Sao Tome And Principe Pronunciation

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Consonants and Vowels   The next thing we should look at is how our consonants are arranged for the top two rows we have P and F at the left side of our chart and G and J at the right side of our chart. They're arranged this way because if we analyze the way we speak we're using the front of our mouth to use these sounds as in ?p? and ?f? and I'm using my lips and my teeth to produce those sounds and as we move to the right on the chart slowly but surely we're making those sounds it towards the back of our mouth. We can use the examples of ?g?. The sound ?g? is produced further back in our mouth than ?p?. The next thing we'll notice about our chart is that some of our symbols are shaded. Notice that none of the symbols in the vowel...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and phonology in the EFL Classroom - Intonation   Whereas stress is typically concerned with one individual word, intonation is generally concerned with the variation in volume and pitch throughout an entire sentence. Intonation carries the message of a sentence. It's particularly important when questioning or agreeing, disagreeing and confirming statements. It's also very important when expressing emotions and feelings. The normal pattern for intonation is the rise-fall. Few examples would be ?I haven't seen him for a week,? or a simple word as ?okay?. With the falling intonation, we?re indicating that we're finished speaking. Again, ?I haven't seen him for a week? and ?okay?. A few more examples would be ?I'll see you at six then,? or a question of information ?How...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Phonemes   In this video we'll be looking at the international phonemic alphabet and how it's used in the classroom. There are other phonemic alphabets but this is the most popular and the system, which is most widely used. You may have seen some of these symbols before as any good dictionary will supplement standard English spellings with the phonemic spellings to aid in pronunciation practice. Here we have a situation where we have what are called phonemes and each phoneme represents a sound within the English language. How is this helpful? Well, what it does is help students understand how to say words rather than simply relying on the often archaic English spellings. To illustrate this point let's for a moment put ourselves in...  [Read more]

Principal vs Principle - English Grammar - Teaching Tips   This video covers the difference between 'principal' and 'principle'. These two words often cause confusion for English learners due to their similar spelling. The word 'principal' can be used as a noun and as an adjective. As a noun, it refers to a person of authority, like a school principal, the head of a school. When used as an adjective, it means 'leading' or 'primary', like a principal cause or reason. The word 'principle', on the other hand, is only used as a noun and refers to a moral or standard, like the principle of free speech. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - International Phonetic Alphabet   A better way to go about imparting how to make sounds or what sounds are utilized in a word, is this international phonemic alphabet. Now we have as mentioned one symbol being used in all the words which share that same sound. Now once we get a little bit more familiar with our phonemic alphabet we can also show how different our different sounds can be as in this symbol for ?ooh?, this symbol for ?ow? and this symbol for ?uh?. Below you can read feedback from an ITTT graduate regarding one section of their online TEFL certification course. Each of our online courses is broken down into concise units that focus on specific areas of English language teaching. This convenient, highly structured design...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Connected Speech   Connected speech is also an important element of phonology and it's involved in joining words together in an effect to make our speech more efficient. Some might say it's a product of being lazy but nonetheless it's what we all do and we want all of our non-native speakers to speak as naturally as possible, so we have to be aware of these things. Here are a few of the more common examples. We have linking, dropping, changing and extra lettering. An example of each would be with linking, we link our words together so that they almost in effect become one word. Instead of saying ?What do you want to do,? we typically will say ?Whatdoyou want to do?? Then, we can also have dropping. Rather than pronouncing each and...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - "Oh" Sound   Here we have a set of five words, which all share one sound: the ?oh? sound, as in ?go?, ?show?, ?dough?, ?note? and ?boat?. They?re five different spelling patterns to tell our students so they can identify when to make the ?oh? sound. We can have a simple letter ?o?, ?ow?, ?ough?, ?o? with the magic ?e? which turns our vowel into what we knew as long sounds and the ?oa? as in ?boat?. Now, for a non-native learner, perhaps they can handle something like this. They remember that these spelling combinations help to produce the ?oh? sound and they can go about their business looking at the words and memorizing this knowing that these spelling patterns will produce the sound ?oh?. Now that?s okay until we get to a...  [Read more]

