Shadowing Practice: The SCHWA Sound! English Pronunciation Lesson - Learn English Speaking with Video
Ders oluşturuluyor...
1
Well hey there!
2
I'm Emma from mmmEnglish.
3
This lesson is all about the schwa.
4
Now it's just one of the many English sounds
5
but it's one of the most important ones that you need to understand and use.
6
Particularly if you want to sound more natural when you're speaking English.
7
So stay tuned!
8
There are 44 sounds in English.
9
Some say 45.
10
So you might be wondering, why is this sound in particular, the schwa, so important?
11
Well firstly, it's the most common sound in the English language by far.
12
It occurs the most frequently and that's why it's got its own special name,
13
Another thing that's weird is that there is no schwa sound in the name schwa.
14
So it's not really helpful for remembering it.
15
But it's also one of the trickiest sounds to understand
16
because any vowel letter or combination of vowel letters could actually be pronounced as a schwa.
17
Because English is not a phonetic language, right?
18
You can't see this sound written in English.
19
I mean we all know that English spelling is rarely a good guide to improve your pronunciation, right?
20
and it looks completely different every time.
21
All of these words include the schwa sound in them when they're spoken.
22
And learning to use this sound correctly is really important.
23
It's going to help you to sound more natural, relaxed and more fluent when you speak English.
24
More like a native English speaker.
25
So if you're trying to reduce your accent and to improve your pronunciation, then this sound is a great place to start.
26
So what does it sound like?
27
The schwa sound is a lazy sound.
28
It's actually my favourite sound of all the English sounds.
29
It's my Friday afternoon sound.
30
Ugh!
31
You know, when you're winding down after a long week
32
and you're probably already thinking about the weekend and you can't really be bothered doing much else.
33
So that's how the schwa sounds.
34
But how is it written?
35
What letters should you look for?
36
Well that's quite tricky because all of the vowel letters can be pronounced as a schwa in spoken English.
37
All of these words have the schwa sound but they're represented by a different vowel letter each time.
38
For such a lazy sound, it sure does show up in a lot of different places.
39
And since the schwa sound can be represented by any of the vowel letters, sometimes by consonant letters and sometimes by no letter at all,
40
being able to recognise the international phonetic symbol for this sound will help you to see when it occurs.
41
And that schwa symbol is this one.
42
Now the schwa sound is always unstressed.
43
It's the only vowel sound that is never stressed.
44
So you need to just relax, just be like the schwa.
45
Relax and take it easy.
46
It's Friday afternoon.
47
So to make this sound, first you need to relax everything.
48
This is a really relaxed sound.
49
Okay?
50
Check your lips, your jaw, your neck, everything needs to be relaxed.
51
Drop the jaw slightly and open your mouth.
52
But keep everything relaxed.
53
Remember this is the lazy sound.
54
Keeping that in mind, let's try it together.
55
Oh.
56
It's very, very relaxed.
57
Make sure that you're doing this with me.
58
So if you need to find a place that's quiet on your own, go for it.
59
It's a guttural sound so you should feel it coming from a little deeper and with all unstressed vowel sounds,
60
the sound is really fast and it's also low in pitch.
61
It's quite flat.
62
You should feel it here and it should be flat.
63
So why is the schwa sound so common in English?
64
Let's start from the basics.
65
English has rhythm.
66
It's made up of stressed and unstressed sounds and words.
67
The stress plays an important part in understanding natural spoken English.
68
Without stress, robot.
69
When words or syllables are unstressed in English, the sound is reduced and the vowel letter is often reduced to a schwa sound.
70
In English, words with more than one syllable have one main stress.
71
And other syllables are often unstressed and they often reduce to the schwa sound.
72
'father' again.
73
Culture.
74
Can you hear the schwa sound in the unstressed syllable there?
75
Let's look at another example together.
76
I'll see you later.
77
Now some of those syllables were longer than others, weren't they?
78
And that's because the important words in the sentence were stressed.
79
The less important words are unstressed and this helps the brain to focus on the important ones, right?
