Use these four steps for speaking practice and to practice speaking with confidence. It will time to prepare before reading practice sentences, a practice paragraph, or before speaking for two to five-minute. As you get better at the practice process, it will take you less time to prepare before you start speaking. Review and use these steps before reading or saying individual sentences or paragraphs and before two to five-minute talks or presentations. The objective is to develop good habits that improve the quality of your speech and rely less on these four steps.
Practice for Speaking – Simple Outline – Review and practice these steps before updates, project updates, meetings, and presentations. Don’t wait too long to practice. Practice well in advance leading up to an update, meeting, or presentation.
1. Start low or start high. Identify the first word of a sentence as content or function. Start low or start high.
2. Identify the content words. Give more prominence and presence to content words.
3. Identify the focus word. Give more presence to the focus word than other content words.
4. Slow down, and breathe in before you speak. Let out your breath as you speak. Avoid halted speech.
Practice for speaking – Longer Outline
1) Is the first word of the sentence a function word or a content word?
A. Start with lower intonation if the first word of a sentence is a function word, and produce higher intonation when say the content word.
B. Start with higher intonation if the first word of the sentence is a content word, and produce lower intonation when you say a function word that follows.
2) Identify the content words. Which words are the content words? Underline content words once.
A. The content words have more presence and higher intonation. Therefore, they sound louder. But it’s not just volume. Content word intonation is higher, which means the pitch is higher. Function word intonation is lower, which means the pitch is lower. Practice using a wider pitch range. Elongate vowel sounds on syllables that receive primary stress.
B. Push out the content words more than the function words. These words are more prominent, but this does not mean they should receive added stress unless you want to affect the meaning of the sentence or change the focus of the sentence.
3) Identify the focus word. Which word is the focus word? Underline the focus word twice.
A. Give more prominence to the focus word. The focus word is the most important word in the sentence or phrase. It is the last content word or the second to last content word.
B. Let the intonation fall off and glide off the last syllable of a phrase. Let the intonation fall off and glide off a single word.
4) Slow down, and breathe in before you speak. Take a breath before you start speaking. Breathe out as you speak. Project your voice forward. When you come to the end of a phrase – a thought group or a breath group – take another breath, and begin speaking. Let your breath out as you speak.
A. Slow down. Monitor your speed. Focus on breathing and connecting the words, syllables, and sounds seamlessly.
B. You are going fast enough. Don’t let the speed at which the thoughts and words arrive in your mind dictate how fast you speak. Also, don’t try to speak faster than the speed at which thoughts and words arrive in your mind.
C. Practice keeping your speech rate and the rate at which the words, and thoughts, arrive in your mind on the same track. Speak slow enough to maintain techniques that assist in communicating more effectively.
D. Don’t try to keep the same speed if you are not certain of what you are going to say. Take time to hesitate or pause, and then pick up the pace when you are more certain of what you are going to say. Avoid halted speech. Don’t trip over your words.
Business English Accent Reduction and Grammar Part Two
Whoever says that accent reduction and grammar don’t go together is wrong. An integrated approach is practical.
Working on grammar with professionals who already speak English at advanced levels involves thorough listening and observation, and it means noticing errors that could be minor and LIKELY do not interfere with communication.
So who are we talking about here? We’re talking about an international professional who has been in the US for a long time, has adapted to US culture very well, is very confident, and uses English every day. But there’s more to it than that. She wants to achieve the highest level of English language proficiency possible. She wants to accomplish this and work to improve her pronunciation, which is to say work with accent reduction or accent modification. Why is accent reduction or accent modification important to her? It is important because she wants to be certain that people always easily understand and follow what she says and that her speaking is effective, efficient, and productive.
Professionals who already speak English at advanced levels often don't know what they need to know, learn, and improve upon in the first place. Why could this be so? One reason is that ESL programs may omit less frequently used forms and structures from their advanced ESL courses. Or there may not be a strong enough awareness of the thoroughness and creativity that is necessary to work with something like the second conditional, which is to say hypothetical language that speaks of distant possibilities with a present time reference. This is a disservice to ESL speakers who want to achieve high levels of proficiency for professional purposes. (Yes, there is a nominalization in this paragraph.)
From these classifications, any number of detail oriented grammar questions could come up.
Weeding out the less common forms and focusing on what is more common is impractical because it could mean weeding out everything. Or it could mean overlooking too much of what someone wants to improve upon.
