Shadowing Practice: Simple Stories in English: Who am I - Learn English Speaking with YouTube

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Hello and welcome to season two of Simple Stories in English.
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Hello and welcome to season two of Simple Stories in English.
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In this season, I will be telling you more about myself to help you be able to talk more about yourself.
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In this first episode, I will answer the question, Who am I? Who am I?
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My name is Camilla Given,
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and I am a Spanish teacher in a small town.
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I am a woman.
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I am 42 years old.
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I don't think I'm old,
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but I don't think I'm young either.
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My birthday is March 22nd.
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I live in the state of Colorado in the United States.
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I live in Colorado, but I am not from Colorado.
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I'm from the state of Minnesota.
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My parents and some siblings live in Minnesota.
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I like to visit Minnesota,
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but I prefer living in Colorado.
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I have a lot of friends in Colorado,
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and I like the mountains here.
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I live in a small town in western Colorado.
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I like living in a small town.
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I don't like living in a big city.
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I like visiting cities, but I don't want to live in a city.
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I prefer small towns because they are quiet.
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I also prefer small towns because I know a lot of people.
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When I go to a restaurant,
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store, or the post office,
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I see friends or past students.
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I am a high school teacher and a college professor in a small town.
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There are around 500 students total in the high school.
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So it is not a super small school,
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but it is not a big school.
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I like being a teacher in a small school.
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I don't like big schools because it is difficult to have good relationships with all the students and other teachers.
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I prefer small schools because I recognize practically all the students.
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I also have the opportunity to teach my students for more than one year.
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I have had some students for four years.
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My students call me profe.
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I have taught Spanish for 22 years.
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In that time, I have taught Spanish 1,
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2, 3, and 4, Spanish for Spanish speakers,
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and college classes of conversation, grammar, and composition.
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In addition to Spanish, I have taught theater,
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physical education, and newcomer English.
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I originally wanted to be a math teacher.
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I like math.
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But when I had the opportunity to teach math, I didn't like it.
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Math was easy for me and I didn't know how to teach it.
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So I decided to teach something that I had to learn,
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something that wasn't easy for me.
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I decided to teach Spanish.
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I am a Spanish teacher,
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but I am also a Spanish student.
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I am not a native speaker of Spanish.
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I began to study the Spanish language in school when I was 14.
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I studied for four years in high school and for four years in college.
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During college, I spent a semester in Spain at the University of Pamplona.
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In my education, I learned from teachers and professors from the United States,
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Puerto Rico, Mexico, Spain, Chile,
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Costa Rica, Peru, and Paraguay.
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I have degrees in Spanish education and theater arts from Concordia College in Moorhead,
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Minnesota, and I have my master's in Spanish education from the University of Nebraska at Kearney.
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I keep studying Spanish.
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I read in Spanish.
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I watch programs like movies and Spanish soap operas in Spanish.
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I listen to podcasts in Spanish.
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I practice Spanish with friends.
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I listen to Latin music.
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I like Spanish a lot.
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I like the language and I like the culture.
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Spanish is a part of who I am.
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In addition to being a teacher and student, I am an author.
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I like to write stories.
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I write stories for my classes and for my podcasts.
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I think that it is good to learn a language with stories.
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I publish my stories on my blog, smalltownspanishteacher.com and on Amazon.
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I have six books in Spanish,
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five in English, three in German, and one in French.
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My first published book is called La Tutora de Español,
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or The Spanish Tutor.
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It is a little advanced.
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I have a series of more basic books called I Am Jake,
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Jake Celebrates, Jake Explores, and Jake Travels.
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For the Jake books, I am an author and illustrator.
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My illustrations are very basic because I am not an artist.
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I do not have a talent for drawing.
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Sometimes I am an actress.
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I like acting a lot.
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My university degree is for Spanish education and theater arts.
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I took a lot of theater classes in college.
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I especially like improvisation.
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I use my acting abilities in my class and in recording my stories.
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I am very animated and expressive,
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and I act out my stories for my students.
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I am a singer.
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I love singing.
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I sing a lot of songs.
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In the past, I sang in drama productions.
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Now, I mainly sing in church on Sundays.
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But sometimes I go to karaoke and sing with my friends.
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I sing with the radio in the car.
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I sing to my sons,
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although they don't like it.
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I sing in the shower when I wash my hair.
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I sing when I walk in the mountains.
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I am religious.
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I like singing to God in church on Sundays.
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I believe in God and I know that he loves me.
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I read the Bible.
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I think about God a lot when I am with my family and when I am nature.
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I am an explorer.
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I like exploring nature.
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Being outside is very important to me.
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I walk a lot in the mountains.
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I walk for miles and miles to see alpine lakes,
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waterfalls, flowers, and animals.
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In addition to walking, I ski.
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I cross-country ski because I like the exercise of Nordic skiing.
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Sometimes exploring is difficult.
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Some roads are very long and complicated.
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In the summer, there are mosquitoes and it is hot.
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In the winter, it is very cold where I ski.
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I prefer being where there are not many people because I like the calm.
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I use my time in nature to relax,
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reflect, and disconnect from the stress of the world.
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I like exploring with friends,
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but I also like to explore alone.
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I am a traveler.
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I like to visit other states and other countries.
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When it is not possible to travel,
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I watch travel programs on TV.
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I like to travel because I like to learn about other cultures,
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and I believe that it is important to get to know the world.
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I am a sister and a friend.
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I have incredible sisters and friends and I want to be a good friend to them.
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I want to support them.
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I celebrate their successes or good moments.
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I listen to their problems.
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When they need or want help, I help.
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When they need love, I hug them.
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When they need company, I visit them.
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When they need an adventure, I explore with them.
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Of all my roles, my most important role is mother.
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I have two sons that I adore.
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My older son is 13.
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He and I talk for hours and play a lot with Lego.
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We build vehicles and houses.
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We make replicas of famous places.
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My younger son is 10.
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He and I are very similar.
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He is dramatic like me and he likes writing stories.
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He is famous on my podcast for saying the end at the end of each episode.
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I want to be a good mom for my kids.
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I prepare their food, although I am not a chef.
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I don't like cooking.
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I help them with their schoolwork.
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I listen to their trombone practices.
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I read to them.
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I give them a lot of hugs and kisses.
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I love my life and I love who I am.
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Who are you?
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The end.
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Thank you for listening to my story.
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You can find today's transcript by clicking on the link to my blog in the show notes.
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This podcast is produced by donations from my listeners.
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You can donate to Small Town Spanish Teacher through Buy Me a Coffee, Venmo, or PayPal.
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There is a link in the show notes.
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Don't forget to subscribe to the podcast.
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And remember, you can find me on YouTube,
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Instagram, Facebook, and my blog, Small Town Spanish Teacher.
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See you soon!
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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,
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feel free to email me at smalltownspanishteacher at 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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About This Lesson

