Software Reference Guide - Accent Masteraccentmaster.com/download/accentmasterreferencegui… · · 2009-07-07Software Reference Guide . ... leaves little time for learning how

Software Reference Guide

www.AccentMaster.com

www.AccentMaster.com

This book is part of the Accent Master pronunciation system and is meant to be used in conjunction with Accent Master software. Copyright © 2009 AccentMaster.com All rights reserved. No part of this work may be copied, reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, or stored in an information retrieval system, without the prior written permission of AccentMaster.com.

AccentMaster.com 42-06A Bell Blvd. Bayside, NY 11361

(718) 715-0706

Author: Lynn Bo

www.AccentMaster.com 1

Introduction Congratulations, you are on your way to speaking clear and fluent English! With practice and follow through you will soon be speaking like a native. You will have freedom to express yourself in work and social situations without feeling nervous that you will be misunderstood. Accent Master does not just teach you to remember the pronunciation of a set of words, but gives you “pronunciation attack” skills so that you can approach all words with confidence. Often pronunciation and fluent speaking of English is overlooked in the English language education. Focus on reading and writing leaves little time for learning how to speak English clearly and fluently. However once out in the world, we find that speaking is the primary way we communicate and represent ourselves. And if our accent is heavy it can be the end of many opportunities. Instructors may think that exposure to well spoken English is all you need to improve. This is not the case. You need information and practice. Your native language has its own phonetic or sound system. English has a different one. This means that some sounds in your language do not exist in English and some English sounds do not exist in your native language. A good example of this is the {th}. This sound is rarely found in other languages but used frequently in English. Thankfully linguists have study the sound systems of most of the worlds languages making it possible to predict sound substitution patterns The other feature of spoken language is what is known as the supra-segmentals. This includes intonation, word stress and


sentence stress. These features give your speech a fluent sound. Each language has its own segmental features. These are often even harder to change because of the lack of awareness of their existence. One way to identify your use of these features is to speak in your first language and imitate an American accent. What did you change? Your volume? The rhythm? The shape of your mouth? The cadence? These are the features that supra-segementals are referring to. This software is too elementary I am beyond this level. Are you? Does your speech still sound accented? Then you are at this level. That is the sound level. It does not matter what content level you are at, be it beginner or with a PhD from an American university. What this software will teach you is what the difference is between how you say each sound and how the native American produces the sound. And most importantly what you need to do to bridge that gap. Listen for the sound. Can you hear it consistently? Imitate the sound until you have mastered it. Then move to the word level and finally the sentence level.

The Welcome video is simple and straight forward. Play it when you begin the program so you can learn about the set up of the program and some of the developmental practices we used to create the software.


The Sound Library. All of the phonemes produced in Standard American English are available to you in the sound library. For each sound you will find detailed descriptions, animated graphics and a speaker model. The English alphabet has only 26 letters, but spoken English consists of 52 sounds or phonemes. This is why we use the International Phonetic Alphabet. The IPA symbols are identified by two slashes surrounding the letter or symbol. When you see the slashes you know we are referring to the sound represented and not the letter of the alphabet it represents.


The Reference section includes a side view of the mouth identifying all of the parts referred to in the program, the glossary, and tips to help you practice your Standard American Accent. The following basic and advanced lesson areas are where you will spend most of your time when using your Accent Master program.


The Basic Lessons teaches you to produce the sounds specific to your needs. It is suggested that you follow the order presented; however you may practice the phonemes (or speech sounds) in whatever order you choose. You will increase your skills through listening and recording exercises at the sound, word and sentence level. For best results master each level for each phoneme or sound before moving onto the next. Begin with listening exercises before you do recording exercises. Often those who learn English as a second language will hear a sound and filter it through their own expectation of what the sound will be, actually listening with an accent. Training your ear


to hear the American accent is an important aspect of accent training. The sound level instructs you on how to produce individual phonemes and includes listening and recording exercises. The word level includes listening games, speaker models, waveform graphs, and recording exercises that allow you to instantly compare your production to the spoken models. The sentence level allows for more practice through interactive listening games, recording and instant comparison to spoken models.

