Практика Shadowing: INTERMEDIATE ENGLISH STORY 🌧️ Rainy Days 🎨 B2 | Level 4 - 5 | BRITISH ENGLISH ACCENT WITH SUBTITLES - Изучайте разговорный английский по видео
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Hello and welcome to Lovely English Stories.
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This story is written for intermediate English learners.
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You can download the PDF transcript of this and other stories on our new Patreon page.
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Ready?
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Let's get started!
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B2 English Story Rainy Days What is there to do on rainy days?
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The pitter-patter of the raindrops against the window are the sign of a day to be spent indoors.
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Is it time for reading and quiet contemplation?
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Or is it a day in front of the television?
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June sat on her large window seat and looked out across her street.
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Another windswept rainy day, June huffed to herself.
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She was desperate to get outside.
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She loathed being cooped up inside her small house.
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She had been stuck indoors quite a lot recently as she had broken her leg.
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A few weeks prior, she went for a run with her local running group and, quite dramatically by all accounts, tripped on a pebble on the pavement.
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She slipped to the ground and fell in a very awkward position.
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She heard the crunch of her leg and intuitively knew that something was terribly wrong.
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Luckily, her running friends were quick to react and they called an ambulance.
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June tried to keep as still as possible and took deep breaths to keep herself calm, even though the pain in her leg was immense.
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She had never been so pleased to see an ambulance.
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The paramedics were brilliant with her.
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They listened and were kind and gentle as they helped her into the ambulance.
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Then she was off to the hospital for an x-ray.
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Her suspicions were correct a broken leg.
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They applied a plaster cast and her friend came to pick her up.
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She was signed off work for six weeks.
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So for the last three weeks she had been stuck in the house unable to walk
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or run anywhere as the cast helped to heal her leg.
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She dreaded the thought of being so bored for another three weeks, but then she kept remembering the saying,
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only boring people get bored.
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She didn't want to be a boring person.
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She had tried to keep herself busy by reading and listening to her favourite audiobooks.
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She'd also finally caught up on all her favourite TV shows.
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Her friends and family had taken her out and about, but it wasn't the same as being independent and leaving whenever she wanted.
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She couldn't even go to work as her job as a children's nurse required her to be stood
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and walking for the majority of her shifts.
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As much as June didn't like to admit it, she was starting to get rather bored.
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She knew accidents happened, but she wished this one had happened in the summer, so she could at least sit in the garden and enjoy the warmer weather.
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She knew she had to make some changes.
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She couldn't mope around the house for another three weeks, rainy weather or not.
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She hobbled over to her table, took out her tablet and browsed the internet for some creative ideas.
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She had a drawer full of paints, pencils and some canvases which she was given as a birthday present the year before.
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She had attended a few painting classes in the past and really enjoyed it, but work and life had got in the way.
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Maybe she could pick it up again.
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She perused social media channels and different platforms to try and get some inspiration.
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She knew she had to start off small.
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She didn't want to overwhelm herself.
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She had a look on YouTube and discovered lots of talented artists.
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The one that stood out to her the most was a lady who drew beautiful flowers, landscapes and mystical creatures.
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June liked the escapism of her work and found her channel to be incredibly relaxing.
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After watching several of her videos, she decided to make herself a cup of tea, get out her art equipment and make a start.
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She had to admit she was rather nervous.
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She hadn't picked up a paintbrush in a long time.
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Then again she had to remember she was doing this for fun
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and didn't have to put any pressure on herself She set up her desk
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and laid some newspaper over it to protect the wood Then she hobbled to the kitchen
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and got a pot of water and some kitchen roll She also put on an old apron
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She took inspiration from the artist on YouTube and decided to paint some sunflowers.
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She had just been gifted some by a friend.
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She adored sunflowers.
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Just having a small bunch on her table really lit up her room.
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She started to draw, in pencil, an outline sketch of the flowers.
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Her hand trembled slightly, but she tried not to judge herself too much.
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Then she started mixing her paints together.
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She decided to use her new acrylics, and when she painted her first strokes, the paint moved across the canvas like silk.
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Before she knew it, she was adding details to each of the petals,
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and she decided to add a brash background to make the orange and yellow of the sunflowers stand out.
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As she painted, she listened to some relaxing jazz music.
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Before she knew it, hours had passed.
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No wonder she felt so thirsty.
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Her last cup of tea was cold.
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She had become so mesmerised by painting that the hours had flew by.
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June also felt much calmer and more relaxed.
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She didn't know painting could be so much fun.
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She leant back in her chair and observed her work.
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Not bad for a beginner.
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She slowly packed her paints away and gave the paintbrushes a thorough clean.
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Then she made her way to bed.
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The next morning, June woke up feeling much cheerier than she had the day before.
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The rain was still pouring, but June looked at it in a different light.
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Now she knew it was good for the garden and the plants.
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She made herself her favourite breakfast of pancakes, bananas and strawberries.
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She grabbed her walking sticks and shuffled into her room.
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The sight of her painting surprised her.
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As it had dried, the colours had become more vivid.
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She was quite impressed with herself.
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She placed the painting on her mantelpiece and decided that she would try to paint another.
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After all, the weather was terrible and she wasn't expecting any guests until later that evening.
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She had time to give it another go.
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Again, she meticulously set up her painting area, got the water for the brushes and laid out some kitchen roll.
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She browsed the internet looking for inspiration and landed on a photograph of some stunning red roses.
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June had never really been a fan of roses.
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She loved their smell, but preferred bigger, bolder flowers, like sunflowers.
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Like the day before, she drew out an outline on the canvas and started to mix her colours.
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Again, she became engrossed in the painting.