In this lesson, learners will engage with a personal storytelling approach to improve their ability to talk about themselves. The episode titled "Who am I" features Camilla Given, an experienced teacher who shares insights into her life and background, making it easier for learners to relate and practice their own self-introductions. By following along, you will enhance your speaking skills, gain confidence in articulating personal information, and learn how to structure your own narratives in English. Additionally, this practice supports your IELTS speaking preparation by providing a framework for your responses.

Key Vocabulary & Phrases

  • Who am I? - A question used for self-introduction.
  • Small town - A rural community that is less populated than a city.
  • Prefer - To like one thing more than another.
  • Birthday - The anniversary of the day someone was born.
  • Teacher - A professional who educates others.
  • Relationships - Connections with people, often defined by familiarity and trust.
  • Students - Individuals who are learning from a teacher.
  • Opportunity - A favorable chance to do something.

Practice Tips

For effective practice, use shadowing techniques while watching this video on a shadowing site or on YouTube. Start by listening to a short segment of Camilla's narration, then pause the video and repeat what she says out loud, mimicking her speed and tone. This technique, known as shadow speech, will not only help with pronunciation but also with intonation and rhythm. Given the relaxed pacing of the speaker, learners can follow along comfortably while replicating sentences during their IELTS speaking practice. Focus on phrases like "I prefer living in a small town" or "I have taught Spanish for 22 years" to build your own responses. Remember to incorporate emotion into your speech, as Camilla’s storytelling reflects her feelings about her preferences and experiences. Using this method consistently will enhance your fluency and help you learn English with YouTube effectively.

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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