ˈkʊki/ | A small, flat, baked good which is either crisp or soft but firm. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| write down verb | To produce or set (something) down in writing; to record something. |
| go around verb | To move or spread from person to person. |
| look through verb | To take a view of the contents of; search in, either with the eyes or by hand. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Stanley, I don't look at you as another race.
- We don't have to pretend that we're colorblind.
- Here's what we're gonna do.
- Can I have your permission?
- What you want, a cookie?
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | are attracted · were seated · was brought |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | I've noticed |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | incident, which is · someone who wasn |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 27 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, we're, don't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- Long words — get the stress right: entertainer /ˌɛntɚˈteɪnɚ/, intolerant /ɪnˈtɑləɹənt/, orientation /ˌɔː.ɹi.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/
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 ignorance, comedic, entertainer.
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.