Pronunciation Studio London 1 Euston Road, NW1 2SA, Brochure Index. Elocution Pronunciation Group Course Brochure Daily & Weekly Classes

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1 Pronunciation Studio London 1 Euston Road, NW1 2SA, Elocution Pronunciation Group Course Brochure Daily & Weekly Classes Brochure Index Pg Contents 1 Details & Introduction 2 Session 1 - Vowel/Consonant Schwa Intonation 3 Session 2 - Long Vowels Silent < r > Question Intonation 4 Session 3 - Fricative Consonants < s > endings Function vs Content 5 Session 4 - Short Vowels ship or sheep? Weak vowels 6 Session 5 - Plosive Consonants < ed > endings Question Tag Intonation 7 Session 6 - Diphthong Vowels Silent < h > Prominence 8 Session 7 - Approximant Vowels Joining Compound Stress 9 Session 8 - Nasal Consonants Affricate Consonants Shifting Stress Fall-rise 10 Student Feedback 11 Method & Materials 12 Teachers 13 Contact & Booking

2 Course Details Location Pronunciation Studio London (King s Cross Centre) 1 Euston Road, NW1 2SA. Timetable Monday Evenings 19:00-21:00 - Click here for current dates. Saturday Mornings 11:00-13:00 - Click here for current dates. Monday to Thursday 14:00-16:00 Click for details. Requirements - High level of spoken English - No previous knowledge of phonetics required. - Any mother tongue. Price 30 / 1 class (2 hours + free course book with first class). 100 / 4 classes (8 hours) 175 / 8 classes (16 hours) 210 / 8 classes + 60 minute individual assessment. Group Size Maximum 7 students This course covers all of the sounds and structures of spoken English showing students how to pronounce and recognise all the 19 vowel and 26 consonant sounds accurately using the lips, jaw, teeth and tongue. The structure of spoken English is covered - weak forms, joining, assimilation and stress patterns so that students can approach and construct English like a native. In each class, intonation patterns are learnt, practised and applied giving students control over their rhythm and pitch and applied in real conversation practice. Each class consists of the pronunciation of one group of sounds, one structure and one aspect of intonation. By taking the whole cycle, students will gain an overview of how to produce accurate English pronunciation whilst improving their ability and confidence and gaining control over their voice and accent. The course is designed as a cycle, so each class works by itself. In this way you can join anything from 1 to 8 of the classes, and you can start whenever you like - so you could take class 7 as your first class and end on class 6. The teachers on the course are highly experienced in the classroom and experts in the field of English phonetics (MA or IPA Certified) so expect your class to be challenging, exciting and highly beneficial to your language skills.

3 Session 1/8 Vowels & Consonants Schwa Intonation Vowels & Consonants We will produce every vowel and consonant sound of English and focus on key differences and typically hard sounds. The IPA Chart will be used (no previous knowledge of IPA is required). English pronunciation is made of vowel and consonant sounds. In this class we explore the different types of vowel sound (long, short & diphthong) and consonant sound (plosive, fricative, affricate, nasal & approximant) and learn about the different articulators (lips, jaw, teeth, tongue) used to make them. Voicing will be explored in the context of consonant sounds. Schwa - The Weak Vowel We will study the correct mouth position of the schwa sound. Then we will learn where to find and produce a schwa in spoken English. Rhythm and stress will be explored in sentences using the schwa sound. The schwa (pictured to the right) is the most common sound of spoken English. If you have never seen it before - this is an important moment for your English pronunciation! It is a neutral sound, meaning that your mouth is very relaxed to produce it, and it only occurs on non-stressed syllables. The bold sound in the following words are all schwas: about, London, forgive, moment, banana. Intonation - 3 Patterns We will practice producing and hearing the three intonation patterns of English - fall, fallrise and rise. They will be applied to sentence structure to explore different meanings. Intonation is the way your voice changes in pitch and volume when you speak. English has a very wide pitch range and an archaic rhythm built of strong and weak forms. We use three patterns in our speech (pictured left). The pattern you use shows your attitude to the words you are saying. In this way, the word 'yes' could mean yes, no or maybe depending on your intonation pattern. Pronunciation Studio London Group Classes

