README: How to use this recording
You'll hear the dialogue from Episode 4 twice.
The first time, there will be a short pause after each line. During the pause, try to repeat aloud exactly what you hear.
Repeating aloud is important, partly because you'll be training your speech muscles to make the sounds of Mandarin, and partly because you'll be getting feedback about how you sound (if you're listening with earbuds, I recommend practicing with one earbud out and one in, or else with both partially in, so that you can hear yourself better).
The second time, there won't be any pauses -- try to "shadow" the sounds simultaneously as they are spoken, again aloud.
This will help you practice stringing the sounds together and further reinforce the muscle memory speech patterns of Mandarin. If it feels way too fast, you can try shadowing only one of the two characters (A-Ming or Xiao-Li) each time you listen. However, even then, don't expect to be able to keep up with everything at first. It takes regular daily practice to start training your ears to have a more nuanced perception of the sounds, and to train your speech muscles to speak at natural speed.
A transcript of the dialogue is available below. First, it is written out in only Chinese characters for those who are learning characters and want to practice reading along. Then it is written out with the translation and pinyin.
Dialogue transcript (Chinese characters only):
Dialogue transcript (w/ pinyin and translation):
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