Mon, 29 Jun 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Why Phonetics and Phonology are Fundamental for Pronunciation According to the Cambridge Dictionary, pronunciation is "how words are pronounced. Pronunciation can be an intimidating prospect for English language learners, especially since English phonetics and phonology hardly seem consistent. The difficulty of English pronunciation should not be underestimated as speaking is a vital component of language learning. Confidence in this skill can be closely linked to students' accuracy and fluency. Therefore, a teacher should understand the basics of phonology and phonetics to help build students' confidence in their speaking skills. Table of Contents Phonetics is useful in explaining how words are pronounced. While phonetics and...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Issues with the International Phonetic Alphabet   There are two issues that need to be stressed when working with the international phonemic alphabet. First is the fact that we are no longer concerned with how a word is traditionally spelled. Additionally we need to stress that we are only concerned with the sounds needed to correctly produce a word. So rather than numerous spellings, which can often be pronounced in different ways, we have one symbol representing one sound. Once we can isolate a sound, rather than juggling various spellings, we can work with our students on how to say that sound. Doing that successfully is related to manner and place of articulation, which will be covered shortly. To get a better understanding of...  [Read more]

Thu, 28 Nov 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Teaching ESL Classes vs. EFL Classes Programs in English as a second language (ESL) generally take place in countries where English is the dominant or official language. People participating in an ESL program likely immigrated to an English-speaking country from a non-English speaking county and so are learning English as a language to be used in their everyday lives. In contrast, programs in English as a foreign language (EFL) generally take place in countries where English is not the official or dominant language. People participating in an EFL program are likely still in their home country and may or may not ever use English outside of the EFL classroom. This fundamental difference between the two types of programs can lead to...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Traditional Spellings to Phonemic Spellings Pt. 1   Now let's take a look at how we go from traditional spellings into the phonemic spellings. The first step in this process is identifying each unit of sound or each phoneme within a word. Let's look at bet, bit, but, and bought. The only difference in each one of these words is in the vowel sound. We have bet, bit, but and bought. Each word simply uses three sounds. Now we have photo. That's four phonemes. Wow we have taxi. That's five phonemes. We have unite with a hidden phoneme in there being the ?y? sound before anything else. Those are five phonemes as well and now we have a longer word: chemistry. Let's give that a shot. That's eight phonemes used in the word chemistry. Now...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Traditional Spellings to Phonemic Spellings Pt. 2   "As mentioned before our four words here all are similar in using the ?b? and ?t? sounds at the end. So we know that those phonemes will be used in spelling each one of those words phonetically. Now what we're left to do is assign a phoneme for our vowel sounds. So if we analyze the word, it's ?e? as in bet. We look at our chart, we see the phoneme which corresponds to that sound and that happens to be the standard ?e? that we all recognize. Here, bet phonetically looks very similar to bet in the Roman script. Now let's take a look at ?i? bit. Now we look at our chart and we see that this symbol represents the ?i? sound and that resembles a capital I not a lowercase I but a capital...  [Read more]

Thu, 24 Aug 2023 Federico Riva TEFL Information Alumni Experiences Mastering English Language Sounds: Enhancing Pronunciation and Auditory Receptive Skills Explore the challenges and strategies in teaching English language sounds and pronunciation across different age groups.It's widely known that students of various age groups exhibit varying learning capacities. Despite these differences and regardless of background or origin, learners of English (referred to as L2) often struggle with speaking and listening due to the language's heavy reliance on auditory comprehension. This article delves into the importance of addressing these pronunciation challenges, especially in the context of teaching English as a second language. Table of Contents Understanding Age-Related Differences...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Place of Articulation Pt. 2   Alveolar sounds get their name from the fact that the alveolar ridge is being used. Again, that ridge is just behind the front top row of teeth. Here the tongue is on or very very near the alveolar ridge. It's typically the tip of the tongue or what's just behind the tip of the tongue, called the blade of the tongue. Here, we're talking about sounds such as ?t? and ?d?. If you say them at home, you can tell the tip of your tongue is on that alveolar ridge. Again, that's ?t? and ?d?, as well as sounds such as ?s? and ?z?. Again, the blade of the tongue is just near that alveolar ridge but it is very near nonetheless. The two other sounds that make it into this category is the ?l? sound, where the tip of...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Place of Articulation Pt. 1   Place of articulation deals with the placement of the vocal organs when producing a sound. Before we can cover the particulars of places of articulation, we'll need to take a look at the various vocal organs and their locations. Moving from the front to the back we'd begin with our lips. We can use both lips in order to create a sound or we can use one of our lips with one of our rows of teeth, usually the top, in order to produce another sound. We also have other sounds, which use both of the rows of teeth. Further back we have what's called the alveolar ridge. That's the bit of the mouth that may get burnt when we're eating a pizza that's a bit too hot and the cheese burns just behind there our top...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and Phonology in the EFL Classroom - Manner of Articulation Pt. 1   When it comes to manner of articulation, we have six different ways in which our breath is produced in order to make our sounds. We have our plosives, our affricates, fricatives, the nasal sounds, our lateral sound and the approximants. Let's take a look at each individually and see how they differ from one another. First we have our plosive sounds. As the word might indicate we have basically a little explosion of sound with our breath. The plosive sounds are made through a three-step process. First there's a closure somewhere in the vocal tract. Second there's a buildup of air and finally there's a sudden release of that air like a little explosion. If we look at some of the sounds that are made this...  [Read more]

