the pictures in Box 7.1 and the pattern at the end of this
chapter, after the example exercises.)
Rubber bands can be used to illustrate the di"erence
between tense and lax vowels. Have students hold a rubber
band and stretch it as they say words like see, say, new, or go
to help them feel the tension in their tongues and lips during
those vowels. Have them hold the rubber band loosely when
they say sit, set, book, or sat to illustrate that those sounds
are pronounced in a more relaxed way. Be sure to use the
thickest rubber bands you can !nd. (The ones I buy list their
size as #84.) Thin ones stretch or break too easily, and
they’re easier for students to get in trouble with by snapping
each other or $inging them across the room.
Drinking straws are useful for practicing several sounds.
To help students get a feeling for the tongue position for /r/,
have them grip a straw horizontally between their teeth (like
a dog holding a bone in its mouth) so that their tongue is
guided backwards and can’t reach the alveolar ridge. For /l/,
have them bite gently on the end of a straw, with the last 1/4
inch (0.5 centimeter) in their mouths. Have them put the tips
of their tongues above the short bit of straw that extends into
their mouths. The straw will push the tip of the tongue up to
the alveolar ridge.
When practicing /w/, and /kw/, and /uw/, which all require
rounded lips, have students put the end of a straw in their
mouths and tighten their lips around it to encourage lip
rounding. For /ᴜ/, use a bigger straw (a milkshake or “boba”
straw) or a !nger-sized rolled-up paper so that the lips are a
little less rounded.Feathers or tissue paper can be used to illustrate the
aspiration of initial stops /p/, /t/, and /k/. When we say
words beginning with these sounds, there’s a small pu" of air
that makes the feather or paper move slightly. If students are
not aspirating the stops enough, the feather or paper won’t
move. (Some books recommend using a lighted candle for
this purpose. However, this can be quite dangerous, and is
not a good idea, even with adult students.)Using gadgets with adults: Some teachers wonder if it’s
all right to use kinesthetic teaching aids with adult students.
I’ve found that most tools work well with adults, as long as
you explain the purpose of what you’re doing and tell them
how it will help them improve their pronunciation. Most
adults appreciate these learning aids if they see that they
have a learning purpose. While you won’t want to do
extremely childish or cute things with adults, you don’t have
to be businesslike 100% of the time either, even with
business-oriented adults.
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