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Each stroke of paint upon the canvas was like a new adventure.
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She wasn't scared to experiment and kept trying new things.
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Before she knew it, lunchtime had passed and it was already 4pm.
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She only realised as it had started to become a little dusky outside.
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Again, her tea had gone cold and her stomach was grumbling.
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Good grief, she exclaimed.
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I'm turning into a painting zombie be.
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June grabbed her walking sticks and made her way to the kitchen.
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Her friend would be arriving in little over an hour to have dinner with her, so she made a small snack and started to prepare their meal.
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She kept glancing out at the rain.
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It hadn't stopped in days.
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She cleared the table covered in art materials as best as she could
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and added her new piece of art to the mantelpiece next to her painting of the sunflowers.
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Suddenly, the doorbell rang.
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Her friend had arrived.
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She hobbled over to the door and to her friend's surprise, she was covered in a rainbow of colours.
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When June caught sight of herself in her hallway mirror, she couldn't stop laughing.
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She had red all around her eyes from where she had scratched an itch
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and various shades of greens in her hair from when she had tied her hair back.
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I thought I'd come to a fancy dress party for a minute, laughed her friend.
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I've been so engrossed in painting, I didn't realise the time, never mind notice that I'm covered in the stuff.
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June explained to her friend how she had spent the last two rainy days.
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Her friend informed her about a local art group.
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You should go along, I bet you'd love it and your paintings are good.
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They're so vibrant.
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They make me smile when I look at them.
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June didn't feel like her work deserved such praise.
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After all, she was a complete beginner.
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She had only tried it a few times.
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She was by no means Van Gogh.
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Look, June, you've got to remember that art is subjective.
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What one person thinks is terrible, another might think is a masterpiece.
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and I, for one, think your work is quite magnificent.
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That night, after a wonderful evening laughing and joking with her lifelong friend,
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June picked up her tablet again and searched for local art groups.
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Perhaps when her leg was healed, she could venture out and join one.
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She found one in particular that tickled her fancy.
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It would work around her shift patterns as a nurse and was only down the road.
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Each week the group had a theme and created art based around that theme, depending on what their chosen medium was.
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For June, of course, her medium would be paint But it looked like the people who attended the group Knitted,
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used watercolours, created sculptures with found objects And used clay It was quite innovative
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and seemed to ignite something in June That she didn't know existed
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After a few days of boredom and what felt like constant rainy days
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June felt like there was light at the end of the tunnel.
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She had found another side to herself, a creative element that she looked forward to exploring further.
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Who would have thought that out of a broken leg, June could have found a new creative outlet?
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What do you like to do on rainy days?
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Tell us in the comments below.
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We hope you enjoyed this lovely English story.
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See you soon.
Почему стоит практиковать разговорную речь с этим видео?
Обучение английскому языку через видео, такие как это, предлагает уникальную возможность для прохождения практики разговорной речи. Слушая историю о дожде и приключениях Джун, вы не только наслаждаетесь сюжетом, но и получаете шанс развивать свои навыки фонетики и произношения. Этот видеоматериал предназначен для изучающих английский на уровне B2, что идеально подходит для улучшения разговорных навыков.
Преимущества использования видео:
- Практика на реальных примерах, что помогает лучше понять контекст употребления слов и фраз.
- Просмотр с субтитрами позволяет улучшить понимание на слух и увеличить словарный запас.
- Возможность подражания произношению и интонации носителей языка, что способствует улучшению произношения английского.
Занимаясь shadowing английский с этим видео, вы сможете закрепить новые слова и выражения, используя их в своей разговорной практике.
Грамматика и выражения в контексте
В этой истории используются несколько ключевых грамматических структур, которые помогают понять и использовать язык более эффективно:
- Past Simple: "She tripped on a pebble" – употребление прошедшего времени для описания событий.
- Present Perfect: "She has been stuck indoors" – использование перфектного времени для описания опыта, который имеет значение в настоящем.
- Imperative mood: "Try to keep yourself busy" – призыв к действию, который часто используется в разговорной речи.
При изучении английского с YouTube важно обращать внимание на такие структуры в контексте, чтобы более уверенно использовать их в своих разговорах.
Распространенные ловушки произносительных ошибок
При просмотре видео вы можете столкнуться с определенными трудностями произношения, особенно если акцент не британский. Вот несколько слов, на которые стоит обратить внимание:
- “Ambulance” – важно правильно проставить ударение, чтобы избежать недопонимания.
- “Pavement” – это слово может звучать иначе в зависимости от акцента, поэтому слушайте внимательно.
- “Creativity” и “inspiration” – эти слова могут быть непростыми для произношения, поэтому попробуйте произнести их больше раз в разных предложениях.
Не бойтесь повторять слова и фразы, используя техникy shadowspeak, чтобы улучшить произношение английского. Это поможет вам стать более уверенным в разговорной речи.
Что такое техника Shadowing?
Shadowing — это научно обоснованная техника изучения языка, изначально разработанная для подготовки профессиональных переводчиков и популяризированная полиглотом доктором Александром Аргуэльесом. Метод прост, но эффективен: вы слушаете аудио на английском от носителей языка и немедленно повторяете вслух — как тень, следующая за говорящим с задержкой в 1–2 секунды. В отличие от пассивного прослушивания или грамматических упражнений, Shadowing заставляет мозг и мышцы рта одновременно обрабатывать и воспроизводить реальные речевые паттерны. Исследования показывают, что это значительно улучшает точность произношения, интонацию, ритм, связную речь, понимание на слух и беглость речи — что делает его одним из самых эффективных методов для подготовки к IELTS Speaking и реального общения на английском.