Pronunciation and phonology in the EFL Classroom - Manner of Articulation Pt. 3   And now we have our nasal sounds. There are three nasal sounds and basically the pattern of air that's moving out of our vocal tract has to do with two big instances and that is a closure in the vocal tract. Except aside from the plosives and affricates, what we have is air escaping through our nasal cavity. These sounds include ?m?, ?n? and ?ng?. We're moving from the front of the mouth to the back of the mouth. First with the M sound or the ?m?, we're closing both lips and the air is escaping through the nasal passage ?m?. Next we have our N sound or our ?n? sound. There, the closure is inside the mouth but our tongue is closing up near our alveolar ridge and the air is escaping through the nose....  [Read more]

Mon, 01 Apr 2019 Mark Crocker Alumni Experiences How Important are Phonology and Pronunciation in the English Language Classroom? As a speaker of 5 languages (French being my native one), I've been exposed to different ways of teaching how one particular language sounds and why it sounds that way, what kind of meaning is conveyed using what sounds in what order, and so on. Quite often, I've noticed that in the school system, not enough emphasis is put on studying the sounds that pertain to the language itself. Table of Contents Learning English in a French Environment The Importance of Intonation Other Common Pronunciation Mistakes in English One Innovative Way I Tried to Help My Students In Conclusion Are you ready to teach English abroad? Related Articles: Listen to this blog post...  [Read more]

Thu, 26 Sep 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas How to Teach the Correct Pronunciation of L, R, V, and F Many students of English as a Second Language (ESL) find that, of the many struggles they have with the language, pronunciation is the most difficult to master. Table of Contents Working on Fluency Difficult Sounds: Part 1 How to Teach? Difficult Sounds: Part 2 How to Teach? Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Listen to this blog post Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Sophie M. Please note that this blog post might not necessarily represent the beliefs or opinions of ITTT. Working on Fluency Pronunciation is an extremely important ability to have to sound more fluent in English. By gaining the knowledge and skill of...  [Read more]

Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Antonym Twins This is a fun worksheet about adjectives and their antonyms. Students match each word in Twin Tom with its opposite in Twin Tyrone.   Are you interested in teaching English as a foreign language? ​Get your TEFL Certificate with ITTT. Register now & get certified to teach english abroad! Check out ITTT's Blog Posts  [Read more]

Wed, 01 Apr 2020 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas How I Solved the Pronunciation Problem of the Voiced 'TH' with Chinese Students In my experience with teaching Chinese students, most pronounce the unvoiced 'TH' sound correctly. To account for the difference in sound between the unvoiced 'TH' and the voiced 'TH', most students seem to have developed the habit of placing their tongue either on the back of their front teeth or on the roof of the mouth immediately behind the front teeth to create a plosive 'TH' sound which sounds most closely like and' sound. Table of Contents Defining the problem Understanding physiology of the sound How to work on pronunciation online Memory games Do you want to teach English abroad? Take a TEFL course! Related Articles: This post was written by our...  [Read more]

Thu, 09 Feb 2023 Hoàng Minh Huy TEFL Information Alumni Experiences 3 Essential Teaching Skills Every Teacher Needs To Know Teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) is a challenging yet rewarding task that requires a set of essential skills. Pronunciation, grammar knowledge, and teaching method are three crucial elements that every teacher needs to possess in order to be effective in their role. From developing a neutral pronunciation to understanding grammatical rules and exploring different teaching methodologies, these skills are necessary for both native and non-native English teachers. In this blog post, we'll delve into each of these skills, highlighting their importance and providing practical tips for improvement. Whether you're a seasoned teacher or just starting out,...  [Read more]

Elizaveta Pachina Liza is a translator, freelancer and ESL teacher from Russia. She had been teaching in a Chinese bilingual school for more than two years and recently moved to Thiland to run her blog about teaching and freelance job. Read my articles Common English Pronunciation Issues for Native Italian Speakers | ITTT | TEFL Blog Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences This article was written by our TEFL graduate shares their experience of working with Italian students. The Principles of Motivating in the ESL Class | ITTT | TEFL Blog Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Motivating students is extremely important. How to do it successfully? Read in this blog post. Why Phonetics and Phonology are Fundamental for Pronunciation | ITTT | TEFL Blog Elizaveta Pachina Teaching...  [Read more]

