DAY 3
accent & pronunciation
video

Welcome to Day 3 of the
Accent & Speaking Challenge!

Today, we’re going back to the consonants. We’ll focus on [p] [t] and [k], and how to aspirate them in appropriate places in a word.

  • In General American (as in a vast majority of other varieties of English), you will aspirate [p] [t] [k]:

    1) at the beginning of the word

    2) at the beginning of the stressed syllable when it’s not preceded by [s]

    In phonetic transcription, a stressed syllable is marked with a ˈ symbol, and aspiration is marked as a small ʰ symbol after the aspirated sound. Some dictionaries omit the aspiration symbol, so pʰay attʰention to the syllables that carry word stress:

    • cat /ˈkʰæt/ (one syllable word, [k] is aspirated)

    • attack /əˈtʰæk/ (two syllable word, the second syllable is stressed, [t] is aspirated)

    • possible /ˈpʰɑ.sə.bəl/ (three syllable word, the first syllable is stressed, [p] is aspirated)

    • photograph /ˈfoʊ.t̬oʊ.ɡræf/ (three syllable word, the first syllable is stressed, [t] is not aspirated - it’s a voiced-t sound)

  • If you struggle with knowing which syllable is stressed, use the online dictionaries I listed in Day One. This is also a great opportunity to work on your vowels, so you can now put everything together.

    WORDS

    • kite

    • time

    • pay

    • comfort

    • oppose

    • return

    • talk

    • partner

    • appear

    • key

    • accustomed

    • tendency

    • Harry Potter

    • cable

    • peace

    • pace

    • case

    • kit

    • pattern

    • tutor

    • comedy

    PHRASES

    Advanced: in each of these sentences there’s only one sound that should be aspirated.

    • A spy wanted to buy a raspberry pie.

    • I don’t smile when I look at the sky, but Caroline always giggles.

    • Taylor had a stye when he bought a die.

DAY 3 speaking video

You’ve made it!

Let’s continue with our skill building practice. After you’ve watched the video you can reflect on these questions:

  1. Which topics are super easy for me to talk about? Which are the hardest? Why?

  2. What topics are important for me but I don’t feel confident when talking about them? How will I work on it?

  3. I’d like you to pick one category that you love talking about, one that is okay, and one you don’t feel good about.

Find or create a few questions that somebody could ask you on these topics and answer them.

Notice how you feel. Are you relaxed, happy, nervous, angry? (If you are starting to notice any negative thoughts about your English come up, remember that you’re learning and practicing and getting better all the time).

How was the experience different in each of the categories? Were you looking for more words or phrases to use or did you say exactly what you wanted to say?

Remember to talk to yourself during this exercise.

You’re doing amazing. Keep it up, we’ve got 4 days left!
I’ll see you tomorrow.

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PRACTICE FURTHER INSIDE THE FACEBOOK GROUP:

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xoxo,

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instructor

Welcome to the 7 Day Accent and Speaking Challenge!

My name is Laura Maliszewska and I have a teeny tiny obsession: helping you overcome all of your fears and blocks when you speak English.

Over the next week, we'll be utilizing pronunciation learning techniques and speaking activities as tools to deepen your practice, improve your speaking skills in English, and cultivate self-confidence when speaking with an American accent.

Get ready for massive transformation of your English (and your life as a result).

xo

Laura

 
 
 

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