4 Session 2/8 Long Vowel Sounds Silent < r > Question Intonation Long Vowel Sounds We will learn the mouth positions of the 5 long vowel sounds of English and see the ways they are spelt in written English. The class will also look at the way these vowels can be shortened by the sounds surrounding it. English uses 5 long vowel sounds in pronunciation. Most modern languages do not use long single vowels, so it is an area of speech that most non-native speakers need to learn and practice. One of the problems for students is that you cannot always see from the spelling of a word if it is long or short - good (short) food (long). Silent < r > We will learn the rule for < r > spellings - when we should say them and when we should leave them silent. This links closely to Long Vowels, as three of the five long vowels use silent <r> in British English. A very noticeable aspect of British English pronunciation (not American) is the use of a silent < r > sound. Many non-native speakers say every < r > they see, which can give a very strong accent, particularly if the speaker roles the /r/ sound. In fact there is a very simple rule and you can work out which < r > to say by looking at the word or sentence. Question Intonation We will learn to produce information questions (Wh- & How) using falling and rising patterns and place these two structures into conversation to show how their meaning shifts from new to old. Intonation is perhaps most noticeable in questions. By your choice of intonation pattern and stress you will show the listener whether your question is asking for new or old information and what the focus of the question is. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

5 Session 3/8 Fricative Consonants < s > endings Function/Content Fricative Consonant Sounds We will learn the mouth positions for each fricative and the possible spellings in written English. We will practice changing the voicing of each sound and place them in sentences and words. A fricative consonant is characterised by a constant release of air squeezed through a tight space between two articulators (lips, tongue, teeth). There are 5 voiceless fricatives (blue in the diagram) and 4 voiced fricatives (white in the diagram) in spoken English. Most non-native speakers encounter problems with some of the fricative sounds, particularly voiced sounds at the end of words. The two < th > sounds are fricatives. < s > endings We will learn the rule for < s > endings and practice using the correct pronunciation in words and sentences. When an < s > is added to a word in English, it assimilates, meaning that it changes depending on the preceding sound. There are three possible pronunciations of an < s > ending, see the example on the right. Many non-native speakers find it hard to produce the voiced /z/ at the end of the word as in 'whales'. Function vs Content We will recognise the key differences between function and content words, studying and practising how to stress them correctly within sentences. Spoken English is made of strong and weak forms. One of the easiest ways of recognising a weak form is to study the relationship between function (grammatical words) and content (meaning) words. Words such as auxiliary verbs, prepositions, pronouns and articles are normally weak, so they are often pronounced with the schwa. Other words such as nouns, verbs and adjectives cannot become weak, so they are pronounced strongly and carry the intonation pattern of the sentence. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

6 Session 4/8 Short Vowel Sounds ɪ vs i: Weak Vowels Short Vowel Sounds We will learn the mouth positions of the 6 short vowel sounds of English by exploring the jaw, lip and tongue positions of each. We will also recognise the sounds that students need to practice most and compare short vowels with long vowels. English uses 6 short vowel sounds (not including weak vowels) in pronunciation. All modern languages use short vowel sounds, however, the mouth positions are different for some or all of the sounds. English uses closed positions (lip), neutral positions, (fun) and open positions (hat). ɪ vs i: (ship vs sheep) We will learn the mouth positions of the two sounds, study how they are spelt in written English, and explore how their lengths can change depending on stress and usage. The difference between the ɪ and i: vowels is the most misconceived area of English pronunciation. Many students believe that the only difference is the length of the vowel. This is not the case, the most important aspect is the position of the tongue and jaw. In fact there are cases in English pronunciation where ɪ could be longer than i. If your mouth is not correctly positioned it will always sound wrong, with some often unwanted words produced. Weak Vowels We will learn and revise the pronunciation of the three vowels and then practice using them in the context of words and sentences. To speak English accurately the non-native speaker must adopt English structures in their speech. The most common structure is the weak vowel - in any non-stressed (weak) syllable of a word, you will find one of three vowel sounds (pictures right). These are the most common vowel sounds of English, and you will notice that one is the schwa, the other two are the mouth positions for the ship/sheep vowels studied earlier in this class. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

