Shadowing Practice: Simple Stories in English: The Elephant and the Mouse - Learn English Speaking with Video
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Hello and welcome to this very first episode of of simple stories in English.
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What do people do in the park?
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They run and walk and maybe even dance.
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Yeah.
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What? does an elephant do in the park?
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Well, He writes poetry and makes friends with a mouse, of course.
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I hope you enjoy.
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the elephant and the mouse.
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An elephant sits in the park.
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He sits on a bench.
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The elephant's name is Ed.
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"Ed the elephant.
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is big and grey.
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Ed the elephant sits on a bench in the park.
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He does not run.
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He does not walk.
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He does not dance.
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Ed the elephant sits and listens to music.
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and looks at people.
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Other people run.
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and walk, And dance.
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Ed does not.
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He sits on a bench. and observes.
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Ed has an idea He sees...
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A paper.
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Ed writes a poem on the paper Ed listens to music and...
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and observes people, and writes a poem.
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When he is done, Ed reads the poem.
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It is a good poem.
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Peace.
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It is not a bad poem.
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In the park, there is a mouse.
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The mouse walks in the park.
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The mouse is small and gray.
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The mouse sees Ed the elephant.
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The mouse is curious.
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and walks towards the elephant.
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The mouse touches me.
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Ed's foot.
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Thank you.
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Ed sees the mouse and screams,
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"Ahhh !" Ed, the elephant, runs.
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He runs towards the people in the park.
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He runs towards the people that are running and walking and dancing.
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Stop!
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The mouse says: Please don't run away.
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I am not bad.
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I am good.
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Thank you.
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Bye!
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Just want...
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A friend.
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Ed the elephant stops and looks at the mouse.
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The mouse is small.
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He is not bad.
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Ed walks back to the mouse and sits on the bench.
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Hello, mouse.
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My name is Ed.
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What's your name?
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He says: My name is Felix.
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The mouse says.
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Nice to meet you, Felix.
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Ed the elephant says, "Nice to meet you too, Ed !" Felix the Mouse says.
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Felix sees that Ed has a paper.
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Felix is curious.
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He looks at Ed's paper.
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He sees that there is a poem on the paper.
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Felix reads the poem and exclaims, Your poem is magnificent!
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Thank you.
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Ed says, You are a good mouse.
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You are a good friend.
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The end.
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You can find a transcript of today's story, as well as other stories and learning and teaching aids on my website, smalltownspanishteacher .com.
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This story was an original work by Camilla Given.
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Any resemblance to stories by other authors is purely coincidental, unless otherwise noted.
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If you have an idea for a story or a story you would like read, feel free to email me at smalltownspanachteacher @gmail .com.
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Don't forget to subscribe so you can be notified of future episodes of Simple Stories in English.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Simple Stories in English: The Elephant and the Mouse”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: mouse, elephant, poem, park, Felix. This video has 78 sentences and 480 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:44. The speaker talks slowly, about 84 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 77% 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
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| mouse noun | /maʊs/ | Any mammal of the many rodent families (especially Muridae) that have a small body and a long tail. |
| elephant noun | /ˈɛlɪfənt/ | A large mammal of the family Elephantidae in the order Proboscidea, having a trunk, and native to Africa and Asia. |
| poem noun | /ˈpoʊ.əm/ | A literary piece written in verse. |
| bench noun | /ˈbɛnt͡ʃ/ | A long seat with or without a back, found for example in parks and schools. |
| curious adjective | /ˈkjʊɹ.i.əs/ | Tending to ask questions, or to want to explore or investigate; inquisitive; (with a negative connotation) nosy, prying. |
| observe verb | /əbˈzɜːv/ | To notice or view, especially carefully or with attention to detail. |
| grey adjective | /ɡɹeɪ/ | Commonwealth standard spelling of gray. |
| gray adjective | /ɡɹeɪ/ | Of a color between black and white, having neutral hue and intermediate brightness. |
| poetry noun | /ˈpoʊ.ə.tɹi/ | Literature composed in verse or language exhibiting conscious attention to patterns and rhythm. |
| scream verb | /skɹiːm/ | To cry out with a shrill voice; to utter a sudden, sharp outcry, or shrill, loud cry, as in fright or extreme pain; to screech, to shriek. |
| purely adverb | /ˈpjʊɹli/ | Wholly; really, completely. |
| magnificent adjective | /mæɡˈnɪfəsənt/ | Grand, elegant or splendid in appearance. |
| subscribe verb | /səbˈskɹaɪb/ | To write (one’s name) at the bottom of a document; to sign (one's name). |
| notify verb | /ˈnoʊtɪfaɪ/ | To give (someone) notice (of some event). |
| transcript noun | /ˈtɹæn.skɹɪpt/ | Something which has been transcribed; a writing or composition consisting of the same words as the original; a written copy. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| run away verb | To flee by running. |
Pronunciation to watch
- Long words — get the stress right: magnificent /mæɡˈnɪfəsənt/, coincidental /ˈkəʊ.ɪn.sɪˌdɛn.tl̩/
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 mouse, elephant, poem.
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.