Vowels
Consonants
Consonant clusters
Word endings
Schwa - Stress - Rhythm
100

Which vowel is it? Give 3 example words that have this sound.

Jaw: almost completely raised

Lips: in a “smile” position

Tongue: high in your mouth, and shifted toward the front

/i:/ sound

Examples: teeth, key, eel

100

a) What consonant do you get if you place the tip of your tongue between your teeth and push the air out while NOT vibrating your vocal cords?

b) What consonant do you get if you place the tip of your tongue between your teeth and push the air out while vibrating your vocal cords?

a) /θ/ sound 

b) /ð/ sound

100

Which words have consonant clusters? What are they?

text * boss * laugh * asking * knock * play * root * speak

text /tekst/ * asking /ˈæskɪŋ / * play /pleɪ/ * speak /spi:k/

NB! 

The word "laugh" is pronounced as /læf/.

The word "knock" is pronounced as /nɑk/.

100

Look these words. When do we use s-endings in English?

1) Mike's

2) develops

3) boxes

1) possessives

2) third person singular

3) plural nouns

100

Is this true or false? "The schwa /ə/ is the most common vowel in English."

Where to find the schwa? In stressed or unstressed syllables?

Where else (optional)? Give at least 3 example words.

True.

In unstressed syllables. 

And functional words (e.g., and, to, them)

200

Read the following word pairs. Describe how to pronounce the vowel in column b).

1. a) men b) main

2. a) fell b) fail

3. a) tech b) take

4. a) let  b) late

/eɪ/

Make the /e/ sound first then glide to /ɪ/

- Jaw: lifts up

- Tongue: lifts up to the proof of the mouth

- Lips: widens

200

- How does /dʒ/ differ from /ʒ/ (mouth positions)?

- Which words have /ʒ/ and which words have/dʒ/?

*jump - suggestion - vision - page - agenda - measure - engine - Asia - Java

The lips and teeth positions are the same as /ʒ/:

- Lips: flared - Teeth: come together

But the tongue is touching the alveolar ridge for /dʒ/.

*/dʒ/: jump, suggestion, page, agenda, engine, Java

*/ʒ/: vision, measure, Asia

200

Give one example for each of the two-letter consonant clusters. The rest of the class type with you hear in the chat (private message).

pl - bl - pr - br - tr - dr - cr - gr - sk - st - sm - sl - sn - sp

Possible answers:

play - blow - pray - brand - tree - dream - cream - group - skip - step - small - slip - snow - spend

200

The ed-endings can have 3 different pronunciations. What are they? Give examples.

a) /t/: helped, looked, washed 

b) /d/: called, cleaned, offered

c) /id/: wanted, needed

200

Which syllables/words are stressed? Where are the /ə/? Say the phrase.

  1. Move to the center
  2. Must understand
  3. Ask them a question
  4. Was responsible

1. 'muv tə ðə ˈsentər

2. məst ˌʌndərˈstænd

3. 'æsk ðəm ə ˈkwesʧən  

4. wəz riˈspɑnsəbəl

300

Read the following words. Which words are pronounced with /ɔ/? What about /ɔɪ/ or /oʊ/? 

voice - cost - coach - cross - draw - point - fall - toilet - voyage - don't - folder - fault - spoil - flow

/ɔ/: cost - cross - draw - fall - fault

/ɔɪ/: spoil - toilet - voice - voyage - point

/ oʊ/: don't - folder - flow - coach

300

Read the following word pairs. How does the /l/ sound in a) differ from the one in b) in terms of mouth position (e.g., tongue position)?

1. a) law     b) doll

2. a) lie      b) mile

3. a) lead   b) deal

4. a) lay     b) pale

a) Light L: tip of the tongue touches the alveolar ridge and releases.

b) Dark L: tip of the tongue touches the alveolar ridge and stays there.

300

Read the following words:

soft - fact - felt - old - solve - jump - point - chance - risk - test

Provide one example word for each of the final consonant cluster below:

_ft - _kt - _lt - _ld - _lv - _mp - _nt - _nd - _ns - _sk - _st

Possible answers:

draft - act - melt - cold - delve - pump - paint - nice - task - vest

300

Read out these phrases.

Claire's chairs * Max's faxes * Trish's wishes * Bob's jobs * Di's pies- * Rose knows * Rose's roses * The witch's watches * Pat's hats * George's fridges *

  1. Claire's /z/ chairs /z/
  2. Max's /əz/ faxes /əz/
  3. Trish's /əz/ wishes /əz/
  4. Bob's /z/ jobs /z/
  5. Di's /z/ pies /z/
  6. Rose /z/ knows /z/
  7. Rose's /əz/ roses /əz/
  8. The witch's /əz/ watches /əz/
  9. Pat's /s/ hats /s/
  10. George's /əz/ fridges /əz/
300

Why are certain words emphasized in a sentence?

