Exercises for good pronunciation and English language proficiency
When we learn English, we not only encounter new words, different syntax and other types of conjugations, but we also encounter many new sounds that we are not used to.
“Usually English pronunciation is a constant struggle with most language learners because they find it hard to ‘untie their tongue’ as many of them mention, the problem is that in reality they need to learn the opposite, they need us to strain it and do movements that are not the same as the ones we do when we speak Spanish”, English teacher Ernesto Valverde commented in an interview.
In the same way, he mentioned to us that fortunately “there are some pronunciation exercises that can be of great support for successful pronunciation, as they help to strengthen the language, learn to master it and gradually improve the pronunciation.”
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Important points in the mouth
Before pointing out the exercises, he pointed out that there are four important points in the mouth that must be taken into account, as they are key points for performing the pronunciation exercises well. These include the teeth, the hard palate (located behind the teeth) and second hard palate (located in the center of the mouth), and the soft palate (which is at the back, before the beginning of the throat).
Clamp the tongue laterally
A very simple exercise that can be performed, as mentioned by Professor Valverde, is to stick the tongue out laterally (to the side) and try to touch the molars for a few seconds, then move the tongue back and forth a few times (as if to brush one’s teeth with one’s tongue). With this exercise you can practice better pronunciation of the letters K, R, A (long), E (long), U (long), Y.
stick out your tongue
You just need to slightly move your tongue forward so that it is pointed, to achieve this you need to tense the tongue along its long axis (as if someone is pulling the tip of your tongue forward) and raise and lower the tongue, repeating at least 4 or 5 times. It is important to control the movement and gradually make it faster. In fact, this is an excellent exercise to strengthen the language in general, but it is ideal to help you pronounce better some letters such as D, T, L, J, N, S, Z.
roll the tongue back
You should place your tongue under your bottom teeth and push the rest of your tongue out so that it forms an inverted roll with your tongue, then you should take the tongue roll in and out several times. This exercise is perfect for practicing letters like E, I, N, NG, G, P, even Q.
A twist of the tongue
Another good recommendation made by Professor Ernesto during the interview is the use of twists in English. Although you should consider some according to your level of English so that they are not so difficult for you, in addition to paying special attention to each word, since many are similar in writing, but their sound is different.
simple tongue twisters
“I wish you were a fish in my plate. Be a fish in my dish, please’, ‘Chester Cheed Chew a piece of cheap cheddar cheese’, ‘Double gum, bubbles double’, ‘Clean clams packed in clean boxes’, ‘Four furious friends fought over the phone’ .
Intermediate language proficiency
“I saw Susie sitting in a shoe shine shop. Where he sits, he shines, and where he shines, he sits”, “I have an appointment, I have an appointment at a quarter to eight; I’ll see you at the gate, so don’t be late”, “One-by-one was a racehorse. Two-two was also one. Each won one race. Two-two won and one”, “The big black bug bit the big black bear, but the big black bear bit the big black bug back”.
Advanced language twists
“Peter Piper tore off a piece of pickled peppers. Pickling of pickled peppers selected by Peter Piper. If Peter Piper plucks a peck from pickled peppers. Where is the pecking of pickled peppers Peter Piper dialed?”, “When a doctor cures a doctor, does the doctor who does the doctors as the doctor wants to be treated or the doctor who does the doctors as he wants to be treated? “, “How many cookies can a good chef bake If a good chef can bake cookies? A good cook could bake as many cookies as a good cook can bake biscuits”.
Practice some English phrases
They say ‘practice makes perfect’, so it doesn’t hurt to make it a point to practice some English phrases as many times as possible so that you can start to gain a better command of the language. English.
Choose sentences or paragraphs and pay attention to how you move your lips, jaw and tongue when speaking to achieve the right sounds. For example: ‘date’, ‘say’, ‘judge’, ‘nose’, ‘letter’, ‘Judge Williams told him to sit down’, ‘We’ll do it ourselves’, ‘Hello son, did you see the sun this morning? Yes, it is beautiful at this hour”.
