Understanding and Teaching the Pronunciation of English.pdf

either in writing or verbally. Students read or listen to the
words, decide which sound they represent, and write the
words in the correct boxes.

Listening practice using minimal pairs:

1. Choose a minimal pair that contains the sounds you’re
   practicing. For example, for /r/ and /l/, you might
   choose rock and lock or right and light. Choose words
   that your students know; uncommon words like roam
   and loam are not the best choices. Write the two words
   on the board or draw pictures to represent them if your
   students are not yet able to read.


2. Say the words and have students repeat them. Show and
   explain di"erences in how the sounds are pronounced
   using demonstrations, mirrors, or a dental model.


3. Label the words on the board “1” and “2.” Say one of the
   words and have students tell you which word you’ve
   said, holding up one or two !ngers. Keep this up until
   they can identify the sounds easily.


4. Have students do the “1 or 2” practice with a partner for
   a few minutes while you go around and check their
   pronunciation. Students take turns saying one of the
   words for their partner to identify.

A variation of minimal pair practice: Practice in the

same way again, whispering or saying the words without

making any sound, and have students decide which word

you’re saying. This pushes them to pay attention to lip

rounding, tongue movement, etc. (Don’t use this to practice

di"erentiating voiced/voiceless pairs like /b/ and /p/! All the

sounds are voiceless when you whisper.)

Minimal pair sentences are sentences that are exactly the

same except for one sound. For example:

We enjoy voting. We enjoy boating.

He’s a pirate. He’s a pilot.

Give me the paper. Give me the pepper.

Pairs of sentences like these are useful for practicing in the

same way as minimal pair words, and they o"er at least a

little bit of context. You’ll probably !nd, though, that writing

minimal pair sentences is much harder than thinking of

minimal pair words because the sounds, meaning, and

grammar all have to !t together perfectly.

Cloze listening with sentences or paragraphs: Prepare

a handout with sentences or a paragraph with some words

replaced by blanks. As the teacher reads or plays a recording

of the text in the handout, students try to hear and write

down the missing words. When planning this activity, keep in

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