What is a Schwa? Schwa may be the most misunderstood sound in English. Most people have heard of schwa, but it is rare that a teacher or a student knows that:
Every vowel may say the schwa sound Schwa is the most common sound in every dialect of English Schwa may sound like /ŭ/ or /ǐ/ in English words Schwa occurs in unaccented syllables and unaccented words
Linguistically, schwa is an unaccented vowel sound. The symbol used to represent it looks like this: ǝ
a
To help young students understand the schwa, I have come to think of the vowels saying schwa as lazy vowels. This can be taught through a few simple experiments that help students to better understand vowels, further develop kinesthetic awareness of sounds, understand exactly what a schwa sound is, and know why it occurs!
Step 1: Learn that to make a sound louder you open your mouth larger. Place your hand under your chin and say help quietly, then louder and louder until you are shouting. Notice that to say a word louder, your mouth drops open further.
Step 2: Learn that it is the vowel sounds that makes a word louder or softer. Since in the Logic of English® all students learn that a vowel is a sound that can be made louder and softer, they easily recognize that it is the vowel sound that is
making the word louder. However, I like to drive this home with another experiment: Try to shout the word "help" without the vowel: “HLP! HLLLP!” You cannot.
Step 3: Discover that schwa sounds are lazy vowels. One by one, compare the schwa sound /ŭ/ to each of the short vowel sounds /ă-ĕ-ŏ/, long sounds /ā-ē-ī-ō-ū/, and broad sounds /ä-ö-ü/ by saying first the schwa sound and then the other vowel sound. Rest your fingers lightly under your chin while you say them. As you compare each sound to schwa, notice: for which sound do you open your mouth the widest? Which sound requires more effort? And for which sound do you barely need to open your mouth? In other words, which sound is lazy? You and your students will discover that the schwa sound is lazy. You barely need to move your mouth to say it. With students I emphasize how it is possible to say /ŭ/ while hardly opening the mouth. It is a very lazy sound.
Step 4: Explore how some syllables are pronounced more loudly and more clearly than others, resulting in stressed and unstressed syllables.
When words have more than one syllable, one syllable is usually pronounced louder than the other syllables. We can feel this by placing our hand under our chin and feeling which syllable causes our mouth to drop open further. For example, in about, the mouth drops open further to say /ow/. When we say freedom, our mouth drops open further to say /free/. The syllables where our mouth drops open further and the sounds are pronounced louder are stressed syllables. The syllables that we do not say as loudly are
unstressed. Notice that these unstressed syllables are “lazy.” We hardly open our mouths. The result is that we often hear the schwa or a lazy vowel sound: /ǝ/.
Step 5: Say to Spell In order to help students know how to spell the schwa sound within a word and to create an auditory picture of the vowel, it is helpful to pronounce each vowel as if it were stressed, and not saying its lazy sound, while you are dictating the word. (Learn more about Spelling Dictation here.)
Therefore, although we normally say
, we Say to Spell
It is also helpful to note that many times we can hear an unstressed syllable pronounced clearly in a related word.
human / humanity president / preside demonstrate / demonstrative
ASSIMILATION OF THE J
Assimilation is a term referring to another part of the adaptation process initially proposed by Jean Piaget. Through assimilation, we take in new information or experiences and incorporate them into our existing ideas. The process is somewhat subjective because we tend to modify experience or information somewhat to fit in with our preexisting beliefs. Assimilation plays an important role in how we learn about the world around us. In early childhood, children are constantly assimilating new information and experiences into their existing knowledge about the world. However, this process does not stop as people age. As we encounter new things and interpret these experiences, people are constantly making both small and large adjustments to their existing ideas about the world around them. Let's take a closer look at assimilation and the role in plays in the learning process.
How Does Assimilation Work? Piaget believed that there are two basic ways that we can adapt to new experiences and information. Assimilation is the easiest method because it does not require a great deal of adjustment. Through this process, we add new information to our existing knowledge base, sometimes reinterpreting these new experiences so that they will fit in with previously existing information. For example, let's imagine that your neighbors have a daughter who you have always known to be sweet, polite and kind. One day, you glance out your window and see the girl throwing a snowball at your car. It seems out of character and rather rude, not something you would expect from this girl. How do you interpret this new information? If you use the process of assimilation, you might dismiss the girl's behavior, believing that maybe it's something she witnessed a classmate doing and that she does not mean it to be impolite. You're not revising your opinion of the girl, you are simply adding new information to your existing knowledge. She's still a kind child, but now you know that she also has a mischievous side to her personality. If you were to utilize the second method of adaptation described by Piaget, the young girl's behavior might cause you to reevaluate your opinion of her. This process is what Piaget referred to as accommodation, in which old ideas are changed or even replaced based on new information. Assimilation and accommodation both work in tandem as part of the learning process. Some information is simply incorporated into our existing schemas through the process of assimilation while other information leads to the development of new schemas or total transformations of existing ideas through the process of accommodation.