This is what it comes down to: It takes a thorough, observant, and detail oriented mind to listen and observe in order to approach increasing English language proficiency in a logical well-ordered manner. That’s what it takes to solve someone’s grammar problem while working on pronunciation, accent reduction, and accent modification at the same time.
Combining words incorrectly is sometimes a problem, too. For example, I heard someone say "put an offer" instead of "make an offer". But that's not grammar, is it? It's a lexical problem.
Raising lexical awareness to improve and develop fluency in English
Working on grammar with professionals who already speak English at advanced levels involves thorough listening and observation, and it means noticing errors that could be minor and LIKELY do not interfere with communication.
So who are we talking about here? We’re talking about an international professional who has been in the US for a long time, has adapted to US culture very well, is very confident, and uses English every day. But there’s more to it than that. She wants to achieve the highest level of English language proficiency possible. She wants to accomplish this and work to improve her pronunciation, which is to say work with accent reduction or accent modification. Why is accent reduction or accent modification important to her? It is important because she wants to be certain that people always easily understand and follow what she says and that her speaking is effective, efficient, and productive.
Professionals who already speak English at advanced levels often don't know what they need to know, learn, and improve upon in the first place. Why could this be so? One reason is that ESL programs may omit less frequently used forms and structures from their advanced ESL courses. Or there may not be a strong enough awareness of the thoroughness and creativity that is necessary to work with something like the second conditional, which is to say hypothetical language that speaks of distant possibilities with a present time reference. This is a disservice to ESL speakers who want to achieve high levels of proficiency for professional purposes. (Yes, there is a nominalization in this paragraph.)
From these classifications, any number of detail oriented grammar questions could come up.
- Verbs - form and meaning - auxiliaries do, be, and have
- Modal auxiliaries
- Prepositions – word-preposition combinations
- Clauses - noun clauses used as objects and subjects, adjective clauses, adverbial clauses
- Conjunctions
- Adverbial conjunctions
- Adverbials - words, phrases, clauses
- Adverb placement - final, medial, or initial
- Verbal nouns - gerunds and infinitives
Weeding out the less common forms and focusing on what is more common is impractical because it could mean weeding out everything. Or it could mean overlooking too much of what someone wants to improve upon.
This is what it comes down to: It takes a thorough, observant, and detail oriented mind to listen and observe in order to approach increasing English language proficiency in a logical well-ordered manner. That’s what it takes to solve someone’s grammar problem while working on pronunciation, accent reduction, and accent modification at the same time.
Combining words incorrectly is sometimes a problem, too. For example, I heard someone say "put an offer" instead of "make an offer". But that's not grammar, is it? It's a lexical problem.
Raising lexical awareness to improve and develop fluency in English
Business English Accent Reduction and Grammar Part One
Whoever says accent reduction, pronunciation skills, business English, and grammar don’t go together is wrong. Business English, accent reduction, language training, and communication coaching are what they need to be for each person and each situation. And they go together, as necessary, as part of an integrated approach to solving communication problems for professional purposes.
What resources are there for accent reduction clients that want help with grammar? There are many grammar books from which to choose, and I have my preferences. However, if you’re talking about grammar proficiency for professionals, then there is no book.
It’s very seldom that a book solves the problem. Directing someone to a book isn't practical because there are a combination of specific grammar items that advanced English second language speakers need to work with. Everyone is different.
For example, I am working with an accent reduction and speaking skills client now. Grammar is by no means at all the focus. However, she wants to know what grammar she needs to improve, and, for now, two topics have come up: noun clauses and hypothetical language.
My business English accent reduction client asked me about improving her grammar, or let’s say proficiency, and I’m the go-to resource for this, not a book. I could suggest a book and materials, but those are just supplements to the information, instruction, and materials that I can provide.
She, also, told me she wants to be sure of how to use modal auxiliaries. She's a professional and a very advanced speaker, but she lacks certainty in the area of modal auxiliaries. Communicative types of practice, with explanations, in this area is best. It helps to understand and know of the different ways in which we use modal auxiliaries. It can help to view modality in two ways:
A) Modality as applied to the speaker's interpretation of events and subjective observations
Here are two examples: 1) I must have left my keys upstairs. 2) He couldn’t have been serious.
B) Modality as applied to social obligations and external factors that influence a person's behavior
Here are two examples: 1) I’m going to be late, so I should call. 2) We have to think about this before we decide.
C) And there’s a third one: hypothetical language. Here are two examples: 1) If I had known how heavy the traffic was, I would have left earlier. 2) If they had a better idea, they would tell us.
