5 Amazing Tips to Improve Your Pronunciation Now!

Hello ESL learners who are presently working on accent reduction or as we say at Accent Master; learning an American accent.  I have put together a list of tips that have helped many of my clients improve their spoken English.

 Are you looking for ideas of what you can do right now, even if you can't make the time to take one of our private or group classes in English pronunciation?  Well let me give you the link in case you didn't know that beyond our excellent software program we do indeed have private classes  Accent Master Private Classes Oh and while I am at it I will mention that our software program price has been reduced to just $99.00, or a download for $89.00.  Here is the link for that great deal:   Accent Master Software .  Okay so lets get to what you can do on your own.  Below I am giving you 5 tips that will really help you be understood.

 Five Tips to Improve Your English Pronunciation Now!

1. English flows.  It has been said that the rhythm of English is like that of jazz.  Often new speakers of English are told to slow down; this can actually cause more difficulty.  English words are often connected as in “how-are you” The first two words sound like one.  If you separate each word you will end up sounding robotic.
2. The /th/ sound, this one is not found in many languages, with the exception of Greek and Cotillion Spanish.  The good news is that it is easy to see in the mirror.  Take a look in the mirror.  Whisper this sentence.  He thought a bath would be a good thing.  You should see your tongue sticking out just a bit between your teeth 3 times.  The most common mistake is to replace /th/ with a /d/ or /t/.  Just move that tongue out a bit and you will have it.
3. Listen to a book on tape.  This will be an excellent example of English spoken well.  Listening to well produced English is one of the best things you can do for yourself.  Training the ear to “stop hearing with an accent” is crucial to accent modification success.
4. How about that /r/? The American /r/ is different than most.  There is no contact from the tongue to any other part of the mouth when producing the /r/ sounds.  Just curl the tongue tip back and let the air flow out around it. 
5. Here is a simple tip about /s/ and /z/.  Often in American English we like to write s and then produce a /z/.  As in the final position of words.  If an s follows a vowel or a silent sound at the end of a word it is produced as a /z/.  Here are some examples.  

s that is produced as a /z/                          s that sounds like an /s/

Cries                                                          hits

Beds                                                          tacks

Rays                                                          bells

The most important thing you can do now is practice these 5 tips.  Then go our and use them in conversation.  Put on your American accent in low pressure situations, like ordering your coffee or talking to a sales person on the phone.  Then try it out on acquaintances until you feel confident to start using these new  patterns in conversations that are more  intense for example with a boss, a colleague or a client.

Lynn founder of ;
Accent Master

Stress in Special Situations

In this post we will look at stress in some special circumstances such as in compound nouns and in abbreviations. This post will go along with the podcast I posted on the right side bar. It is called Stress in Special Circumstances.

Compound Nouns; always stress the first word in the compound noun. Say the following words stressing the first word, and then create sentences for each one.


Workplace........boardroom.............mailroom

Workshop.........textbook..............downsize

Showroom.........business trip.........overtime

Team leader......outcome................chairman

Network..........paycheck...............timeline

Copy machine.... fiscal year............small talk

Wholesale........weekday................parking lot

Full-time........workday................carpool

Sick leave.......executive board........salesman

Time clock.......high-tech..............office supplies

Bar graph........timesheet..............sick days


Abbreviations: Stress generally falls on the last letter.
Acronyms: Pronounce as one word

LLC................ DBA
ATM................ MBO
IRA................ SEP (acronym)
CD................ PER
IRS................ FRB
FDIC................ NYAW
SEC................ TIN
EIN................ PIN (acronym)
EPS................ ROI
EBIT (acronym................) EVA
IT................ IPO


Sentences:

2. Is the program on ABC or HBO?
3. He received his B.A and M.S from UCLA.
4. RSVP to the party and remember it’s BYOB
5. The conference was filled with RN’s and LPN’s.
6. The CEO and CFO are on the Executive Board of that organization.
7. Please reply to the memo from HR ASAP
8. The VIPs waited in the greenroom before their appearance on NBC.
9. Insert the CD in your PC or laptop.

Numbers: When counting stress the first syllable in ‘teen’ numbers and the second number above 20.
When stating numbers for time, money or amounts then you stress the last part of the teen numbers.
When referring to the ‘ten’ numbers like twenty or thirty stress the first syllable, when stressing numbers other than the ‘round’ numbers stress the last part like 1:54.

Sentences
1. The train going to Boston leaves at 10:22.
2. He will arrive at 2:30.
3. I scheduled your meeting for 11:15.
4. The reservations are for 7:30.
5. He lives at 25 217th street.
6. The zip code is 11361
7. Is there fourteen or fifteen people in the group?
8. He called 15 times this morning!
9. I always shop on 5th avenue.
10. I have twenty more minutes.