How to emphasize a word?

To communicate a specific meaning.

By making it sound louder and longer with a higher pitch.

Try this:

"I completed this task on Monday morning." (You didn't though)

"I completed this task on Monday morning." (Not a different one)

"I completed this task on Monday morning." (Not Wednesday)

"I completed this task on Monday morning." (Not evening)

400

Look at the transcriptions below and read the sentences out loud.

1. əˈvɔɪd ˈmeɪkɪŋ boʊld dɪˈsɪʒənz wɪˈθaʊt kənˈsʌltɪŋ jər bɒs.
2. ɪts ˈpɔɪntləs tə ˈkælkjəˌleɪt ðə ˈtoʊtəl kɒst naʊ.
3. prəˈmoʊt ə ˈkʌlʧər əv kənˈtroʊl ənd sɪˈkjʊrəti tə prəˈtekt ˈdeɪtə.
4. wi ʤɔɪn ðə kəmˈjunətiz tə noʊ ðə moʊst ˈrisənt trendz.
5. enˈʤɔɪ ðə rɪˈmoʊt səˈpɔrt wɪð ʤəst ə foʊn kɔl.

  1. Avoid making bold decisions without consulting your boss.
  2. It's pointless to calculate the total cost now.
  3. Promote a culture of control and security to protect data.
  4. We join the communities to know the most recent trends.
  5. Enjoy the remote support with just a phone call.
400

Look at the transcriptions below and read the sentences out loud.

1. lets ˈkwɪkli ʧæt əˈbaʊt ði ˈɪʃu wɪð ðə peɪʤ ˈloʊdɪŋ spi:d.
2. ɑr jʊ ʃʊr wi həv noʊ ˈɪʃuz rɪ'leɪtɪd tə ˈaʊər ˈeɪʒə ˈsɜrvərz?
3. ʃi ʃəd ˈmeʒər ðə pərˈfɔrməns əv ˈaʊər ˈnuli dɪˈzaɪnd sɜrʧ ˈenʤən.
4. ðə səɡˈʤesʧən əz tə juz ˈʤɑ:və fər boʊθ ˌbæk'end ənd ˌfrʌnt'end dɪˈveləpmənt.
5. ɪts ɪmˈpɔrtənt tʊ əˈvɔɪd ˈdeɪtə θeft, bət ˈɔlsoʊ tə ˈɡæðər ˈdeɪtə ðæts ˈreləvənt.

1. Let's quickly chat about the issue with the page loading speed.

2. Are you sure we have no issues related to our Asia servers?

3. She should measure the performance of our newly designed search engine.

4. The suggestion is to use Java for both backend and frontend development. 

5. It's important to avoid data theft, but also to gather data that's relevant.

400

Give one example for each of the three-letter consonant clusters. The rest of the class type with you hear in the chat (private message).

Initial clusters: scr- / spr- / spl- 

Final clusters: -sks / -skt / -kst

Possible answers:

scream - spray - splinter 

tasks (risks, masks) - asked (risked) - fixed (waxed)

400

Sort out the words according to the pronunciation of -ed-endings: /t/; /d/; /id/

watched, used, hated, laughed, loved, breathed, kissed, amazed, danced, sounded, damaged, followed, enjoyed, fixed

/t/: watched, laughed, kissed, danced, fixed

/d/: used, loved, breathed, amazed, damaged, followed, enjoyed

/id/: hated, sounded

400

Rhythm is the music of a language.

Speak about the key difference between English rhythm and Vietnamese rhythm.

Hint: Vietnamese rhythm is rather even. Each syllable is equally...

Vietnamese rhythm is rather even. Each syllable is equally stressed.

English rhythm is organized around stressed and unstressed syllables. 

The intervals/lengths between stressed syllables in English are relatively regular.

500

Read the following sentences:

  1. I fixed the cracked masks.
  2. Try not to take unnecessary tasks.
  3. The firefighters risked their lives to save us.
  4. Splitting tickets among developers boosts team's productivity.
  5. We parked the car and strolled through the streets.

Clusters to pay attention to:

  1. I fixed the cracked masks.
  2. Try not to take unnecessary tasks.
  3. The firefighters risked their lives to save us.
  4. Splitting tickets among developers boosts team's productivity.
  5. We parked the car and strolled through the streets.
500

Why do words ending with voiceless sounds such as "sleep, book, hat" have the pronunciation as /s/, but not /z/, in third singular person or plural form?

And why do words ending with voiced sounds such as "bag, fan, play" have the pronunciation as /z/, but not /s/, in third singular person or plural form?

The pronunciation rules were formed based on convenience.

1) It's easier to pronounce voiceless sounds + /s/ (voiceless sound)

2) It's easier to pronounce voiced sounds + /z/ (voiced sound)

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