Shadowing Practice: Speaking Challenge: A Family Holiday I Remember - Learn English Speaking with Video
Choose a practice mode
Each mode opens a full-screen practice room.
16 sentences
If sentences are too short or too long, click Edit to adjust them.
1
Hello, everyone! Today I want to share a special memory.
2
It's about a family holiday from when I was ten.
3
One summer, my parents drove us to Scotland.
4
The journey took nine hours, and I was so bored!
5
Ha! I asked my dad every ten minutes if we were there yet.
6
We stayed in a small tent near a lake.
7
Oh... on the first night, it rained and rained.
8
Water came into the tent, and we were freezing.
9
But my mum just laughed and made hot chocolate for everyone.
10
The next morning, the sun came out.
11
And then we saw three deer right next to the lake!
12
Wow, I couldn't believe my eyes!
13
We didn't move. We just watched them quietly.
14
That holiday wasn't perfect, but I still love it.
15
I prefer camping to big hotels because of trips like that.
16
What's your favourite family holiday? Please tell me!
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
A12,019
A Day in My Life 1: Getting Up
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A1708
Fast and Slow: The Big Race
American AccentBritish AccentKidsDaily Conversation
B11,479
Discipline Beats Motivation
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A12,028
Can You Swim? What Can You Do?
American AccentBritish AccentKidsDaily Conversation
A2443
A Day in My Life 19: Cleaning the House
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A185
A Day in My Life 24: Watching TV
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B2417
IELTS Speaking Part 2: Describe a Quiet Place You Like to Go
American AccentBritish AccentIELTS PrepUniversity Students
A21,551
What's in Your School Bag?
American AccentBritish AccentKidsTeensDaily Conversation
A2371
A Day in My Life 9: Doing the Dishes
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A1436
A Day in My Life 5: Leaving the House
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B2399
Why a Song Gets Stuck in Your Head
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B1156
First Day Nerves at the Café
American AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
A1129
Hide and Seek in Maple Wood
American AccentBritish AccentKidsDaily Conversation
A255
A Day in My Life 21: Taking a Taxi
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B1782
IELTS Speaking Part 1: Food, Shopping and the Weather
American AccentBritish AccentIELTS PrepDaily ConversationUniversity Students
A1146
A Day in My Life 2: Brushing My Teeth and Taking a Shower
American AccentDaily ConversationUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B297
SEtalk: Sleep Is Not a Waste of Time
American AccentIELTS PrepUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
A1458
Lunch Break: What Do You Want to Eat?
American AccentDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B2158
SEtalk: Procrastination Isn't About Laziness
American AccentIELTS PrepUniversity StudentsWorking Adults
B1623
Calling In Sick: I Can't Come to Work Today
American AccentBusiness EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
FOR YOU
Recommend Video
A2124
16 sentences
Speaking Challenge: My Hometown
British AccentIELTS PrepDaily ConversationWorking Adults
B1185
10 sentences
Day 13 - Celebrations & Family Events | 21days speaking challenge
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A225
7 sentences
Visiting My Grandparents | English Speaking Practice #englishspeaking #englishlearning #easyenglish
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A234
50 sentences
A1/A2 Beginner English Listening Practice - Travel
British AccentTravel EnglishDaily ConversationWorking Adults
A21
30 sentences
Interchange 1- Unit 5 : A family picnic
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A22
8 sentences
English Shadowing: Talking About Family!
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A251
42 sentences
A day at the beach | Learn English Through Story | Slow English Listening Practice For Beginners
KidsDaily Conversation
A21
281 sentences
Day 27: How to Talk About The Past | 30-Day English Speaking Challenge | Shadowing Practice
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A22
575 sentences
Daily Routines English Conversations for English Speaking Practice | English Story for Shadowing
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
A22,718
9 sentences
Day 1 - Hobbies & Free Time | 21days speaking challenge
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
B18
5 sentences
What is your happiest childhood memory? #greenyenglish #fyp
Daily ConversationWorking Adults
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A2 speaking lesson is built on the video “Speaking Challenge: A Family Holiday I Remember”. This video has 16 sentences and 149 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:11. The speaker talks at a steady 126 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| tent noun | /tɛnt/ | A pavilion or portable lodge consisting of skins, canvas, or some strong cloth, stretched and sustained by poles, used for sheltering people from the weather. |
| quietly adverb | /ˈkwaɪ.ɪt.li/ | Producing little or no noise. |
| deer noun | /dɪɹ/ | A ruminant mammal with hooves and often antlers, of the family Cervidae, or one of several similar animals from related families of the order Artiodactyla… |
| freeze verb | /ˈfɹiːz/ | Especially of a liquid, to become solid due to low temperature. |
| bore verb | /boɹ/ | To inspire boredom in somebody. |
| holiday noun | /ˈhɑləˌdeɪ/ | A day on which a religious event or secular celebration is traditionally observed. |
| laugh verb | /læf/ | To show mirth, satisfaction, or derision, by peculiar movement of the muscles of the face, particularly of the mouth, causing a lighting up of the face and… |
| journey noun | /ˈd͡ʒɝni/ | A set amount of travelling, seen as a single unit; a discrete trip, a voyage. |
| favourite adjective | /ˈfeɪv.ɹɪt/ | Most-liked. (In other words, [person]'s favorite [noun] = the [noun] that [person] likes the most.) |
| prefer verb | [pɹɪˈfɝ] | To be in the habit of choosing something rather than something else; to favor; to like better. |
| chocolate noun | /ˈtʃɔk.(ə.)lɪt/ | A food made from ground roasted cocoa beans. |
| lake noun | /leɪk/ | A large, landlocked stretch of water or similar liquid. |
| rain noun | /ˈɹeɪn/ | Condensed water falling from a cloud. |
| hotel noun | /həʊˈtɛl/ | An establishment that provides accommodation and other services for paying guests; normally larger than a guesthouse, and often one of a chain. |
| trip noun | /tɹɪp/ | A journey; an excursion or jaunt. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| come out verb | /ˌkʌm ˈaʊt/ | To be discovered; to be revealed. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- Wow, I couldn't believe my eyes!
- That holiday wasn't perfect, but I still love it.
- What's your favourite family holiday?
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 3 contractions and reduced forms, such as couldn't, didn't, wasn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
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 tent, quietly, deer.
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.