7 Session 5/8 Plosive Consonants < ed > endings Question Tag Intonation Plosive Consonant Sounds We will practice the mouth positions of the plosive sounds and practice voicing and aspiration. We will learn about the glottal stop, how to produce and recognise it. A plosive consonant sound is made by blocking the flow of air as it leaves the mouth and then releasing it in an explosion. There are 6 plosive sounds in English, voiceless p, t, k and voiced b, d, g. It is very important for non-native speakers to aspirate the voiceless sounds. We also use the glottal stop commonly to replace the /t/ sound before a consonant, if you are not sure what a glottal stop is, listen to the explanation in 'extra materials' below. < ed > endings We will learn the rule and practice it, paying particular attention to our voicing and the correct production (alveolar) of /t/ and /d/. Adding < ed > to a word can cause a lot of confusion in non-native speakers of English in pronunciation. The good news is that 99% of words follow a basic rule very similar to the < s > endings rule. It is all to do with voicing; a voiceless sound will follow another (t) and a voiced sound will follow another (d), the exception occurs whe a word already ends in t or d. Question Tag Intonation We will learn the different types of question tag and the rules of intonation for each. Through using conversation and controlled practice activities we will produce tags in real situations. Question tags are common in British English (not American) where about one quarter of all questions are made by using a tag. Many tags simply imply agreement in the listener and function in a similar way to a statement. Other tags actually ask something of the listener and can be used as suggestions, imperatives, and to imply sarcasm. Tags only use falling or rising intonation and in some cases where either is possible, the meaning alters radically. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

8 Session 6/8 Diphthong Vowels Silent < h > Prominence Diphthong Vowels We will practice the mouth positions and movements of the 7 dipthong vowels of English. We will explore the possible spellings in written English. A diphthong is a vowel sound that moves from one position to another in pronunciation. A neutral RP English accent uses 7 dipthongs (pictured right). Diphthongs present a considerable challenge to many non-native speakers of English, who often produce flat vowel sounds instead, so it is an area that requires extensive practice. Also the spelling of a dipthong can be confusing - consider not (monothong) and no (diphthong). There is no indication that the second word requires two mouth positions. Silent < h > We will practice the production of /h/ and then explore the places it becomes silent in speech. We will practice using the 4 pronunciations of the word 'have'. /h/ is an unusual sound that many non-natives use inaccurately in English. It is a fricative sound made in the glottis which should sound clear, like when you steam up a mirror. It often becomes silent in speech, function words like 'he', 'her', 'have', 'who' will use a silent < h > in certain positions of a sentence. Other words such as 'honour', always contain a silent < h >. Prominence We will learn the rules of prominence and then study it in controlled practice. The techniques will then be applied to natural conversation. Many non-native speakers sound flat when they speak in English. Why? Because they do not use prominence and stress in the way a native does. In English, in every sentence or phrase, one word needs to dominate the rest, it is impossible to have a flat stress and intonation. In fact, this is quite a straightforward technique - you simply stress by using volume, pitch and length, the last new, important word in your sentence. When students apply this technique, it radically changes the sound of their speech and it is one of the simplest to use. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

