Beyond Words: Five Tricks to Improve Student Pronunciation
Nancy Swisher, Lecturer in ESL, NC State UniversityEditor, the ESL GLOBE
[email protected]/~nmswishe
What makes up our accents?
phonological characteristics of individual sounds
www.uiowa.edu/~acadtech/phonetics/english/frameset.html
Minimal pairs: beat/bit, made/mad, pill/bill
Five Tricks to Improve Comprehensibility
Word, Phrase and Sentence Stress
Today I will go to the gym to work out.
0.6 sec. 0.6 sec. 0.6 sec.
0.6 sec.0.6 sec.0.6 sec.
Most men like cars.
From Rhythm and Unstress by Howard B. Woods
Five Tricks to Improve Comprehensibility
Stress content words:
nouns / main verbs / adjectives / adverbs negatives / wh-words / interjections
Reduce or weaken function words:
articles / conjunctions / prepositionspronouns / auxiliary verbs
Five Tricks to Improve Comprehensibility
Focus in Phrases (thought groups) and Sentences
A woman / without her man / is nothing. A woman / without her / man is nothing.
Intonation
Five Tricks to Improve Comprehensibility
The soccer game is this weekend.
When? When?
I have to see Dr. Smith.
I have to see, Dr. Smith.
Five Tricks to Improve Comprehensibility
Reduced Forms
wanna gonna hafta
shoulda woulda coulda
Whaddaya Say?
Five Tricks to Improve ComprehensibilityLinking
Sup? Sko!
Jeet? No, joo?
Ledder gedda bedder wädr heedr.
What’s up? Let’s go!
Did you eat? No, did you?
Let her get a better water heater.
Mad Gabs
Ask Rude Arrive Her A screwdriver
Plea Sway Tube Ease Heated
Please wait to be seated.
Chick He Tub An An Us Chiquita bananas