Basic, but important!Consonants
We know what they are…
“Pronouncing consonants at the ends of words or syllables […] is challenging for most
students, even when the same consonants pose no problems at the beginning of words.”
/t/ in time v. /t/ might
“Problems with consonant clusters and with final consonants generally are tied to the
differences between syllable structure in the learner’s native language and in English”
What consonant sounds do you have difficulty saying in English?Tips for Teaching Consonants
Direct students’ attention to the visible clues of consonant pronunciation
Teach the pronunciation of communicatively useful words
Integrate pronunciation with work on functional language, grammar, or other coursework
Teach students to recognize reduced pronunciation to improve their listening
comprehension
Use hand gestures to reinforce the articulation of /r/
Encourage students to pronounce the consonants in consonant clusters
Encourage students to pronounce final consonants to improve comprehensibility and
grammatical accuracyLabials: pet, bet, feet, vet, wet
/p, b, f, v, w/ all involve the lips
/p/ /b/ - lips close; /p/ is voiceless, /b/ is
voiced
/f/ /v/ - top teeth touch the lower lip; /f/ is
voiceless, /v/ is voiced
/w/ the lips are rounded
Which of these sounds are problems for
Vietnamese students?T Practice: Tongue Twister
A: It was raining, but I had
to take my pet to the vet.
B: Did your feet get wet?
A: You bet!Quick Note: Slang and Th-
Students should be aware that “some substitutions for th sounds (for example,
“wif” for “with,” “dem” for “them,” and “tink” for “think”) are stigmatized and
associated with nonstandard, uneducated English”
In other words, “incorrect pronunciations of th sounds may lead native listeners to
conclude that the student is not well educated”
“Only the t-d substitution is stigmatized. The s-z substitusion will be heard as
nonnative, not nonstandard”Th Sounds Activity: When’s your birthday?
What are ordinal numbers?
1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th…
When is your birthday, using
ordinal numbers?R Sounds Activity: The R Game
Where is your tongue when you
pronounce the letter /r/?
The tip of the tongue starts up and
back and then lowers
It does NOT touch the top of the
mouth
No using the back of the tongue
No using the /w/ sound instead!R Sounds Activity: The R Game
1. What’s the opposite of forget?
2. What’s the opposite of polite?
3. What’s the opposite of urban?
4. Mix blue with this color to get purple.
5. Before TV, people listened to the ______.
6. What are the Mississippi and the Nile?
7. What’s a synonym for carpet?
8. You use a pencil or pen to do this.
1. Remember
2. Rude
3. Rural
4. Red
5. Radio
6. Rivers
7. Rug
8. WriteR Sounds Activity: The R Game
1. What’s the opposite of wrong?
2. Your uncles, cousins, grandparents, and
nephew are your ______.
3. This is a word that means fix.
4. You wear this on your left hand when you
get married.
5. This is the top of a building.
6. These flowers are a sign of love.
7. This verb means to go back.
8. What’s the opposite of to fall?
1. Right
2. Relatives
3. Repair
4. Ring
5. Roof
6. Rose
7. Return
8. RiseReplacing /l/ with /n/ (or vice versa)
/n/ is at the ridge
/l/ is at the top of the teeth
You’ve no need to light a night-light
On a night like tonight,
For a night-light’s light’s a slight light,
And tonight’s a night that’s light.Contrasting /r/ and /l/
/r/ tongue does NOT touch the
top of the mouth
/l/ tongue touches the top of
the mouth
Lovely Lisa loves Luke
Ray Rivers reached RomeInitial Consonant Clusters: Problem?
/pr/ for the first syllable and /bl/ for
the second syllable
Problem becomes “pabem”
Greet becomes “geet”
Why does this happen?
Vietnamese doesn’t permit
beginning consonant clustersConsonant Clusters Activity:
Extreme Weather
Have you ever experienced extreme
weather? Explain.
Has the weather in Vietnam changed
at all due to global warming? How?
What type of climate do you prefer?
Have students list weather words to
use for reference if necessary.Deletion of Final Consonants
“Deletion [of final consonants] can directly lower intelligibility of a word (because
part of the word is missing)”
Vowels before voiced consonants are longer than vowels before voiceless
consonants
Vowel + Voiced Consonant: raise, feed, pig (longer vowels)
Vowel + Voiceless Consonant: face, feet, pick (shorter vowels)
When students learn to lengthen vowels before voiced consonants, the final
consonant sounds more voiced, even if it is not.Final Consonants Activity
Exaggerate the length of the vowel in the first member of each pair
and pronounce the final consonants normally
Do not over-pronounce the final consonants
After modeling, read one and ask students to circle the correct
word
Pairs work, spell that, sentences all optionsFinal Consonants Activity
Bell Belt
Shore Short
Fax Faxed
Dog Dogs
Pick Picked
Watch Watched
Thank Thanked
Plan Plant
Advise Advice
Pig Pick
Rise Rice
Peas Piece
Bag Back
(to) Use (a) Use
Have Half
Said SetTips for Teaching Consonants
Direct students’ attention to the visible clues of consonant pronunciation
Teach the pronunciation of communicatively useful words
Integrate pronunciation with work on functional language, grammar, or other coursework
Teach students to recognize reduced pronunciation to improve their listening
comprehension
Use hand gestures to reinforce the articulation of /r/
Encourage students to pronounce the consonants in consonant clusters
Encourage students to pronounce final consonants to improve comprehensibility and
grammatical accuracyConsonants Conclusion
“Perhaps more than any other area of pronunciation, stereotyped
pronunciations involve mispronunciations of consonants”
“The most pervasive and persistent errors with consonants occur
when they are in the final position”
“Errors with final consonants can lower students’ comprehensibility
as well as their grammatical accuracy”Bibliography
Lane, Linda. Tips for Teaching Pronunciation: A Practical Approach. Edited by H.
Douglas Brown, Pearson Education, Inc., 2010.Sally
Sally sells sea shells down by the sea shore.Peter Piper
Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers.
If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers,
Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?