In the Advanced Lessons you will find important information on word stress, linking and intonation. Each of these lessons includes video instruction and audio examples as well as listening and recording exercises. This will increase your ability to sound more fluent and natural when speaking. In both the basic and advanced lessons the games and exercises include a shuffle button. This gives you the capability to rearrange the order of the questions and answers, keeping the games and exercises challenging and fresh each time you play.


The Bonus Videos are a collection of video tutorials to help you sound more fluent and polished. The videos include: Alphabet Video: This video will teach you the pronunciation of each of the letters of the English alphabet. You will find this skill very helpful when you need to give your personal information like the spelling of your name and address. Verb and Noun Contrast: This video highlights the difference that word stress can make in the meaning of a word. In these cases the stress changes with the use of the word in a sentence. Listen for the subtle shift in word stress. Word Stress Basics: This video will introduce you to the features of American word stress. Plenty of examples will help you identify the difference between stressed and unstressed syllables in a word.


Final Consonants: In this video you will learn a fast and effective method to improve your intelligibility. The American R: For the majority of foreign speakers of English the American /r/ is very tricky to learn. This video will walk you through some oral motor exercises as well as additional practice so you can be sure to master the American R! Final –ed ending: The -ed ending carries important linguistic information. This video will show you when and how to reduce -ed so your listeners will better understand you.

Specific directions for each game are available by clicking on the directions button located to the left of each games screen.



Carry-Over Ideas: Beyond the software here are some great ideas to practice using your own vocabulary and sentences.

1. Use the voice recorder in the reference section to record yourself reading paragraphs aloud. Listen to your recordings with a critical ear.

When listening to your recordings note the following:

• Listen to your statements did your voice drop at the end of thoughts or statements to indicate completion?

• Did you highlight words that were of particular importance or new information? Write down the statements and mark the pattern you used.

• In multi-syllabic words did you give stress to the proper syllables? Write down five examples from your recording and mark the syllables you stressed.

• Did you reduce the vowels in the unstressed syllables? Write five examples and indicate the reduced stress

• Did you blend the words together appropriately (linking)? Give two examples and indicate the linked words.

• Are there any vowel distinctions that you are having difficulty making? Write down the words containing the challenging vowels and circle those vowels.

• Check the consonants are you hearing any substitutions? Write down the words that contain those challenges.


2. Use cues to remind yourself to practice the sound you are

working on that week. For example switch the wrist you that you put your watch on, or put a post it on your computer screen. This is called a crutch and its purpose is to remind you to practice your new speech habit. You should also write down sentences and words that you use frequently through out your day. These are often rote expressions, such as “thank you”, “how are you?”, “Hello, my name is…” see how closely you can produce these with an American accent and say it this way every time you have the opportunity to use the expression.

3. Go to the Voice of America website. They have

interesting articles that you can print and listen to via an mp3 player or on your computer. Listen to the spoken article and note each of the sounds you are developing on the printed copy. Try reading it aloud.

4. Listen to books on tape as they are called, though these

days the books will more likely be on MP3 or CD’s. These are often well spoken recordings that are interesting, will help build vocabulary and understanding of idiomatic expressions. Check your local library chances are you can borrow books on tape.


Alphabet pronunciation When you spell out your name or a word remember to add these vowel sounds to the letter. For example when your say the letter B, you have to pronounce it as “bee”. Here is a list of the letters and vowel they need to be pronounced with. The /i/ group: B, C, D, E, G, P, T, V, Z The /eh/ group F, L, M, N, S, X The /e/ group A, H, J, K The /ew/ group Q, U, W The /ai/ group I, Y With two left over letters O and R which are unique sounds Additional practice for words stress Here is a list of words that change from nouns to verbs depending on where you put the stress. Use your voice recorder in the reference section of your software to practice. Verb and Noun contrast in stress Nouns Verbs conflict conflict contest contest contract contract contrast contrast convert convert desert desert


