OBJECTIVES
1. Identify the International Phonetic Alphabet symbols and the sounds they represent.
2. Get familiar with some stress patterns in the English language.
3. Get acquainted with some strategies to practice rhythm and intonation in conversations so you can practice on your own.
4. Identify the nature of Thought Groups in English.
THE INTERNATIONAL PHONETIC ALPHABET
The International Phonetic Alphabet (IPA) is a system of phonetic notation based on the representation of the sounds of spoken language.
2. Click on the corresponding symbols in the interactive International Phonetic Alphabet above in order to get familiar with the sounds they represent.
3. In order to get familiar with the articulation of sounds in English, click on the following link and practice.
4. After you have practiced with the previous exercises, you can click on the following link and test your understanding by doing different kinds of exercises.
MINIMAL PAIRS
Minimal pairs are pairs of words whose pronunciation differs at only one segment, such as sheep and ship or lice and rice.
1. If you want to understand spoken English better and, at the same time, improve the way you express your ideas orally, it is important to train your ear. Click on the following link, listen and repeat.
2. After you are done with the previous exercise, click on the following link and test your listening skills.
STRESS
In every polysyllable word in English, there is one which is emphasized. The vowel sound in this syllable sounds higher in pitch, longer, and louder. Stress is also important when we refer to sentences and goes hand in hand with intonation. If you emphasize a word in a sentence, you can change its intention.
1. In order to understand the way stress works in a word, watch the following video and do the exercise the teacher suggests.
2. Now watch the following video and identify the words that are stressed. Reflect on the way it affects the intention of the message.
RHYTHM AND INTONATION
Intonation can be defined as the musicality you use in your sentences in order to express various intentions. You should use it to emphasize an idea, to convey surprise, or to pose a question. When you practice pronunciation, it is important to imitate the way words are produced in the context of the conversation.
3. Now open the document below and highlight the words that are stressed.
4. To compare how well you did, open the document below and check the highlighted words.
Conversation Model Revised.doc
PRODUCTION
Now it is time to record what you can do.
1. Get together with another student, find the icon of Audacity on the desktop, open the program, and record the conversation you listened to in the previous exercise.
2.After recording the conversation, click on file, select the option that goes "Export as mp3" and save your file.
3.Open your email and send yourself a message with the audio file attached.
THOUGHT GROUPS
In written texts, we have a clear idea of how information is organized. However, when speaking, people use rhythm and intonation to get the message across. Specifically, we use thought groups. Watch the following video to have more clear ideas about this.
*ADDITIONAL REFERENCE MATERIAL*
Watch videos on how to pronounce different words in English. Read the definition, check the example and practice.
Sozo Exchange Daily Pronunciation
This page will read anything for you. Enter the text and click on SAY IT!
*EXPANSION ACTIVITIES*
1. Tongue Twisters are some challenging exercises that will allow you improve the way you produce sounds in English. Follow the steps below in order to make the most out of this exercise.
a. Open the following document.
b. Copy one of the tongue twisters.
c. Click on this link.
d. Paste the tongue twister in the white box.
e. Click on " SAY IT"
f. Listen and repeat several times.
g. Open Audacity and record the tongue twister.
h. Listen to it and compare it with the one in step F.
i. Identify possible problems and do it again.
j. Save the audio file you just created and put it in a folder to keep track of your oral performance.
2. In this exercise you are going to read the following text using Audacity. Remember to prepare first to get familiar with the contents and then use Audacity to record your version.
Now listen to the following audio file to have an idea of the way it sounds. We used Text to Speech to generate it.