80
The words that you need to understand to make sense of it.
81
But it's difficult to know when to use this sound and if you're not really into the IPA script, then you need to rely on your ears to identify it.
82
pronunciation is a really great way to practise the schwa sound correctly.
83
And actually, I've got an imitation lesson that you can try right here.
84
So the lazy schwa sound, it's not too difficult on its own but recognising it in other English words is.
85
To help us practise today, you'll need to take out a pen and some paper
86
because I'm about to tell you some of the many different places that you can find the schwa sound.
87
Now you can often find the schwa sound in unstressed structure words.
88
So structure words are grammatical words in English sentences.
89
They make the sentence grammatically correct but they don't really have much meaning.
90
Words like articles, 'a' and 'an' or 'the'.
91
Prepositions, in, on, at.
92
Conjunctions, 'and'.
93
Just, some, your.
94
There's lots and lots of different words that are structure words in English sentences, really common ones.
95
When these words are stressed, you'll hear a stronger vowel sound.
96
'an' some 'yaw' But when these words are unstressed and spoken naturally in a sentence,
97
they often reduce right down to the schwa sound.
98
Some.
99
Yeah.
100
An apple a day keeps the doctor away.
101
Now there are tons of schwa's hiding in those unstressed structure words.
102
But also a couple of schwa's in the unstressed syllables as well.
103
Okay so what's next?
104
We'll look at this list of words.
105
What do all of these words have in common?
106
Can you tell?
107
Apart from the fact that they all start with the letter 'a', what else?
108
The first syllable is unstressed.
109
We'll start with the schwa sound.
110
This test is a little harder.
111
What about this group of words?
112
What do they have in common?
113
Make sure you're listening carefully.
114
woman student.
115
Thank you.
116
Vegetable you supply.
117
syringe, elephant, initiative.
118
Information.
119
Now the schwa sound is somewhere in the middle of all of these words.
120
Thank you.
121
Thank you.
122
How about people? and 'rhythm'.
123
Now there's no letter in there that shows there should be a vowel sound.
124
But we can hear it People.
125
So if the schwa sound comes at the start of a word, the middle of a word, well there must be some words that end in a schwa, right?
126
like extra, visa for example.
127
But also whether, Never.
128
after, culture, adventure, This is where it gets interesting.
129
Firstly, look at all of the different endings here.
130
They all make the same schwa sound at the end of the word.
131
But the second reason why this is interesting is
132
because this right here is where American accents differ from most Australian and British accents quite significantly.
133
Most of you already know that I'm Australian and because of this, I use the schwa sound quite a bit more than my American friends.
134
In Australian English pronunciation, usually the -er at the end of a word will be unstressed.
135
The sound is not pronounced at the end.
136
So in my accent, these words all end in a schwa sound and there are many, many, many, many words that are just like this.
137
These are just a few.
138
They end in -er but they also have these other endings.
139
So to pronounce them like me, you really need to focus on relaxing that sound at the end, that last syllable.
140
Okay here's a challenge.
141
Where are all of the schwa's there?
142
I'm gonna go get a coffee.
143
Do you want to come?
144
Hmm gonna.
145
You got it!
146
Those are schwa sounds as well.
147
The schwa sound creates reduced forms when English is spoken naturally.
148
So 'going to' becomes 'gonna' 'want to' becomes 'wanna'.
149
'got to' becomes 'gotta'.
150
'Should have' becomes 'shoulda'.
151
So there are so many more examples for this.
152
In fact, I'm going to save them for another lesson because I could go on forever.
153
But yes, the schwa sound is everywhere in English.
154
It's the sound that you need to know, that you need to get comfortable with using.
155
So at the very least, you should be able to recognise this symbol so
156
that you can use unstressed syllables and it will help you to pronounce words correctly when you see them in the dictionary.
157
celebrate, circus, carrot, principle.
158
They all have the schwa sound in there and you can see it.
159
Now time for the bonus section.
160
I'm glad you waited all the way till this point in the lesson.
