Pronouncing OY- EnjOY!

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Pronouncing American English vowel sounds requires a good description and model for you to imitate. After all, when vowel sounds are not accurately pronounced- the word will sound totally different than the one you intended! There are other times that vowels are surrounded by sounds that also can be difficult to form correctly.  In this lesson, you will practice both:  a two-part vowel sound AND a difficult concept…the final L sound.

I love writing these lessons and enjoy teaching to you the sounds that many require help with. I guess it’s not a coincidence that this week you will practice the word enJOY.

 https://youtu.be/FBDXuFLgSpM

Pronouncing WO – Two Ways!

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Wow! This week was International Women’s Day.  Let’s celebrate all of the women in our lives and their achievements. Now is the time to raise awareness against bias and make an effort to take action for equality.
In honor of all women in the world, please enjoy this lesson about pronouncing the words ‘woman’ and ‘women’.

Pronouncing the W in English requires the lips to be fully rounded and pushed forward a bit. Many of my students are able to form their lips correctly, but attaching the next vowel sound is the difficult part. In this lesson you will practice W +  (two different) vowels:

  • W + /ʊ​​​​/ the sound in the word “put”​​​ (listen to me on the recording) as in the word WOMAN
  • W + /ɪ/ the sound in the word “it” (listen to me on the recording) as in the word WOMEN.

And finally pay attention to the last syllable in both of the words:

  • woMAN and woMEN are pronounced the same even though they are spelled differently! Pronounce this reduced syllable as if you are saying “MIN”

Mastering the P Sound

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Pronouncing the P Sound

Sure, it’s easy to say the /p/ sound, but if you would like to pronounce the sound the American English way, then this lesson is for you.  Do you speak English using a different accent than American English?   You may be using less air than you should be while trying to pronounce words that have the P in it. This lesson will help you understand that if the P is not pronounced with enough air, it will sound like a B. My name would sound like “Bam!” instead of Pam, or the listener may hear “Boar” (a pig!) instead of the word ‘poor’.

The tongue twister in this lesson: Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, how pecks of pickled peppers did Peter Piper pick?  That’s 18 P’s to practice!

Please comment below and tell me if this P sound is easy (or hard) for you to pronounce using the American English way.  Include your native language. I would love to hear from you!