17 Apr How to Succeed in Your English Pronunciation Course
The Power of Practice in Pronunciation Mastery
Implementing Simple, Effective Techniques for Pronunciation Success
All My Successful Pronunciation Clients Have One Thing In Common.
Practice. We’ve all seen those ads for English classes that promise fluency in three weeks or whatever. We’ve all seen those diet plans that promise to help you lose 20 lbs with no effort required. We all know deep down that it’s a pipe dream to think that you can achieve something challenging without putting the work in. Quite often, we are simply afraid to put the work in because we are afraid of failure. I see this predicament over and over again in students of pronunciation who are just starting out.
But the brave ones (and I have so very many brave students) decide to follow three simple methods to make pronunciation errors a thing of the past. Spoiler alert: they succeed in improving their English pronunciation and they notice greater communicative success. All you need is a mouth, an ear, and a brain that is willing to make a mistake in front of a mirror.
1. Utilising a mirror for effective pronunciation feedback
Mirrors never judge and mirrors never lie. By checking your mouth position in the mirror, you will be able to create a feedback loop so that you can compare the mouth position from the video course recording with your own mouth position when practising pronunciation. Your brain will engage with the correct mouth position and you’ll be able to replicate it and repeat it to solidify the correct mouth shape. If your mouth position is incorrect, you will be able to notice it and correct it to ensure that your repetitions are on point.
2. Use your phone to record yourself and track your progress with your English Pronunciation
It’s always a great idea to know where you started so that you can see how far you’ve come. I recommend using the free recording software on your phone to record yourself or video yourself saying words that contain the phonemes you find challenging. Record yourself every week as you continue practising and you’ll see and hear a huge difference in your English pronunciation.
3. Throw away the books. Practice is a 2-minute job.
Although it’s a decent idea to use a pronunciation dictionary from time to time, books aren’t going to help you to articulate more clearly. All you need is a video recording to provide you with a model to learn from (hello video course!), a mirror, your face, and your ears. Touch your larynx (on the outside of your neck where the protruding Adam’s apple is if you’re male). Put (clean) hands in your mouth to feel where your tongue is.
Embracing practical exercises for a couple of minutes a few times per day
Throw away those books and get stretching those face muscles in front of all the mirrors in your house. 60 to 120 seconds out loud a few times a day is all you need, trust me.