I'll refer to a list of modal auxiliaries to be sure that I cover the topic thoroughly. I doubt a book will be useful here. A book and traditional worksheets could be helpful as ways to reinforce or supplement what someone practices conversationally or as part of guided speaking practice. But books and worksheets alone are not the way forward. So two questions come to mind:
1) How can we be methodical and thorough given that the nature of language is not methodical? A logical mind knows the topic and presents it in a way that is useful and practical.
2) How do we take grammar off the printed page and give it practical application in context to improve someone's speaking skills and overall communicative ability?
So for business English, speaking skills, and accent reduction, these two questions present two problems that I solve.
What resources are there for accent reduction clients that want help with grammar? There are many grammar books from which to choose, and I have my preferences. However, if you’re talking about grammar proficiency for professionals, then there is no book.
It’s very seldom that a book solves the problem. Directing someone to a book isn't practical because there are a combination of specific grammar items that advanced English second language speakers need to work with. Everyone is different.
For example, I am working with an accent reduction and speaking skills client now. Grammar is by no means at all the focus. However, she wants to know what grammar she needs to improve, and, for now, two topics have come up: noun clauses and hypothetical language.
My business English accent reduction client asked me about improving her grammar, or let’s say proficiency, and I’m the go-to resource for this, not a book. I could suggest a book and materials, but those are just supplements to the information, instruction, and materials that I can provide.
She, also, told me she wants to be sure of how to use modal auxiliaries. She's a professional and a very advanced speaker, but she lacks certainty in the area of modal auxiliaries. Communicative types of practice, with explanations, in this area is best. It helps to understand and know of the different ways in which we use modal auxiliaries. It can help to view modality in two ways:
A) Modality as applied to the speaker's interpretation of events and subjective observations
Here are two examples: 1) I must have left my keys upstairs. 2) He couldn’t have been serious.
B) Modality as applied to social obligations and external factors that influence a person's behavior
Here are two examples: 1) I’m going to be late, so I should call. 2) We have to think about this before we decide.
C) And there’s a third one: hypothetical language. Here are two examples: 1) If I had known how heavy the traffic was, I would have left earlier. 2) If they had a better idea, they would tell us.
I'll refer to a list of modal auxiliaries to be sure that I cover the topic thoroughly. I doubt a book will be useful here. A book and traditional worksheets could be helpful as ways to reinforce or supplement what someone practices conversationally or as part of guided speaking practice. But books and worksheets alone are not the way forward. So two questions come to mind:
1) How can we be methodical and thorough given that the nature of language is not methodical? A logical mind knows the topic and presents it in a way that is useful and practical.
2) How do we take grammar off the printed page and give it practical application in context to improve someone's speaking skills and overall communicative ability?
So for business English, speaking skills, and accent reduction, these two questions present two problems that I solve.
Training for professional communication
There’s no doubt that when we speak, we project an image much in the same way actors and actresses project an image while playing a role. Actresses and actors are aware of what they are doing. We, however, may sometimes be aware of the image we project while speaking but not always. Project an image or an attitude when you communicate, and be a stronger and more effective communicator. Let people know what you mean to say not only by what you say but, also, by how you say it.
Here are few questions that come to mind:
1. What motivates you to speak and say what you say?
2. How do you want to sound?
3. How do you want to come across?
4. How do you want your listeners to feel?
5. Which words should you highlight as important in order to convey your message more effectively? How should you highlight these words?
6. Where should you pause?
7. Should you pause for effect? If so, where?
8. If you are giving a presentation, where should your voice drop off in volume?
9. In a presentation, where should your volume rise to signal that you are introducing new information?
10. What kind of tone or expression do you give transitional words and phrases?
Vocal range - Vocal range refers to how high or low your voice can sound. Do you ever alter your vocal range? Of course, you do. However, you may not have noticed that you do. Let’s become aware of how using the higher or lower end of your vocal range can affect your communication and how it can affect the way listeners understand what you say. Speaking of vocal range, here are a few questions that come to mind:
A. Would it be better to speak more at the lower end of your vocal range?
B. Or would it be better to speak more at the higher end of your vocal range?
C. Can you adjust your vocal range?
D. If so, how can you do this?
E. How will adjust your vocal range help you communicate better?
Pay attention to how fast you speak. Speaking too fast will not allow you to focus in the way that you should in order to be more effective and come across in the way that you want to.
How can you practice affecting meaning in order to speak more effectively?
