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Shadowing practice: HOW do I LEARN English? I will ANSWER your questions / How do I stay motivated to learn English?

Listen to the line, then say it out loud
Line 1

Full transcript

  1. I can read English but I can't speak fast because I'm not a native speaker.0:02
  2. Thank you Ismail for that.0:08
  3. Well it is a very common problem for people learning English.0:10
  4. When you start it is very hard to understand.0:14
  5. But the more you do it, the more you will understand.0:18
  6. And then the more you understand, the more fun it will be.0:22
  7. It takes a while.0:27
  8. It takes a while.0:29
  9. How to memorise words?0:31
  10. Well my suggestion is always to learn some new words every day.0:34
  11. So you can learn some new words every day.0:39
  12. Maybe four or five new words every day.0:42
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  1. So you get into the habit to learn some new words every day.0:46
  2. Just four or five new words.0:52
  3. So you can write them down.0:55
  4. You can read them.0:57
  5. You can learn what the words mean.0:59
  6. And then later you can try to remember them and do that every day.1:02
  7. Try to learn some new words every single day.1:07
  8. It is very good to learn English by reading.1:11
  9. You can read a book or a comic.1:16
  10. Anything.1:19
  11. Also, because music is so popular nowadays, learning to sing or singing along with one of your favourite English songs can also help you to learn English.1:19
  12. You can study the words in the song.1:34
  13. How to keep the motivation to continue learning English?1:38
  14. Well one way is to watch my lessons.1:42
  15. I am here to encourage you.1:46
  16. I am here to give you help.1:48
  17. And of course I am here to allow you to create your own English environment.1:50
  18. So the more you listen to me, the better your English listening skills will become.1:56
  19. And of course the better your English will become.2:02
  20. And the more interested in English you will be.2:07
  21. So one of the hardest things about learning something new is staying motivated.2:12
  22. I think so.2:18
  23. I agree with you.2:19
  24. Because I remember when I was at school, I always found it very hard to stay motivated when I was learning whatever the subject was.2:20
  25. English, maths, geography.2:31
  26. All of these subjects.2:35
  27. You have to be motivated.2:36
  28. You have to keep pushing yourself.2:37
  29. But I hope that with my videos and my live streams, I can help you.2:40
  30. So yes, there are many common problems when you are learning English.2:46
  31. Many common problems that you can have.2:50
  32. And one of them is having the confidence to do it.2:53
  33. Especially when you have to speak English.2:59
  34. Because it's a bit like performing.3:02
  35. It's a bit like going on to a stage and performing.3:04
  36. So I think that speaking English is a bit like performing.3:07
  37. But of course the more you do it, the more you enjoy it.3:13
  38. And the more you enjoy it, the more you want to do it.3:16
  39. How long will it take a beginner to be as good as you in English?3:20
  40. It depends how much you want to do it.3:24
  41. And how much time you spend doing it.3:26
  42. So it depends on you.3:29
  43. But you can't do it quickly.3:31
  44. Never rush learning.3:34
  45. If you do it too quickly, then maybe you will find that it becomes too difficult.3:36
  46. And then you will give up.3:42
  47. So don't rush.3:44
  48. Never rush your learning.3:46
  49. It takes time.3:48
  50. Thank you.4:11

English speaking practice with Mr Duncan's A2 advice on staying motivated

This clip opens with a viewer's own words: "I can read English but I can't speak fast because I'm not a native speaker." Mr Duncan spends the rest of the recording answering that exact problem, in plain British English rated A2, so a beginner can follow the whole thing without losing the thread.

The pace sits at 163 words per minute, brisk for a beginner clip but never rushed, because Duncan pauses between ideas and repeats his key point rather than rewording it. No reduced forms were measured in this recording, so what actually slows a new learner down here is vocabulary such as memorise, motivation and encourage, not fast connected speech. That makes it a solid pick for english listening practice before you ever try to speak along.

Shadow this line for daily english conversation practice on habits and motivation

Three lines carry most of the useful language in this stretch of the clip. Read them closely before you shadow this line yourself.

  • "But the more you do it, the more you will understand." Two matching clauses with the same shape, which makes the rhythm easy to copy even before you think about the meaning.
  • "So you get into the habit to learn some new words every day." A long run without a breath break. Say it in one go, the way Duncan does, rather than chopping it into pieces.
  • "I always found it very hard to stay motivated when I was learning whatever the subject was." Personal, conversational phrasing, closer to how someone talks about school than how a textbook would put it. Good material for everyday english.

How to improve english speaking and listening with this Q&A clip

Work through the opening in order, since Duncan answers one question at a time and each answer stands on its own.

  • Start on line one, the viewer's question, and repeat it until "I can read English but I can't speak fast because I'm not a native speaker" comes out smoothly. It is the problem the whole clip is built around.
  • Move to line five, "But the more you do it, the more you will understand," and practise it as a single breath group.
  • Take line thirteen next, the habit line, and slow it down first for accuracy, then bring it back to Duncan's own speed to work on how you pronounce english words at pace.
  • Finish on lines thirty six and thirty seven, where Duncan gets personal about school and motivation. Shadow those two together since they read as one thought.
  • Repeat the four lines above as a short set, several times over, before moving further into the clip. That is enough english shadowing practice for one sitting at A2.
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