Shadowing Practice: Surviving 24 hours in a School Bus - Learn English Speaking with Video
Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 808 sentences and 4551 words to shadow. The speech runs for 28:26. The speaker talks at a natural 160 words per minute, close to everyday conversation. 84% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| backpack noun | /ˈbæk.pæk/ | A knapsack, sometimes mounted on a light frame, but always supported by straps, worn on a person’s back for the purpose of carrying things, especially when… |
| meal noun | /ˈmiːl/ | Food that is prepared and eaten, usually at a specific time, and usually in a comparatively large quantity. |
| ruin noun | /ˈɹuː.ɪn/ | The remains of a destroyed or dilapidated construction, such as a house or castle. |
| roller noun | /ˈɹoʊlɚ/ | Any rotating cylindrical device that is part of a machine, especially one used to apply or reduce pressure. |
| skate noun | /skeɪt/ | A runner or blade, usually of steel, with a frame shaped to fit the sole of a shoe, made to be fastened under the foot, and used for gliding on ice. |
| pizza noun | /ˈpi.tsə/ | A baked Italian dish of a thinly rolled bread crust typically topped before baking with tomato sauce, cheese, and other ingredients such as meat or vegetables. |
| gosh | /ɡɑːʃ/ | A mild expression of surprise or enthusiasm. |
| steal verb | /stiːl/ | To take illegally, or without the owner's permission, something owned by someone else without intending to return it. |
| whoa | /woʊ/ | Stop (especially when commanding a horse or imitative thereof); calm down; slow down. |
| spray noun | /spɹeɪ/ | A fine, gentle, dispersed mist of liquid. |
| chef noun | /ʃɛf/ | The presiding cook in the kitchen of a large household. |
| vegetable noun | /ˈvɛd͡ʒ.tə.bəl/ | A plant raised for some edible part of it, such as the leaves, roots, fruit or flowers, but excluding any plant considered to be a fruit, grain, herb, or spice… |
| shoe noun | /ˈʃu/ | A protective covering for the foot, with a bottom part composed of thick leather or plastic sole and often a thicker heel, and a softer upper part made of… |
| garbage noun | /ˈɡɑɹ.bɪd͡ʒ/ | Food waste material of any kind. |
| eliminate verb | /ɪˈlɪm.ɪ.neɪt/ | To completely remove, get rid of, put an end to. |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| get out verb | To leave or escape. | |
| throw out verb | /ˈθɹəʊ ˌaʊt/ | To discard; to dispense with something; to throw away. |
| work together verb | To be coworkers with someone; to share a workspace with someone. | |
| beat out verb | To sound a rhythm on a percussion instrument such as a drum. | |
| call out verb | To specify, especially in detail. | |
| come on in verb | Synonym of come in (“to enter”). | |
| figure out verb | To come to understand; to discover or find a solution; to deduce. | |
| get back verb | Return to where one came from. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 176 contractions and reduced forms, such as I'm, don't, you're. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: gosh /ɡɑːʃ/, chef /ʃɛf/, shoe /ˈʃu/, sabotage /ˈsæb.əˌtɑʒ/, shout /ʃaʊt/
- Long words — get the stress right: eliminate /ɪˈlɪm.ɪ.neɪt/, disadvantage /ˌdɪsədˈvæntɪd͡ʒ/, notification /ˌnoʊtɪfɪˈkeɪʃn̩/, enchilada /ˌɛn.t͡ʃɪˈlɑ.də/, quesadilla /ˌkeɪ̯səˈdijə/
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 backpack, meal, ruin.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Present perfect continuous have/has been + -ing — an action that started earlier and is still going on | has been hanging · has been hiding · has been making |
| Passive voice be + past participle — the focus is on what happens, not who does it | have been eliminated · are subscribed · can't be ruined |
| Present perfect have/has + past participle — a past action that still matters now | have been eliminated · have found · have laid |
| Relative clauses who / which + clause — extra information about a person or thing | pass, which means · bus, which means · dumpling which means |
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.