Choose a word that you want to be the focus of a sentence. Add some extra stress to it. In doing so, keep in mind that you automatically create a type of attitude, mood, or emotion. Pay attention to this. Now, also, keep in mind that you should not only give attention the focus word, but you should, also, know and understand that you should add tone and expression to the entire sentence. By being more expressive and using tone, your speech is easier to understand because your intonation improves at the same time. Practice and apply this, and you will communicate more effectively and more efficiently.
Here are few questions that come to mind:
1. What motivates you to speak and say what you say?
2. How do you want to sound?
3. How do you want to come across?
4. How do you want your listeners to feel?
5. Which words should you highlight as important in order to convey your message more effectively? How should you highlight these words?
6. Where should you pause?
7. Should you pause for effect? If so, where?
8. If you are giving a presentation, where should your voice drop off in volume?
9. In a presentation, where should your volume rise to signal that you are introducing new information?
10. What kind of tone or expression do you give transitional words and phrases?
Vocal range - Vocal range refers to how high or low your voice can sound. Do you ever alter your vocal range? Of course, you do. However, you may not have noticed that you do. Let’s become aware of how using the higher or lower end of your vocal range can affect your communication and how it can affect the way listeners understand what you say. Speaking of vocal range, here are a few questions that come to mind:
A. Would it be better to speak more at the lower end of your vocal range?
B. Or would it be better to speak more at the higher end of your vocal range?
C. Can you adjust your vocal range?
D. If so, how can you do this?
E. How will adjust your vocal range help you communicate better?
Pay attention to how fast you speak. Speaking too fast will not allow you to focus in the way that you should in order to be more effective and come across in the way that you want to.
How can you practice affecting meaning in order to speak more effectively?
Choose a word that you want to be the focus of a sentence. Add some extra stress to it. In doing so, keep in mind that you automatically create a type of attitude, mood, or emotion. Pay attention to this. Now, also, keep in mind that you should not only give attention the focus word, but you should, also, know and understand that you should add tone and expression to the entire sentence. By being more expressive and using tone, your speech is easier to understand because your intonation improves at the same time. Practice and apply this, and you will communicate more effectively and more efficiently.
English Pronunciation Tense and Lax Vowels
Someone posted comments at this article, I replied to the comments, and now the reply is another article. Tense and Lax
I will explain my use of “tense” and “lax”, what I mean by “tense” and “lax”, and why I use “tense” and “lax” in the way that I do.
I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or even “relaxed”, as a way to communicate what it takes to produce long, strong, clear, vowel sounds, which is to say how to articulate and enunciate vowel sounds before voiced consonants and how to make vowel sounds before voiced consonants clear.
I do not care about what other people use the terms “tense” and “lax” for. I use them my way for a practical purpose. While I’m aware that others may find it to be incorrect, and even annoying, this is how I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or “relaxed”.
A client once noticed this distinction and questioned, for example, what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheese” as opposed to what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheat”. In “cheese”, long e precedes a voiced consonant, and in “cheat”, long e precedes an unvoiced consonant. Coming before a voiced consonant, the e sound in "cheese" is more tense than the e sound in "cheat", which comes before t, an unvoiced consonant.
I use terms in practical ways to accommodate understanding, which results in progress and improvement.
"I think it's important to keep tense/lax distinct from long/short."
Yes, I agree.
"This article seems to be saying that lax vowels are tensed before voiced consonants. In other words, "bid" is pronounced the same as "bead".
The article is not saying that. I am not using the terms “tense” and “lax” to distinguish vowel sounds in the way that you indicate. However, I know of that distinction. I use the terms “tense” and “lax” to speak of the idea that before a voiced consonant a vowel sound becomes tenser in that more work or force is required to produce it. Therefore, I am distinguishing what it takes to produce the vowel in “bit” compared to what it takes to produce the vowel in “bid”. The short i in “bid”, coming before a voiced consonant, is stronger – or it is tenser.
"I'm sure that wasn't what was meant, but it is what seems to be stated by "If a word ends with a voiced sound, then the vowel preceding it is tense, or it tends to be longer and stronger.”
First, I'm going to say that using passive voice here is ridiculous. You're talking or writing to me, right? Right. So use the pronoun "you" and active voice. "I'm sure that's not what you meant."
Now, back to the topic.
You are correct to say that this not what I meant. To you, and I’m sure others, it may seem to state that, and I understand why. However, that is not what I mean.
"Conversely, this article also seems to say that vowels are de-tensed before voiceless consonants, so "seat" becomes "sit."
Again, that’s not what I am saying at all. In fact, to say that would be absurd and ridiculous. I am, however, saying that the long e sound in “seat” becomes tenser, or stronger, and more work or force is required to produce the long e sound when the same long e sound precedes the d in “seed”, and this is because d is a voiced consonant.
