Shadowing Practice: The Shoemaker and the Elves | Classic Tales Level 1 - Learn English Speaking with Video
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95 sentences
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1
Who's this?
2
It's the shoemaker.
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The old shoemaker. And here's his shop.
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The old shoe shop.
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It isn't a very good shop.
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It doesn't make much money.
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One last pair of shoes, says the old shoemaker.
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That's all I can make.
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It's late, says his wife.
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Make them in the morning.
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In the morning, they come down.
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There's something on the table.
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It's the shoes.
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Look!
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cries the shoemaker.
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Magic!
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He puts the shoes in the window.
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A lady sees them.
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Ah, shoemaker, says the lady.
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What beautiful shoes.
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I must buy them.
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Here are three gold coins.
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Three gold coins, says the shoemaker.
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I can make more shoes now.
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Two more pairs.
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He goes out and he buys some more leather.
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I have some money, he says.
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Look, three gold coins.
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Two more pairs of shoes, says the shoemaker.
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I can make two more pears now.
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It's late, says his wife.
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Make them in the morning.
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In the morning, they come down.
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There's something on the table.
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Two pears of shoes.
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Look, cries the shoemaker, more magic.
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He puts the shoes in the window.
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A man sees them.
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Ah, shoemaker, says the man.
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What beautiful shoes.
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I must buy them.
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Here are six gold coins.
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Six gold coins, says the shoemaker.
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I can make more shoes now.
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Three more pairs.
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He goes out, and he buys some more leather.
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Look, he says, I have some money, six gold coins.
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I can make three pairs of shoes, says the shoemaker.
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It's late, says his wife.
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Make them in the morning.
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In the morning, they come down.
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There's something on the table.
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Three pairs of shoes.
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Look, cries the shoemaker.
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Magic again!
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A family sees the shoes what beautiful shoes they
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say we must buy them here are nine
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gold coins nine gold coins says the shoemaker but who is making all these shoes Booze.
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That night, the shoemaker hides.
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He and his wife hide, and they wait.
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At midnight, they see two little elves.
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The little elves run in.
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They jump onto the table.
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Here's the leather, they say.
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Let's work.
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Let's make some beautiful shoes.
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All night they work.
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They work and work and work.
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The shoemaker and his wife watch.
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In the morning, the elves run away.
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But there's something on the table.
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Four beautiful pairs of shoes.
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Now we know, says the shoemaker.
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We know who helps us.
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Yes, says his wife.
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Two little elves.
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But what can we do for them?
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I know, says the shoemaker.
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Let's make some clothes for them.
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Oh, yes, says his wife.
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Yes.
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Night comes.
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They leave the clothes on the table.
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Then they hide.
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At midnight, the little elves run in.
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What's this?
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They say Something for us? For us?
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Oh, yes It's something for us They put on the new clothes And they dance Dance,
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dance, dance Now it's time for us to go because they know,
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because they know, say the elves.
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Goodbye, shoemaker.
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The elves never come back.
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But now the shoemaker makes good shoes.
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He works hard.
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Now his shop is a good shop, and he is happy.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This A1 speaking lesson is built on the video “The Shoemaker and the Elves”. The speaker keeps coming back to these words: shoemaker, shoe, coins, gold, elves. This video has 95 sentences and 522 words to shadow. The speech runs for 8:06. The speaker talks slowly, about 64 words per minute, so there is time to copy every sound. 86% 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 |
|---|---|---|
| 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… |
| coin noun | /ˈkoɪ̯n/ | A piece of currency, usually metallic and in the shape of a disc, but sometimes polygonal, or with a hole in the middle. |
| elf noun | /ɛlf/ | A supernatural being or spirit associated with illness, mischief, and harmful or dangerous magical influence; in later Norse sources, sometimes divided into… |
| leather noun | /ˈlɛðɚ/ | A tough material produced from the skin of animals, by tanning or similar process, used e.g. for clothing; often denotes leather from cattle when no qualifier… |
| cloth noun | /klɒθ/ | A fabric, usually made of woven, knitted, or felted fibres or filaments, such as used in dressing, decorating, cleaning or other practical use. Sometimes… |
| midnight noun | /ˈmɪd(ˌ)naɪt/ | The middle of the night: the sixth temporal hour, equidistant between sunset and sunrise. |
| goodbye | /ɡʊdˈbaɪ/ | Farewell; a formula used to another person or persons when the speaker, writer, or person addressed is departing. |
| shoemaker noun | /ˈʃuˌmeɪkɚ/ | A person who makes shoes. |
| pear noun | /pɛɹ/ | An edible fruit produced by the pear tree, similar to an apple but typically elongated towards the stem. |
| cry verb | /kɹaɪ/ | To shed tears; to weep, especially in anger or sadness. |
| jump verb | /d͡ʒʌmp/ | To propel oneself rapidly upward, downward and/or in any horizontal direction such that momentum causes the body to become airborne. |
| pair noun | /pɛə/ | Two alike or identical things taken together; often followed by of. |
| shop noun | /ʃɑp/ | An establishment that sells goods or services to the public; originally only a physical location, but now a virtual establishment as well. |
| dance noun | /dæns/ | A sequence of rhythmic steps or movements usually performed to music, for pleasure or as a form of social interaction. |
| magic noun | /ˈmæd͡ʒɪk/ | The application of rituals or actions, especially those based on occult knowledge, to subdue or manipulate natural or supernatural beings and forces in order… |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| come down verb | To descend, fall down, collapse. |
| go out verb | To leave, especially a building. |
| come back verb | To return to a place. |
| run away verb | To flee by running. |
Sentences worth repeating
Short, complete lines from the video that you can reuse in everyday conversation:
- That's all I can make.
- Let's make some beautiful shoes.
- Let's make some clothes for them.
Pronunciation to watch
- The “th” sounds: leather /ˈlɛðɚ/, cloth /klɒθ/
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: shoe /ˈʃu/, shoemaker /ˈʃuˌmeɪkɚ/, shop /ʃɑp/
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 shoe, coin, elf.
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.