EXAMPLES OF ASSIMILATION /J/ ice to meet you arrow3 meet + you /mi:t ju:/ = /mi:t ʃu:/ picture arrow31 /pɪktjʊə*/ → 2 /pɪktʃʊə*/ → 3 /pɪktʃə*/ (1= old fashioned pronunciation, 2= transitional pronunciation, 3= present pronunciation, the vowel / ʊ/ weakened and disappears)
2 /d/ + /j/ = /dʒ/ (D+Y=J)
would you like some tea? arrow3 would + you /w ʊd ju:/ = /w ʊd ʒu:/ soldier arrow3 /səʊldjə*/ = /səʊldʒə*/ 3 /s/ + /j/ = /ʃ/ (S+Y=SH)
special arrow3 /spesjəl/ = /speʃəl/ it's just you = it's jus' you arrow3 /dʒʌs ju:/ = /d ʒʌʃu:/ (in conversational English "just" often loses its final T and it sounds "jus", so S + Y = SH)
4 /z/ + /j/ = /ʒ/
treasure arrow3 /trezjʊə*/ → 2 /treʒʊə*/ → 3 /treʒə*/ (1, 2, 3= see comments to the word "picture" above) learning centres such as universities arrow3 as + universities /əz ju:nɪvɜ:*sɪtɪz/ = /əʒu:nɪvɜ:*sɪtɪz/
Word stress is your magic key to understanding spoken English. Native speakers of English use word stress naturally. Word stress is so natural for them that they don't even know they use it. Nonnative speakers who speak English to native speakers without using word stress, encounter two problems:
They find it difficult to understand native speakers, especially those speaking fast. The native speakers may find it difficult to understand them. In this lesson we look at the most important aspects of word stress, followed by a short quiz to check your understanding: Understanding Syllables
UNDERSTANDING SYLLABLES FOR WORD STRESS syllable (noun): a unit of pronunciation that has one vowel sound, and may or may not be surrounded by consonants. A syllable can form a whole word or part of a word. For example, there is one syllable in cat, two syllables in monkey and three syllables in elephant. To understand word stress, it helps to understand syllables. Every word is made from syllables. Each word has one, two, three or more syllables.
WHAT IS WORD STRESS?
In English, we do not say each syllable with the same force or strength. In one word, we accentuate ONE syllable. We say one syllable very loudly (big, strong, important) and all the other syllables very quietly.
Let's take 3 words: photograph, photographer and photographic. Do they sound the same when spoken? No. Because we accentuate (stress) ONE syllable in each word. And it is not always the same syllable. So the "shape" of each word is different.
This happens in ALL words with 2 or more syllables: TEACHer, JaPAN, CHINa, aBOVE, converSAtion, INteresting, imPORtant, deMAND, etCETera, etCETera, etCETera
The syllables that are not stressed are weak or small or quiet. Fluent speakers of English listen for the STRESSED syllables, not the weak syllables. If you use word stress in your speech, you will instantly and automatically improve your pronunciation and your comprehension.
Try to hear the stress in individual words each time you listen to English - on the radio, or in films for example. Your first step is to HEAR and recognise it. After that, you can USE it!
There are two very important rules about word stress:
One word, one stress. (One word cannot have two stresses. So if you hear two stresses, you have heard two words, not one word.) The stress is always on a vowel.
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Why is Word Stress Important? Word stress is not used in all languages. Some languages, Japanese or French for example, pronounce each syllable with eq-ual em-phasis.
Other languages, English for example, use word stress and proNOUNCE DIF-fer-ent SYL-la-bles with more or less im-POR-tance.
Word stress is not an optional extra that you can add to the English language if you want. It is part of the language! Fluent English speakers use word stress to communicate rapidly and accurately, even in difficult conditions. If, for example, you do not hear a word clearly, you can still understand the word because of the position of the stress.
