Speaking Practice in Brazilian Portuguese: Imitation and Shadowing Technique
This lesson includes a free PDF with some exercises to help you practice what you learn in this lesson. Fill out the form below to download your worksheet.
Olá, queridos alunos! (Hello, dear students!)
This is Virginia, your Brazilian teacher.
Today, you will learn how to develop your fluency in Portuguese using an imitation and shadowing exercise.
I’ve divided this activity into four steps, and I will guide you step by step.
Are you ready? Let’s get started!
Speaking Practice in Brazilian Portuguese
Step 1 – Comprehensible input – listening and reading.
In this first part of the exercise, you should simply listen and read the text carefully. You don’t need to do anything else.
Are you ready? Let’s get started. Play the audio and read the text.
Os Sonhos de João
João tem 23 anos e muitos sonhos para o futuro. Ele estuda engenharia na Universidade de São Paulo e quer se formar no próximo ano. Depois disso, ele planeja trabalhar em uma grande empresa de tecnologia.
Mas João não pensa só no trabalho. Ele também sonha em viajar pelo mundo. Ele quer conhecer países como o Japão, a Itália e o Canadá. Ele acredita que viajar é uma forma de aprender sobre outras culturas e crescer como pessoa.
Além disso, João tem um plano especial: ele quer comprar uma casa para seus pais. Ele cresceu em uma casa pequena, mas cheia de amor, e agora quer retribuir tudo o que seus pais fizeram por ele.
João sabe que seus sonhos exigem esforço e dedicação, mas ele está animado com o futuro. Ele acredita que, com trabalho duro e paciência, poderá alcançar todos os seus objetivos.
João’s Dreams
João is 23 years old and has many dreams for the future. He studies engineering at the University of São Paulo and plans to graduate next year. After that, he plans to work at a large technology company.
But João doesn’t only think about work. He also dreams of traveling the world. He wants to visit countries like Japan, Italy, and Canada. He believes traveling is a way to learn about other cultures and grow as a person.
Additionally, João has a special plan: he wants to buy a house for his parents. He grew up in a small but loving home, and now he wants to give back for everything his parents have done for him.
João knows his dreams require effort and dedication, but he is excited about the future. He believes that with hard work and patience, he can achieve all his goals.
Step 2 – Imitation technique – listening, pausing, and repeating.
Now let’s move on to the second part of this exercise. In this second part, you should repeat out loud everything I say. We’ll listen to the same story, but this time, I will add a pause after each sentence so you can repeat after me.
In this part of the exercise, it’s important to truly imitate how I speak. Try to mimic my pronunciation and intonation. This will help you develop your Brazilian accent.
Are you ready? Then, let’s go! Play the audio and repeat after me.
Os Sonhos de João
João tem 23 anos e muitos sonhos para o futuro. Ele estuda engenharia na Universidade de São Paulo e quer se formar no próximo ano. Depois disso, ele planeja trabalhar em uma grande empresa de tecnologia.
Mas João não pensa só no trabalho. Ele também sonha em viajar pelo mundo. Ele quer conhecer países como o Japão, a Itália e o Canadá. Ele acredita que viajar é uma forma de aprender sobre outras culturas e crescer como pessoa.
Além disso, João tem um plano especial: ele quer comprar uma casa para seus pais. Ele cresceu em uma casa pequena, mas cheia de amor, e agora quer retribuir tudo o que seus pais fizeram por ele.
João sabe que seus sonhos exigem esforço e dedicação, mas ele está animado com o futuro. Ele acredita que, com trabalho duro e paciência, poderá alcançar todos os seus objetivos.
João’s Dreams
João is 23 years old and has many dreams for the future. He studies engineering at the University of São Paulo and plans to graduate next year. After that, he plans to work at a large technology company.
But João doesn’t only think about work. He also dreams of traveling the world. He wants to visit countries like Japan, Italy, and Canada. He believes traveling is a way to learn about other cultures and grow as a person.
Additionally, João has a special plan: he wants to buy a house for his parents. He grew up in a small but loving home, and now he wants to give back for everything his parents have done for him.
João knows his dreams require effort and dedication, but he is excited about the future. He believes that with hard work and patience, he can achieve all his goals.
Step 3 – Shadowing technique – listening and repeating at the same time.
Now, let’s move on to the third part of this exercise. In this part, you must repeat out loud everything I say along with me. You must listen to me and say what you are hearing at the same time. Shadowing is much harder than the previous steps, but it’s a fantastic exercise to improve your fluency in Portuguese. If needed, you can slow down the video in the settings.
Are you ready? Let’s go! Play the audio and repeat along with me.
Os Sonhos de João
João tem 23 anos e muitos sonhos para o futuro. Ele estuda engenharia na Universidade de São Paulo e quer se formar no próximo ano. Depois disso, ele planeja trabalhar em uma grande empresa de tecnologia.
Mas João não pensa só no trabalho. Ele também sonha em viajar pelo mundo. Ele quer conhecer países como o Japão, a Itália e o Canadá. Ele acredita que viajar é uma forma de aprender sobre outras culturas e crescer como pessoa.
Além disso, João tem um plano especial: ele quer comprar uma casa para seus pais. Ele cresceu em uma casa pequena, mas cheia de amor, e agora quer retribuir tudo o que seus pais fizeram por ele.
João sabe que seus sonhos exigem esforço e dedicação, mas ele está animado com o futuro. Ele acredita que, com trabalho duro e paciência, poderá alcançar todos os seus objetivos.
João’s Dreams
João is 23 years old and has many dreams for the future. He studies engineering at the University of São Paulo and plans to graduate next year. After that, he plans to work at a large technology company.
But João doesn’t only think about work. He also dreams of traveling the world. He wants to visit countries like Japan, Italy, and Canada. He believes traveling is a way to learn about other cultures and grow as a person.
Additionally, João has a special plan: he wants to buy a house for his parents. He grew up in a small but loving home, and now he wants to give back for everything his parents have done for him.
João knows his dreams require effort and dedication, but he is excited about the future. He believes that with hard work and patience, he can achieve all his goals.
Step 4 – Practice talking about yourself.
This final step isn’t exactly a continuation of the previous exercise, but you can use the story João’s Dreams as a model and inspiration to talk about yourself.
It’s extremely important to practice talking about topics that are relevant to you, so you feel confident when speaking in Portuguese.
I recommend that you grab a pen and paper and write a short paragraph about your dreams for the future. What do you dream of accomplishing? What are your goals for this year and the future?
After writing your paragraph, read your text out loud several times until you feel comfortable talking about the topic without reading.
This exercise will help you feel more confident when you have the opportunity to talk to a Brazilian.
Free PDF!
This lesson includes a free PDF with some exercises to help you practice what you learn in this lesson. Fill out the form below to download your worksheet.
Online Brazilian Portuguese Courses
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Até a próxima!
Virginia & Speaking Brazilian Team
