Ultimately, English is a complicated language with complicated rules of spelling and pronunciation. Some examples include sub-ject, tal-ly, ab-ject, top-ple, and haz-mat. When a consonant is doubled in the middle of a word, it also follows this rule. Of course, consonant blends act as one consonant sound, but non-blend neighboring consonants will follow this rule. These sounds include sh (wish), ch (chair), tch (watch) and others.ħ When Two Consonants Follow a Vowel in the Middle of a Word, One Consonant Is Pronounced at the End of the First Syllable and the Other Is Pronounced at the Beginning of the Next Vowel Other “blends” are actually only one English sound which is spelled by using two or more consonants. They often include the letters l, r, or s but not always. Some blends are clearly two sounds which become one complex sound (for example bl in black, tr as in atrophy). A consonant blend is two or more letters that are pronounced as one sound in English. One thing to keep in mind when discussing consonant pronunciation are consonant blends. English examples include true, beat, train, leaf, and load.Ĭonsider Rules for Pronouncing Consonants
You might see words which follow this rule represented this way: CVVC. These vowel combinations come in all kinds of match ups. A general rule as to their pronunciation is to say the first vowel and ignore the second. We see vowel combinations all the time in English. If you are unclear about these definitions, look for an explanation in a standard English only dictionary or read about it here.ĥ If Two Vowels Appear next to Each Other in One Syllable, the Second Vowel Is Silent and the First Vowel Is Pronounced as a Long Vowel Remember Rules for Pronouncing Vowelsīefore going through these rules with your students, they will need to know the difference between short vowel sounds and long vowel sounds. Here are seven simple spelling and pronunciation connections you can share with your students to help them achieve accurate pronunciation. As unpredictable as English spelling and pronunciation may seem at times, there are some rules that your students can follow when they encounter unfamiliar words. After all, how many dictionaries use the phonetic alphabet when listing the pronunciation for an entry? Whatever your reason for not using the phonetic alphabet, there is good news. You might opt out of teaching the phonetic alphabet because you just have too many other things to do. You might have ESL students who are casually studying the language and do not want to cover any material so academic. But sometimes the phonetic alphabet is not an option.
I am a big proponent of teaching the phonetic alphabet to ESL students, primarily because I think it makes a big difference in their ability to achieve accurate pronunciation. Sometimes there doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to it. It is no wonder so many ESL students struggle with making the connection between written words in English and how they are pronounced.
0 kommentar(er)
