This lesson is aimed at quickly improving pronunciation. It will focus on three sounds that don't appear in the Japanese alphabet, but most people can start to make them relatively quickly.
One full section of the G.B.C. is about pronunciation. It is an English skill that is often overlooked. This lesson will focus on three sounds that can be quickly improved: TH, SI and V. If you'd like to study pronunciation more deeply, please try one of our pronunciation courses.
This can be a long unit, please advise your student that it might take more time than other lessons to get good at these sounds. It is also something that they are likely to do well in class, and the revert to old habits in the very next lesson. You'll need to encourage them to practice every day (listen and repeat podcasts or read out loud etc.).
Japanese high school and junior high schools often don't mention pronunciation at all. And when they do, it's often not stressed as much as grammar or vocabulary. This is compounded by the fact that many of their teachers are non-native speakers who don't have good pronunciation skills themselves.
Important: point out that English teachers are professional understanders. It's our job to figure out what the student is saying, and we are good at it. The bar is much lower when dealing with people who are unaccustomed to speaking to non-native speakers.
1. Have you practiced pronunciation, and if so, what strategies have you used?
2. How is pronunciation different from other language skills?
1. Many students will never have seriously practiced pronunciation. Any strategy is good. We'll focus on coaching and tongue twisters today, so in other words: saying difficult combinations of words and getting feedback.
2. You can say: "The difference between pronunciation and vocabulary or grammar is that pronunciation is a muscular skill. You need coaching, and you need to repeat the movements a lot. Imagine going to the gym and lifting a weight. If you only do it once or twice, it wouldn't help much. You have to do it 10 or 20 times at least, every day, for months. So we'll practice a lot."
By the way, in the Language box, please scroll down to the teacher's notes.
If you have done the G.B.C., look at your score sheet. You will find specific sounds that need improvement. Please try everything, but spend more time on the sounds that your test administrator has noted.
/th/
This sound is made by putting your tongue out of your mouth, and pressing it against your front teeth. After making the sound correctly, say this tongue twister five times:
I think this that and the other thing.
It is often confused with /s/, /z/ or /d/. So try saying each of these pairs five times:
1. Think / sink.
2. The / za / da
3. Them / dem.
/si/
This sound does not exist in Japanese, so it is often a problem point. /si/ is a clean sound made without pushing your cheeks together, while /shi/ is made by pushing your cheeks together.
Start by saying these combinations:
1. sa, si, su
2. sha, shi, shu
Try to say each line five times, then put both lines together and say it all five times.
1. She sells,
2. sea shells,
3. by the sea shore.
/v/
This is another sound that does not exist in Japanese. /v/ is made by pushing your lower lip against your upper front teeth, while /b/ is made by pushing both lips together. Try saying each line five times:
1. Van / ban
2. Very / berry
3. Vancouver
/th/
Make sure your student is sticking out their tongue, this might feel a little embarrassing for some people but it's necessary. Clearly show on your video that your tongue is out, and how much it's out of your mouth.
The TH sound is often omitted or substituted when speaking, and there are examples of native English speakers (like people in some African American communities) that are fine with using "d" instead of "th" ("da" rather than "the"). However, if your student is considering attending business meetings or giving speeches, standard pronunciation will be expected. Be strict about this through the rest of the lesson.
/si/
Interestingly, Japanese does not have this sound. The alphabet only has /shi/. If your student has a company name with the initial C, they may be saying /shi/ rather than /si/.
This point should be simple to say but the tongue twister will be tough. Another good tongue twister is:
I see, she is sitting G.B.C..
/v/
This doesn't exist in Japanese but a lot of people will have practiced /v/ before. The idea here is to end on an easier note and praise your student. Frequent praise "good job", "awesome" etc. is important to keep motivation.
Pronouncing a word in context is more difficult than pronouncing the word by itself. Try answering these questions, and pay close attention to how you pronounce /th/, /si/ and /v/.
1. Describe your leadership experience, with a specific example.
2. What do you think of free trade agreements like the TPP?
3. What is your opinion of American president Donald Trump?