Shadowing Practice: The Secret to Starting English Right | Lesson 1 Mastery - Learn English Speaking with Video

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83 sentences
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1
Lesson 1 Pen Pencil Book A What is?
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What's?
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This It is It's What's this?
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It's a pen
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Table Chair Light Wall Floor Room Room,
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ceiling, window, door, clock, box, picture. Is this?
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Yes.
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Is this a pen?
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Yes, it's a pen.
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No, it is not.
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Isn't.
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Is this a pen?
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No, it isn't a pen.
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It's a pencil.
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Is this a pencil?
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No, it isn't a pencil.
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It's a book.
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Long, short, the, contraction. Is the pen short?
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No, the pen isn't short.
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It's long.
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Is the pencil long?
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No, the pencil isn't long.
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It's short.
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Is the room short?
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No, the room isn't short.
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It's long.
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Large, small.
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Is the table small?
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No, the table isn't small.
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It's large.
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Is the box large?
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No, the box isn't large.
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It's small.
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City, town, village.
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Is London a village?
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No, London isn't a village.
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It's a city.
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Is Windsor a city?
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No, Windsor isn't a city.
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It's a town.
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Is Grantchester a town?
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No, Grantchester isn't a town.
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It's a village.
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Or, is the table long or short?
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The table's short.
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Is a city large or small?
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a city's large man woman boy girl what's
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this it's a man it's a woman it's a boy it's a girl
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is this a girl no it isn't a girl
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it's a man is this a man no it isn't a man it's a woman
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Is this a woman?
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No, it isn't a woman.
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It's a boy.
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Is this a boy?
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No, it isn't a boy.
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It's a girl.
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1, 2, 3, 4, 5
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On, under, in Is the pen in the book?
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No, the pen isn't in the book.
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It's under the book.
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Is the pen under the book?
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No, the pen isn't under the book.
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It's on the book.
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Mr. Mrs. Jack Anna Is this Anna Brown?
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No, it isn't Anna Brown.
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It's Mr. Brown.
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Is this Mr. Brown? no it isn't mr brown
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it's mrs brown is this mrs brown no it isn't mrs brown
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it's jack brown is this jack brown no
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it isn't jack brown it's anna brown black white green brown what color
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What color's this pencil?
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This pencil's black, white, etc. 6,
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7, 8, 9, 10 Where?
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Where's the pen?
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The pen's on the book.
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Where's the book?
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The book's on the table.
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Where's the pen?
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The pen's under the table.
80
Where's the picture?
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The picture's on the wall.
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Where's the light?
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The light's on the ceiling.

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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson

This speaking lesson is built on the video “The Secret to Starting English Right”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: pen, brown, pencil, table, boy. This video has 82 sentences and 400 words to shadow. The speech runs for 5:04. The speaker talks slowly, about 79 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. Only 76% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is demanding. 30 of its 82 sentences are questions, so it is good practice for question intonation and short answers.

Key vocabulary in this video

9 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:

WordPronunciationMeaning
pencil noun/ˈpɛnsəl/A writing utensil with a graphite (commonly referred to as lead) shaft, usually blended with clay, clad in wood, and sharpened to a taper.
ceiling noun/ˈsilɪŋ/The overhead closure of a room.
lesson noun/ˈlɛs.ən/A section of learning or teaching into which a wider learning content is divided.
clock noun/klɑk/A chronometer, an instrument that measures time, particularly the time of day.
contraction noun/kənˈtɹækʃ(ə)n/An act of incurring debt; also (generally), an act of acquiring something (generally negative).
jack noun/ˈd͡ʒæk/A name applied to a hypothetical or typical man.
village noun/ˈvɪlɪd͡ʒ/A rural habitation of size between a hamlet and a town.
color noun/ˈkʌl.ə/The spectral composition of visible light.
window noun/ˈwɪndoʊ/An opening, usually covered by one or more panes of clear glass, to allow light and air from outside to enter a building or vehicle.

Pronunciation to watch

The speaker uses 21 contractions and reduced forms, such as isn't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.

How to practise with this video

  1. Listen to the whole video once without speaking and note the words you do not know.
  2. Shadow it sentence by sentence at normal speed, repeating each one until your rhythm matches the speaker.
  3. Record yourself and compare with the original, paying attention to words like pencil, ceiling, lesson.

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.

Shadowing technique: read the full step-by-step guide →