I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or even “relaxed”, as a way to communicate what it takes to produce long, strong, clear, vowel sounds, which is say how to articulate and enunciate vowel sounds before voiced consonants and how to make vowel sounds before voiced consonants clear.
I said this, and I'm saying it again: I do not care about what other people use the terms “tense” and “lax” for. I use them my way for a practical purpose. While I’m aware that others may find it to be incorrect, and even annoying, this is how I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or “relaxed”.
A client once noticed this distinction and questioned, for example, what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheese” as opposed to what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheat”. In “cheese”, long e precedes a voiced consonant, and in “cheat”, long e precedes an unvoiced consonant. Coming before a voiced consonant, the e sound in "cheese" is more tense than the e sound in "cheat", which comes before t, an unvoiced consonant.
I use terms in practical ways to accommodate understanding, which results in progress and improvement. It does not matter what academics think about this.
voiced - Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
unvoiced - Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
I will explain my use of “tense” and “lax”, what I mean by “tense” and “lax”, and why I use “tense” and “lax” in the way that I do.
I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or even “relaxed”, as a way to communicate what it takes to produce long, strong, clear, vowel sounds, which is to say how to articulate and enunciate vowel sounds before voiced consonants and how to make vowel sounds before voiced consonants clear.
I do not care about what other people use the terms “tense” and “lax” for. I use them my way for a practical purpose. While I’m aware that others may find it to be incorrect, and even annoying, this is how I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or “relaxed”.
A client once noticed this distinction and questioned, for example, what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheese” as opposed to what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheat”. In “cheese”, long e precedes a voiced consonant, and in “cheat”, long e precedes an unvoiced consonant. Coming before a voiced consonant, the e sound in "cheese" is more tense than the e sound in "cheat", which comes before t, an unvoiced consonant.
I use terms in practical ways to accommodate understanding, which results in progress and improvement.
"I think it's important to keep tense/lax distinct from long/short."
Yes, I agree.
"This article seems to be saying that lax vowels are tensed before voiced consonants. In other words, "bid" is pronounced the same as "bead".
The article is not saying that. I am not using the terms “tense” and “lax” to distinguish vowel sounds in the way that you indicate. However, I know of that distinction. I use the terms “tense” and “lax” to speak of the idea that before a voiced consonant a vowel sound becomes tenser in that more work or force is required to produce it. Therefore, I am distinguishing what it takes to produce the vowel in “bit” compared to what it takes to produce the vowel in “bid”. The short i in “bid”, coming before a voiced consonant, is stronger – or it is tenser.
"I'm sure that wasn't what was meant, but it is what seems to be stated by "If a word ends with a voiced sound, then the vowel preceding it is tense, or it tends to be longer and stronger.”
First, I'm going to say that using passive voice here is ridiculous. You're talking or writing to me, right? Right. So use the pronoun "you" and active voice. "I'm sure that's not what you meant."
Now, back to the topic.
You are correct to say that this not what I meant. To you, and I’m sure others, it may seem to state that, and I understand why. However, that is not what I mean.
"Conversely, this article also seems to say that vowels are de-tensed before voiceless consonants, so "seat" becomes "sit."
Again, that’s not what I am saying at all. In fact, to say that would be absurd and ridiculous. I am, however, saying that the long e sound in “seat” becomes tenser, or stronger, and more work or force is required to produce the long e sound when the same long e sound precedes the d in “seed”, and this is because d is a voiced consonant.
I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or even “relaxed”, as a way to communicate what it takes to produce long, strong, clear, vowel sounds, which is say how to articulate and enunciate vowel sounds before voiced consonants and how to make vowel sounds before voiced consonants clear.
I said this, and I'm saying it again: I do not care about what other people use the terms “tense” and “lax” for. I use them my way for a practical purpose. While I’m aware that others may find it to be incorrect, and even annoying, this is how I use the words “tense” and “lax”, or “relaxed”.
A client once noticed this distinction and questioned, for example, what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheese” as opposed to what it takes to produce the vowel in “cheat”. In “cheese”, long e precedes a voiced consonant, and in “cheat”, long e precedes an unvoiced consonant. Coming before a voiced consonant, the e sound in "cheese" is more tense than the e sound in "cheat", which comes before t, an unvoiced consonant.
I use terms in practical ways to accommodate understanding, which results in progress and improvement. It does not matter what academics think about this.
voiced - Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
unvoiced - Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
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