incline incline increase increase insert insert insult insult object object permit permit progress progress project project protest protest rebel rebel record record survey survey suspect suspect Practice Paragraph Sometimes, there is a conflict of interest between parents and teenagers. Young people feel the need to rebel, to become separate individuals in their own right. Parents often feel such conduct is not appropriate, especially when their sons or daughters isolate themselves from the family, or when they insult their elders. Young people advocate that they be permitted to set their own limits and not be obligated to follow their parents “rigid” ideas. However, most parents still prefer to exercise some control over their children until they graduate from high school. Perhaps children should feel fortunate to have parents who are willing to guide their offspring at the risk of losing their affection.


Contractions Practice incorporating these common reductions to give your speech more flow. In studies even the most advanced ESL speakers tend to not use contractions in their speech. Got to gotta Have to haveta Has to hasta Want to wanna Going to gonna Don’t know donno Should have shoulda Would have woulda Could have coulda Must have musta May have mayave Might have mighta Used to useda Supposed to supposta Ought to oughta Shouldn’t have shouldn’t’ve Couldn’t have could’t’ve Wouldn’t have would’t’ve What do you whaddaya What are you whaddaya


Can you or can’t you? In sentences can is produced as {Kehn}, while can is gets the full vowel sound {Kaant}. It is a common misunderstanding for non-native speakers of English. Record yourself reading the sentences, are you making the distinction?

1. I can/can’t go to the movies.

2. I can/can’t help you with that.

3. We can/can’t go now.

4. Tomorrow I can/can’t go.

5. He can/can’t get it done.

6. I already told him I can/can’t.

7. can/can’t you go?

8. So then we can/can’t do it?

9. I can/can’t have it done by then.

10. I can/can’t work tonight.

11. I can/can’t ski.

12. She can/can’t sing.


The –ed inflectional ending In order to simplify their speech often non-native speakers will leave off word endings. This is a nonstandard simplification and can throw off the native listener. North Americans are very time oriented in their speech (and in their lives!). When the –ed ending is left off they will often go back in their minds trying to reconstruct what you are saying and losing the thread of the conversation along the way. We don’t always full produce the –ed ending. Here are the rules for how to pronounce this ending correctly. Rules

• If the root word ends in /d/ or /t/ then the {ed} ending is produced fully.

• If the verb ends in a voiced sound other than {d} then {ed} is produced as /d/

• When the verb ends in a voiceless sound {ed} is produced as /t/.

Examples /d/ / t/ /ed/ cried walked chatted grabbed passed waded moved kissed added viewed laughed needed Predict the pronunciation of these verb endings, then record yourself reading the passage.


Last week we visited Washington DC. We traveled by car and / / / / stayed at the Waldorf. We dined in some fine restaurants and / / / / enjoyed visiting monuments. When we entered the White House / / / / we were impressed by its understated beauty. My husband liked / / / / / / the Smithsonian the best as he is a scientist at heart. We walked / / through Alexandria a beautiful suburb of Washington D.C and loved all of their beautiful stores and café’s. We wanted to stay / / / / longer but alas did not. We returned well rested and pleased. / / / / / / How often should I practice? Everyday. It is necessary that your new speech habits start to feel natural. Every time you speak you should be trying to use the sounds that you are learning with the software. I often compare the level of comfort that you have to develop in your speech habits with driving a car. The first time you drive a car you must think of everything you are doing. But after a few short months of driving everyday, you no longer need to think of all of the steps it takes to drive. You just do it. That is how these new speech habits must become for you. I have included a checklist, each week write down what you will work on. Use the checklist provided. Keeping track of what your goals are and how often you are practicing will help you remain focused on improvement.


Practice Checklist

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Practice Goals – week 1 Practice Goals – week 2 Practice Goals – week 3


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Practice Checklist

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Software Reference Guide - Accent Masteraccentmaster.com/download/accentmasterreferencegui… · · 2009-07-07Software Reference Guide . ... leaves little time for learning how