Think again about the two words photograph and photographer. Now imagine that you are speaking to somebody by telephone over a very bad line. You cannot hear clearly. In fact, you hear only the first two syllables of one of these words, photo... Which word is it, photograph or photographer?
Where do I Put Word Stress? There are some word stress rules about which syllable to stress. But...the rules are rather complicated! Probably the best way to learn is from experience. Listen carefully to spoken English and try to develop a feeling for the "music" of the language. When you learn a new word, you should also learn its stress pattern. If you keep a vocabulary book, make a note to show which syllable is stressed. If you do not know, you can look in a dictionary. All dictionaries give the phonetic spelling of a word. This is where they show which syllable is stressed, usually with an apostrophe (') just before or just after the stressed syllable. (The notes in the dictionary will explain the system used.) Look at (and listen to) this example for the word
Notice that dictionary A uses a different system to dictionary B to show which syllable is stressed. Of course, it's the same word (plastic), and the stress is the same (the first syllable). But dictionary A puts an
apostrophe after the stressed syllable, and dictionary B puts an apostrophe before the stressed syllable. You need to check your dictionary's notes to know which system it uses.
There are two very simple rules about word stress: One word has only one stress. (One word cannot have two stresses. If you hear two stresses, you hear two words. Two stresses cannot be one word. It is true that there can be a "secondary" stress in some words. But a secondary stress is much smaller than the main [primary] stress, and is only used in long words.) We can only stress vowels, not consonants. Here are some more, rather complicated, rules that can help you understand where to put the stress. But do not rely on them too much, because there are many exceptions. It is better to try to "feel" the music of the language and to add the stress naturally.
In writing, many people get possessive pronouns and contractions confused. In this lesson, we'll discuss the differences between the two, as well as how to use apostrophes in order to form contractions.
The Apostrophe
An apostrophe is that little punctuation mark at or near the end of a word that makes a noun possessive or helps to form a contraction. Sometimes, it can be tough to know exactly where to put it or when to use it, and errors with apostrophes are fairly common. In this lesson, we'll discuss how to use apostrophes properly to form contractions, as well as how to know the difference between a contraction and a possessive pronoun. (Hint: Possessive pronouns don't include apostrophes.)
Contractions The word contract literally means to get smaller. Sure enough, when you use contractions when you write and speak, you're making words smaller. A contraction is a combination of two words, with an apostrophe taking the place of the letter or letters that have been omitted. We tend to use contractions quite a bit when we speak, and in informal writing like emails to friends using contractions is perfectly acceptable. In formal academic and professional writing, which would include pretty much any assignment that you do for school and most writing you might do for work, you should avoid using them. Contractions are too
conversational and informal to include in anything where you'll be trying to put your best writing skills on display. There's no magic formula for figuring out how contractions are formed. Instead, familiarize yourself with some of the most commonly used contractions. For example: Note that that last one, 'won't,' is a bit unusual, as it doesn't follow the usual pattern of just dropping a letter or two. With this contraction, three letters are dropped, and the letter 'o' and an apostrophe are added.
Possessive Pronouns When thinking about contractions and apostrophe use, it's useful also to think about possessive pronouns, mainly so that you can avoid confusing them with contractions. You may recall learning that a pronoun is a word that takes the place of, or refers to, a noun. A possessive pronoun is one that shows ownership. Examples of possessive pronouns are:
Note that the form of possessive pronoun that you'll need can depend on the structure of your sentence. For example, you'd say: That is my book.
or
The book is mine.
You'd also say:
That is her car.
or
The car is hers.
Another example is:
That is their house.
or
The house is theirs.
Just take note of which possessive pronoun form to use based on whether the noun that is owned comes right after the possessive pronoun or if the possessive pronoun refers back to a noun that came earlier in the sentence.
As you consider commonly used possessive pronouns, think about whether you would need apostrophes in examples like 'hers,' 'ours,' and 'theirs.' You might start thinking that you'd write these possessive pronouns out like this:
The suitcase is her's. Or Those groceries are our's. or Put our trash can next to their's. If that's how you were envisioning writing these possessive pronouns, you'd be making a mistake. Remember that I mentioned earlier that possessive pronouns do not include apostrophes. People make the mistake of putting apostrophes in them quite often, but you should work to avoid making that mistake, because it can cost you points on essays and tests. The words her's, our's, and their's don't exist. Instead, you should always write those words without the apostrophes.