Do you need to be bilingual to teach English? The straightforward answer is NO. Aspiring TEFL instructors often wonder about this, but the primary requirement is a profound mastery of English. While knowing the native language of your destination country can offer advantages in daily life and understanding cultural nuances, it is not a prerequisite for most employers. Your expertise in English will foster an immersive learning environment, encouraging students to actively engage with the language. Table of Contents What will I need to teach English as a foreign language? How will I teach English if I don't speak the local language? What are the benefits of learning the local language? How to learn another language while teaching English abroad What will I need to teach English as a...  [Read more]

Fri, 18 Oct 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences There Is No L (And Other Differences Between Japanese and English) Throughout high school and college, I mainly focused on learning how to speak Japanese as my second language. Unlike English, Japanese is a fairly phonetic language. Two of its three writing systems, hiragana and katakana, are phonetic. This makes it easy for foreigners to learn because each syllable, also known as sound clusters in some circles, is almost always said exactly how it is spelled. The third writing system, kanji, is not and, as such, is much more difficult for foreigners to learn because kanji are essentially pictures that describe their meaning. They are much more difficult to learn and use in everyday speech. Table of Contents Differences in...  [Read more]

Fri, 28 Oct 2022 Federico Riva TEFL Information Teaching Ideas 10 Crucial Teaching Skills Every Online Teacher Should Have With the advent of online teaching making such a large part of the ESL market, we need to be aware of some teaching skills for that area. Table of Contents Watch the video about this topic Pronunciation Grammar Knowledge Teaching Methodology Classroom Management Online Teaching Skills Monitoring Student Motivation Leson Design Social Media Management Business Development Are you ready to teach English as a foreign language? Related Articles: Check out what our course grads say in our many video testimonials! Watch the video about this topic Pronunciation The first skill to consider which is absolutely important for ESL teachers, both native and non-native is...  [Read more]

Do you need to be bilingual to teach English? Many potential TEFL trainees come to us and ask whether they need to speak another language in order to teach English overseas or online. The good news is the answer is most definitely NO, you do not need to have any language skills other than a thorough understanding of the English language. Obviously, if you do speak the native language of the country you intend to live and work in it can be a real help in many ways, but it is not normally required by the employer. What will I need to teach English as a foreign language? The specific requirements for teaching English abroad or online will vary depending on the country and the individual employer. In all cases a thorough understanding of the mechanics of English will be required. On top of...  [Read more]

Mon, 29 Jan 2024 Luciana Campos Alumni Experiences Teaching Ideas The 3 Most Successful Play-Based Techniques for Teaching Pronunciation In today's world, it is essential for young adults to learn proper pronunciation to communicate effectively and confidently. Proper pronunciation helps others understand what we are saying. It is crucial for successful communication, especially when speaking English. Traditional methods of teaching pronunciation can be time-consuming and stressful for students. However, pronunciation is an essential component of language acquisition. So, there's no way to run! Table of Contents Gamification as a means for learning to pronounce Tips on Pronunciation Last Remarks Related articles Ready to teach English as a Foreign Language? Related Articles: Check...  [Read more]

Sat, 30 Nov 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Alumni Experiences Phonetical Challenges for Vietnamese English Learners Phonology is the system of sounds that exist within a particular language, while phonetics is the study of how speech sounds are produced. One difficulty for all learners of a second language is learning how to produce new sounds by moving the mouth, lips, and tongue in new ways. Several other languages also share the Roman alphabet with English but do not pronounce letters and combinations of letters the same way. These learners need to learn the English phonology so that when they read English, they will know how to pronounce the words they read correctly, and so that they speak English with a more native-sounding accent. Table of Contents English in Vietnam Language...  [Read more]

Mon, 17 Jun 2019 Elizaveta Pachina Teaching Ideas Common Pronunciation Challenges for Learners in Azerbaijan Pronunciation is an essential part of the English language. Clear and cohesive speech can create meaningful conversations, meanwhile incorrect pronunciation can lead to misunderstandings. Every, non-native English-speaking country has pronunciation problems. One of the countries which come across with pronunciation errors is my homeland Azerbaijan. It is a lovely country, with nice traditions and people. Table of Contents Multilingual Country Historical Reasons Modern Situation Digital Age Teacher Training Do you want to teach English abroad? You are one step from it! Related Articles: This post was written by our TEFL certification graduate Narmina M. Please note that this...  [Read more]