9 Session 7/8 Approximant Consonants Joining Contrast Intonation Approximant Consonant Sounds We will learn and practice producing the 4 approximants of English focusing on producing a clean, clear sound. We normally talk of consonants as sounds that block the flow of air as it leaves the mouth. This is not, however, strictly true of approximant consonants, which are more like vowel sounds in that they shape the air more than block it. There are 4 approximants in English pronunciation: /r/, /w/, /j/ and /l/. The first three can only appear in syllable initial position in British English. There are 2 < l > sounds in English, known as clear and dark /l/, which use different mouth positions. Approximants can present a real challenge to non-native speakers, particularly if in their first language these sounds are more like a fricative where a block occurs. Joining We will learn the rules and techniques involved in joining words and then apply them to controlled situations. In English pronunciation we join words in several different ways which can cause confusion to the non-native speaker. We often take a consonant sound over to the next word, or add an approximant sound between two words so that there is no pause as we speak. Sometimes sounds also join or assimilate to form a completely different sound. All of these techniques follow rules which can be learnt and require practice to master. Compound Stress We will firstly learn to recognise compounds and then learn the stress patterns that accompany them. A compound is a combination of two words either together in the same word (football) or separate words (train station). It is an area where mistakes are often heard in nonnative English, as speakers will often either equally stress the words, or place more stress on the second word. Most compounds stress the first word more than the second, common examples are 'shoelace', 'Facebook', 'rubbish bin', 'someone'. For a more detailed description, listen to Lis Carter's explanation in extra materials below. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

10 Session 8/8 Nasal & Affricate Consonants Shifting Stress Fall-rise Nasal Consonant Sounds We will learn the mouth positions and possible spellings for the three nasal sounds and practice producing them. Some consonant sounds are made by releasing air through the nose. In spoken English there are 3 (pictured to the right). Non-native speakers may find the mouth positions for these sounds different from in their mother tongue, and so practice is required. Affricate Consonant Sounds We will learn the mouth positions and possible spellings of the affricate sounds and practice them in words and sentences. Spoken English uses two 'affricate' consonant sounds (pictured right). Effectively, they start as a plosive with a complete block of air and quickly glide into a fricative where the air is squeezed through a tight gap. English has one voiceless affricate as in 'chicken' and one voiced affricate as in 'Joe'. These sounds can be difficult for nonnative speakers, particularly those of Asian languages and Spanish, so need to be Shifting Stress We will study the rules for stress shift in phrasal verbs, -teen numbers and abbreviations, and practise applying them. English is made of clearly defined weak and strong forms, in certain cases, however, the strong form will move to an unanticipated part of the sentence due to stress shift. This is most apparent where we have three strong forms next to each other, in 'teen' numbers, in phrasal verbs (such as 'pick up') and in abbreviations such as 'BBC' or 'UK'. In each case, the stress would shift from its normal position depending on the words surrounding it. Fall-rise Intonation We will firstly practice production of the fall-rise and then learn the different meanings it can produce and practise using it in conversation. British English uses the fall-rise pattern extensively as a form of implication. By saying a sentence with fall-rise intonation, we can imply that we mean something different from the words we are saying, for example 'yes' can mean maybe. Pronunciation Studio London - Group Classes

11 ə Feedback These are some recent comments from students who have studied with us. If you would like to leave a comment, please use the feedback form. ʻI believe that the course was very well constructed and had made a great improvement in my pronunciation and conversational skills. The skills that I learnt from the course have been put into practise in my day to day life with noticeable improvement in the quality of my communication in both professional and social settings.ʼ Nicole, China 2011 θ Quality of teaching is really good, she has been excellent in explaning the concepts and made learning very easy. Praveed, India. Praveed, (India) 2011 ʃ The main change is that I hear English sounds much better and I do know now that. I definitely better understand other people. Some colleagues say it is easier to understand me. Sometimes I stop and think how to pronounce a long-known word, check the dictionary, and now I know for sure how to interpret the transcription. Alexey (Russia) 2010 ɜ Thank you for your really helpful school! I had a great time & learned far more than I expected and am so grateful!!! As a teacher myself I can tell you your teachers are excellent! Christina (Germany) 2010 ʊ I have noticed improvement - i am more aware how words should be pronounced and learnt how to write them down phonetically Kasia (Poland) 2010 ð The course opened my eyes on many things, it helped me to learn several things I never met before, though I've studied and used English for quite long - i.e. intonation patterns, joining, some sounds which I thought I pronounced correctly but didn't. Innes (Russia) 2009 ɪ I will surely recommend the course to others. I wished I did the course when I first came to this country. Luc (Ivory Coast) 2009 ɒ Both the resources and support I was offered was the highest level with a relaxed and friendly teaching enviroment. Nat (Ethiopia) 2009

