SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

TOUR 103 -Tour Guiding

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

1. Body Language

The body is an effective communicator with a language of its own.

a. Posture – show’s much about a person’s self esteem.

- erect but relaxed.

- advantages: efficient breathing, better health and appearance, increased energy, stronger, clearer voice.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

To achieve an ideal posture:

1. Stand or sit up.

2. Hold head high and inhale deeply.

3. Stomach should expand while inhaling.

4. While exhaling, allow arms to fall to sides, relax shoulders.

5. Stomach should deflate while exhaling.

6. Head should remain high with the jaw parallel to the floor.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

b. Body Movement and Gestures

- movements of the body, face, and hands.

c. Eye Contact

- gives immediate feedback and support.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

THE VOICE

Good voices are natural, pleasant, expressive, and easy to hear and understand.

Determined by a person’s health and muscle tone, temperament, vocal habits as well as physical components of the voice mechanism (shape of the mouth, nasal passages and vocal bands)

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

VOICE CHARACTERISTICS

Pitch

The high or low quality of the voice.

Musical position of the sound.

The appropriate changes in pitch depend upon the meaning of the words and the purpose of the speaker.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

Resonance

The resounding quality of the voice.

Nasality and denasality common problem

Nasality – result of vocal tension or of too much air being pushed through the nose.

Denasality – occurs when not enough air passes through the nose. Caused by adenoids or other obstructions

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

Volume

The loudness of sound.

Basic elements to project the voice: relaxing, proper breathing and using the muscles of the abdomen and the diaphragm.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

Characteristics of Vocal Style

1. Intonation – melody of the speech.

- the ideal intonation is natural, not singsong or conventional.

2. Articulation – the process of producing clear and distinct sounds.

- manner by which a speaker utters the vowels and the consonants.

- proper articulation is a means of ensuring that the speaker is understood by everybody.

SPEAKING SKILLS OF A TOUR GUIDE

3. Vocabulary – use of basic words appropriately and not amazing people with high sounding words.

4. Pronunciation – the sound a person gives to words.