Shadowing Practice: The Alchemist: Follow Your Dream - Learn English Speaking with Video
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25 sentences
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1
Hello there. Do you have a big dream?
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Today, I want to share a story from The Alchemist.
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It's a famous book by Paulo Coelho.
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A young shepherd called Santiago lived in Spain.
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One night, he slept under a tree near an old church.
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And he had a strange dream. Treasure, near the pyramids!
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So he sold his sheep and started his journey.
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But in a busy city, a man stole all his money.
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Santiago cried. He wanted to go home.
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Instead, he found a job in a small glass shop.
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He worked hard for almost a year and saved his money.
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Then he crossed the desert with a long line of camels.
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It was hot, long and dangerous.
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There, he met a wise old man. The alchemist!
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The old man told him, 'Listen to your heart.'
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At last, Santiago saw the pyramids!
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He dug and dug... but there was no treasure.
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Then a robber laughed at him. 'I had a dream too!' he said.
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'There's treasure under a tree, by an old church in Spain!'
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Santiago smiled. He knew that tree!
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He went home, and the treasure was there all the time.
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So, was his long journey a waste of time?
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No! On the way, he learned so much about himself.
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The book says that when you really want something, the whole world helps you.
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So, what's your treasure? Go and find it!
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A2 speaking lesson is built on the video “The Alchemist: Follow Your Dream”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: treasure, Santiago, tree, dream. This video has 25 sentences and 234 words to shadow. The speech runs for 1:54. The speaker talks at a steady 123 words per minute, a comfortable pace for shadowing. 80% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| treasure noun | /ˈtɹɛʒəɹ/ | A collection of valuable things; accumulated wealth; a stock of money, jewels, etc. |
| pyramid noun | /ˈpɪɹ.ə.mɪd/ | An ancient massive construction with a square or rectangular base and four triangular sides meeting in an apex, such as those built as tombs in Egypt or as… |
| steal verb | /stiːl/ | To take illegally, or without the owner's permission, something owned by someone else without intending to return it. |
| desert noun | /ˈdɛz.ɚt/ | A barren area of land or desolate terrain, especially one with little water or vegetation; a wasteland. |
| sheep noun | /ˈʃiːp/ | A woolly ruminant of the genus Ovis. |
| shepherd noun | /ˈʃɛpəɹd/ | A person who tends sheep, especially a grazing flock. |
| camel noun | /ˈkæm(ə)l/ | A mammalian beast of burden, much used in desert areas, of the genus Camelus. |
| alchemist noun | /ˈæl.kə.mɪst/ | One who practices alchemy. |
| robber noun | /ˈɹɑ.bɚ/ | A person who robs. |
| journey noun | /ˈd͡ʒɝni/ | A set amount of travelling, seen as a single unit; a discrete trip, a voyage. |
| 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… |
| smile verb | /ˈsmaɪl/ | To have (a smile) on one's face. |
| strange adjective | /stɹeɪnd͡ʒ/ | Not normal; odd, unusual, surprising, out of the ordinary, often with a negative connotation. |
| cry verb | /kɹaɪ/ | To shed tears; to weep, especially in anger or sadness. |
| wise adjective | /waɪz/ | Showing good judgement or the benefit of experience. |
Pronunciation to watch
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: treasure /ˈtɹɛʒəɹ/, sheep /ˈʃiːp/, shepherd /ˈʃɛpəɹd/
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 treasure, pyramid, steal.
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.