12 Materials Course Book + Audio Our course book ʻAn English Accentʼ was designed and recorded by the professional linguists, teachers and phoneticians at Pronunciation Studio through years of experience. Every student receives the 120 page course book with 200 mp3 sound files to use in and outside of class. The book and audio include: Repetition practice - voice exercises, word & sentence production. Collocation activities - recognition of sounds. Listening exercises - training the air to hear accurately. IPA transcriptions - developing a phonetic approach to English. Conversation practice - applying skills to everyday language. ʻThe book was very usefulʼ Yildiz, Turkey 2011 ʻThe book is excellent. The audio is very very useful.ʼ Sandra, Spain, 2011 ʻThe book and recordings are excellentʼ Carmen, Brazil, 2010 Method Recognise Model Drill Correct Self-correct Effective learning and teaching is based on a very simple structure: Firstly the student and teacher will recognise the areas for improvement and plan a suitable course of study. Secondly the teacher will accurately model the areas that the student needs to learn, so that the student can reproduce the model. Thirdly the teacher will drill the student regularly to see that the model is working and that the student has learnt correctly. Fourthly the student transfers these controlled exercises into their everyday use of language and the teacher will free-correct the studentʼs mistakes. Fifthly the student will recognise and correct their own mistakes. Once this takes place, the course has been effective and improvement will be continuous.

13 Teachers Lis Carter (BA IPA Cert) Cris Chatterjee (MA CELTA DELTA) Shanti Ulfsbjorninn (BA MPhil Phd) Joe Hudson (BA CELTA IPA Cert) Tom Wisniowski (BA IPA Cert) Chris Miller (BA CELTA IPA Cert) David Bauckham (PGdip (MA) IPA Cert) Zainab Tapas (BA MA CELTA IPA Cert) Ferida Fetouhi (BA MA) Aminah Otmani (BA IPA Cert) Introduction Central to Pronunciation Studioʼs ethos is our excellent, professional and above all student-focussed team of teachers. In order to teach pronunciation, firstly extensive subject knowledge is required, secondly excellent teaching technique and commitment to studentsʼ progress and goals - qualities our teachers possess in abundance. Qualifications Our teachers all have a combination of BA, MA, IPA Cert and CELTA qualifications, see below for descriptions. MA/BA in linguistics, modern languages or voice. These are full-time courses ranging 2 to 4 years that show the teacher has extensive subject knowledge. IPA Certificate of Proficiency in the Phonetics of English The only qualification awarded by the International Phonetic Association. This shows that the teacher has extended specialised knowledge in phonetics practice and theory. CELTA - Cambridge English Language Teaching to Adults Certificate A Cambridge English teaching qualification, showing the teacher has command of teaching techniques and classroom planning and management. For individual profiles of our teachers, click here to visit our website.

14 Contact Visit us We are located opposite Kingʼs Cross station in central London, click here for arrival information. Reception is open 10-18:00 Monday to Thursday. We hold a daily ʻPronunciation Drop-Inʼ from 16:00-18:00 when you can meet our teachers. Call us Monday to Friday 10:00-18:00. From abroad, call or us with a landline number, we will arrange a time to call you. us Use the form on our websites. We always reply same day to s received before 4pm. Booking Payment Payment for courses should be made before your classes begin. Invoice We are happy to provide an invoice - just request this with your booking. Payment Methods We accept the following methods of payment: - Credit card (via Google checkout). - Paypal - Bank transfer - Cheque - Cash - paid during reception hours Please visit the payment section of our site or visit us to make payments.