Shadowing Practice: What to Expect at College Orientation 🏫 ⏱📚 - Learn English Speaking with Video
Creating lesson...
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Your first official act as a college student is to attend your freshman orientation the summer before your freshman year begins.
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So naturally you're probably wondering what even happens at orientation.
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Stay tuned because we're about to tell you.
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What's up you guys, my name is Don by the way and if you haven't already, hit that subscribe button.
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College orientation is seriously really fun.
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You're going to be exploring your new campus, meeting some of your professors and advisors, and making a ton of new friends.
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Seriously, this is the time where the school wants to get you really excited about this journey
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that you're about to start and make you feel even better about your choice to attend college there.
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You'll play games, tour the campus, make some new friends, eat together, socialize, and there may be other activities in the evening.
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And if your college is anything like mine, there's going to be a ton of free stuff at orientation.
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Seriously, take advantage because this is a formative time that will set you up for success in the next four years.
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At orientation, you'll also be taking the necessary steps to become an enrolled student.
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So that means you'll be getting your student ID card, submitting any outstanding information for your student account, logging into your student web portal, taking any placement tests if needed,
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and enrolling into your fall classes.
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This may sound a little bit intimidating with all these things that you have to do, especially with picking out your classes, but just lean on your orientation leader and your academic advisors.
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They'll be there to help you guys out.
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Before leaving orientation, there are a couple of things that you should be doing.
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One, stop by your financial aid office and make sure that your tuition bill is correct and paid.
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Two, connect with your college roommate if you're dorming.
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This way you can start getting to know each other, your living styles, and coordinate any items that you guys may need for your dorm.
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And three, finally, get to know your classwork if your syllabus is available.
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Let's talk about parent orientation.
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College orientation isn't just for students.
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Most colleges actually offer a family and parent orientation where families can learn about the resources that the college has to offer.
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This is a chance for your family to learn about topics such as financial aid, student life, and any tutoring or mental health services.
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Depending on the college, your family may also be able to meet with any professors, faculty, and staff.
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If you are a first-gen student, which means that you're the first in your family to go to college, parent and family orientation is extremely helpful for your parents.
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It can give your family a better understanding of what the college experience is like, as well as how to best support you during your time there.
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If your college doesn't offer a parent and family orientation, consider bringing them to your freshman orientation.
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Whether you're a first gen student or not, having the support of a trusted adult will help calm your nerves as you prepare for college.
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If you can't make your in-person orientation, see if your school has a virtual option or have your friends take notes for you.
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You can even visit the campus by yourself at another time.
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If you guys are looking for more resources about college and how to be successful in college, please visit us at GetSchooled.com.
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You can even text hello to 335577 and one of our college advisors will text you personally.
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If you guys have any questions, please leave them down in the comment section below.
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As always, I'm Don.
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I'll see you guys in the next one.
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Peace out.
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Vocabulary and speaking notes for this lesson
This video has 38 sentences and 631 words to shadow. The speech runs for 3:01. The speaker talks fast, about 209 words per minute, so expect linked and reduced sounds. 87% of the words are among the 3,000 most common in English, so the vocabulary is easy to follow.
Key vocabulary in this video
15 words from the video worth learning, with pronunciation and meaning:
| Word | Pronunciation | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| orientation noun | /ˌɔː.ɹi.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/ | The determination of the relative position of something or someone. |
| advisor noun | /ædˈvaɪ.zə(ɹ)/ | One who offers advice. |
| freshman noun | /ˈfɹɛʃ.mən/ | a person (of either sex) entering the first year of an institution, especially a high school (ninth grade for US, grade 9 for Canada, grade 7 for Philippines)… |
| resource noun | /ɹɪˈzɔːs/ | Something that one uses to achieve an objective, e.g. raw materials or personnel. |
| topic noun | /ˈtɑpɪk/ | A subject; a theme; a category or general area of interest. |
| naturally adverb | /ˈnæt͡ʃ.(ə.)ɹə.li/ | In a natural manner. |
| helpful adjective | /ˈhɛlp.fl̩/ | Furnishing help; giving aid; useful. |
| connect verb | /kəˈnɛkt/ | To join (to another object): to attach, or to be intended to attach or capable of attaching, to another object. |
| log noun | /lɔɡ/ | The trunk of a dead tree, cleared of branches. |
| faculty noun | /ˈfæk.əl.ti/ | The academic staff at schools, colleges, universities or not-for-profit research institutes, as opposed to the students or support staff. |
| virtual adjective | /ˈvɜɹt͡ʃuəl/ | In effect or essence, rather than in fact or reality; also, imitated, simulated. |
| explore verb | /ɪkˈsploɹ/ | To examine or investigate something systematically. |
| submit verb | /səbˈmɪt/ | To yield or give way to another. |
| tune noun | /tjuːn/ | A melody. |
| depend verb | /dɪˈpɛnd/ | To be contingent or conditioned; to have something as a necessary condition |
Phrasal verbs you will hear
| Word | Meaning |
|---|---|
| pick out verb | To remove by picking. |
Pronunciation to watch
The speaker uses 17 contractions and reduced forms, such as you're, you'll, can't. Say them the short way, as you hear them.
- The “sh” and “zh” sounds: orientation /ˌɔː.ɹi.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/, freshman /ˈfɹɛʃ.mən/, tuition /tjuːˈɪʃən/, socialize /ˈsoʊʃəlaɪz/
- Long words — get the stress right: orientation /ˌɔː.ɹi.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/, naturally /ˈnæt͡ʃ.(ə.)ɹə.li/, coordinate /koʊˈɔɹ.dəˌneɪt/, dormitory /ˈdɔɹ.mɪˌtɔɹ.i/, intimidate /ɪnˈtɪmɪdeɪt/
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 orientation, advisor, freshman.
Grammar in this video
The structures the speaker uses most, with the exact words from the video:
| Structure | In the video |
|---|---|
| Possibility with “might / may” might/may + verb — something that is possible but not certain | may be · may sound · may need |
| Verb + -ing enjoy, keep, stop… + -ing — verbs that are followed by the -ing form | start getting · consider bringing |
| Future with “will” will + verb — a decision, promise or prediction | You'll play · will set · you'll also be |
| Present continuous am/is/are + -ing — something happening right now or around now | you're probably wondering · you're dorming · are looking |
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.