We also learned about phrasal verbs (a verb plus a preposition). Examples: fill out, look up, come in, hand out.
Pronunciation involves being able to clearly be understood by others, but also understanding the way North Americans pronounce certain words. North American speech contains many reductions, this means that words are not always pronounced in their full form as they are written in a book, for example. Some examples of reductions are gonna (going to) hafta (have to) duya (do you?) letcha (let you). We will practice many reductions in class.
Students were given two handouts explaining consonant pronunciation; Common Consonant Problems. For example, speakers of some Asian languages do not pronounce the final consonant endings because they don't occur in their native language. The handout explains many other problems. Finally students received a Consonant Chart which explains how to use your mouth, teeth and tongue to make all of the consonant sounds, and the information needed for correct consonant pronunciation. If you were absent, be sure to get the 2 consonant handouts next week.
Also an important part of pronunciation is being able to speak using the same stress and intonation patterns as native speakers. Students often encounter problems because they are speaking English using the stress and intonation patterns of their native language. We will have several lessons on these features of pronunciation.
February 11, 2017
We continued learning more reductions. Students received a handout "Alternate Levels of Reduction". Sometimes native speakers reduce words just a little, and other times they are further reduced. For example, going to sometimes get reduced to "goin' ta", and sometimes it gets even more reduced to "gonna". Have to can get reduced to "have ta" or to "hafta". The handout contains many more examples.
Here are some new idioms we learned in class today:
- to sell something (to convince someone that something is a good idea)
- to buy someone (to pay someone to do something illegal or dishonest)
- to come out of one's pocket (to pay for something you are not reimbursed for)
- to give someone a hand (to give someone a round of applause, or to help someone to do something)
If you look at the consonant chart you received in class, you'll see that some sounds (/p/, /t/, /k/, /b/, /d/, /g/) are referred to as stops, meaning that when you make the sound you cut off the air flow. Other consonant sounds are referred to as continuous because the air flow keeps going. For example, the word but ends in a stop sound, while the word bus ends in a continuous sound. Other examples: bait/base, fade/face, ride/rice. When we want to make a word a plural, we often use the continuous sound /s/ at the end of the word. So the word book ends in the stop sound /k/, but when you make it plural (books) it ends in the continuous sound /s/.
February 25, 2017
Students were given a new handout: "Here are Some Examples of Reduced Forms". This handout gives examples of how to use a reduced form in a sentence. For example, the word because gets reduced to "kuz", such as "He missed the bus kuz he was late."
Here are some new idioms:
- to cross your fingers (hope for the best)
- for the birds (something undesirable)
- to put your two cents worth in (give your own opinion or ideas)
- to be fishy ("fishy" is slang for something that sounds suspect)
We had more practice with hearing the difference between continuants and stops. For example, can you hear the difference between nice/night, boots/boot, cats/cat (/s/ is a continuant; the air keeps flowing, /t/ is a stop; the air flow stops). Often when words end in /s/, the /s/ links to a vowel at the start of the next word with no pause in between. So "Is the boss in the office"? Sounds like "bosssin". The same thing happens with /t/; it links to the first vowel in the next word: get in sounds like "getin".
The sound /r/ is a continuant, while the sound /d/ is a stop. Can you hear the difference between fear/feed, rear/reed, rent/dent? In order to know how to produce both sounds /r/ and /d/, refer to your consonant chart. The sound /d/ is interdental (made by putting your tongue directly behind your upper teeth). The sound /r/ is palatal (made by raising your tongue toward the roof of your mouth, by curling it backwards, but NOT letting it touch the roof of your mouth). These terms are on the top row of your consonant chart.
March 4, 2017
We finished review of the handout: "Here are Some Examples of Reduced Forms", so if you were absent, try to read the examples on your own. We continued practice of continuant and stop sounds. Sometimes when a word ends in a consonant sound, the last sound gets linked to a vowel sound at the beginning of the next word. For example the following words ending in the sound /r/ link to the next word beginning with a vowel so that they sound like one word: here in sounds like "hearrrin", rear entrance sounds like "rearrrentrance". We can also link words ending with the sound /d/. For example: I've had it sounds like I've "hadit", made us sounds like "madeus". (Note that in the last example, the e is silent).
The combination of the consonant sounds /rd/ often indicate the past tense, such as cared, hired, retired. Can you hear the difference between share/shared, chair/chaired, steer/steered?
Refer to your Consonant chart handout to see how to pronounce the consonant sound /l/; remember to keep the tip of your tongue pressed against the upper tooth ridge at the front of your mouth. Although this is a similar position to the sound /d/, /d/ is a stop, while /l/ is a continuant. Can you hear the difference between sell/said, tell/Ted, sail/sailed.
Can you also hear the difference between lent/dent, let/debt (note the d is silent), late/date.
There were no new idioms today.
March 11, 2017
New idioms for today:
- to keep in touch (maintain contact with someone)
- to be put on the spot (to be placed in a difficult or embarrassing situation)
- to be out of the woods (to be out of danger)
Today we continued practicing reductions with a quiz. If you were absent, make sure to get a copy of the quiz.
Words that end with a continuant consonant sound /l/ link with words that begin with a vowel. For example: tell us sounds like "telllus", sell all sounds like "selllall", we'll always sounds like "we'lllalways".
Remember that the auxiliary (helping) verbs will, would and did are normally contracted, so it's important to be able to hear the difference between /l/ and /d/ at the end of words. For example: I'd go (I would go) or I'll go (I will go), they'd stay (they would stay) or they'll stay (they will stay), she'd come (she would come) or she'll come (she will come).
Some words end in the combined sound /ld/, such as told, mailed, spilled, dialed. Practice saying the combination of /ld/ in these and other words. Remember that when adding "ed" to make a verb in the past tense, the new word only becomes two syllables if the verb already ends in a /t/ or /d/ sound. For example: paint/painted, fade/faded.
March 18, 2017
Today we learned and practiced some vowel rules. Most of the time, when two vowels are together in a one-syllable word, the first vowel makes its alphabet sound, and the second vowel is silent. The rule works for the following words: rain, boat, teach, seat, steam. When a word ends in a silent e, the vowel before it also makes its alphabet sound. For example: bake, made, mine, bike.
According to the one vowel rule, when there is only one vowel in a one-syllable word, the vowel is usually pronounced with its relative sound. Some examples: sat, band, tell, dish, luck, lock.
We practiced th pronunciation of voiced consonants (check your consonant chart; -voice means the consonant is voiceless, +voice means the consonant is voiced). A voiced consonant means that there is a vibration in your vocal chords. If you compare the words Sue and zoo for example, the first word is pronounced with a voiceless /s/ sound, the second one with a voiced /z/. See if you can hear the difference between these words: pat/bat, fan/ban, face/phase, leaf/leave, safe/save.
Check your consonant chart. Notice that, for example, /f/ and /v/ are both "labio-dental" sounds. The are both made with placing your teeth on your upper lip, but /f/ is voiceless (-voice), and /v/ is voiced (+voice). Notice other consonant sounds that are made in the same way, the only difference being that one is voiced and the other is voiceless. Some examples: /p/ and /b/, /t/ and /d/, /s/ and /z/.
March 25, 2017
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