161
I promised you that if you stuck around till the end of the lesson,
162
you'd get some extra pronunciation practice with me. Are you ready?
163
Let's go.
164
Oh hi Emma.
165
Hey.
166
Hey, great lesson today with the schwa sound.
167
Thanks, did you like it?
168
Yeah, it was awesome.
169
Do you think you could give us a few more examples to practice with?
170
Like maybe, what if you say a sentence?
171
and we'll try and guess where the schwa sounds are.
172
Okay.
173
Are you feeling better today?
174
Am I feeling better today?
175
Hang on, is that one of the questions?
176
Yeah.
177
Are you feeling better today?
178
Yeah.
179
Actually, can you put the words on the screen so we can see them?
180
Okay.
181
Are you feeling better today?
182
How many schwa sounds?
183
can be here in that sentence.
184
Are you feeling better today?
185
- Say it with me out loud.
186
Are you feeling better today?
187
Hmm.
188
There's quite a few.
189
- Okay.
190
Got it.
191
Ready for another one?
192
Yeah.
193
Do you want a piece of banana cake?
194
Yes.
195
Good, 'cause that's what I'm making.
196
Yes.
197
- Do you want a piece of banana cake?
198
How many schwa sounds are there?
199
Thank you.
200
Do you want a piece of banana cake?
201
Nice one.
202
Okay, are you ready for another?
203
Yep.
204
- Um, oh, I need a knife.
205
- Thank you.
206
- Thank you.
207
Mm -hmm.
208
Not this knife.
209
Where's the knife that I'm looking for?
210
Ah.
211
It's under the toaster.
212
- Thank you.
213
Now, Can't remember how much butter I need.
214
Thank you.
215
Come on, Baba.
216
Ah, I can't remember how much butter I need.
217
I can't remember how much butter I need. Where are the schwas?
218
Thank you.
219
I can't remember.
220
How much butter I need.
221
Say it with me.
222
I can't remember how much butter I need.
223
Alright, one more.
224
Okay, I've got a tricky one for you.
225
Can you pass me some more water for the cake mixture?
226
Can you pass me some more water for the cake mixture?
227
Thanks.
228
- Yeah.
229
- There's quite a few schwa's there.
230
Can you pass me some more water for the cake mixture?
231
- Okay.
232
Okay.
233
Thank you.
234
Thank you.
235
Okay.
236
Is that enough?
237
Yeah, that's enough, thanks.
238
That was great.
239
Okay good because I got to get this cake into the oven.
240
Thank you.
241
Thank you.
242
I've got to get this cake into the oven.
243
I'll leave that one there for you.
244
If you enjoyed that bonus practice session then let me know.
245
I'm trying something new here at mmmEnglish and I'd love to hear your feedback.
246
Let me know in the comments or hit the subscribe button right there.
247
If you want to keep practicing with me then check out these two lessons right here.
248
I'll see you in the next one.
📺 Aynı Kanal
B11
How to SOUND Better in English! | Pronunciation Lesson
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B11
Speaking Practice Lesson | Tell A Great Story in English
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
B16
Shadow Me & Learn Phrasal Verbs for Shopping!
TeensHigh School Students+3
B12
Lesson 2 - Speak English Clearly! The Imitation Technique
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B2191
Quick English Shadowing Practice
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B24
Advanced Speaking Practice (Persuasive Techniques)
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B22
Practice phrasal verbs in conversation | Speak naturally with me!
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B16
Conversation Lesson | How To Be Polite & Show Respect in English
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B11
Speak With Me | English Speaking Practice
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
B12
How to answer 'How was your weekend?' (without sounding boring!)
TeensHigh School Students+2
B21
Business English | Imitation Lesson | Idioms & Vocabulary
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B21
English Phrases for Daily Conversation (Practice Small Talk!)
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B13
Speaking Practice For B1 (intermediate) | English Imitation Lessons
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B218
Speaking English On Your Own | Shadow Me Every Day
University StudentsBusiness English+2
C13
The Present Perfect Tense | English Grammar Lesson
University StudentsWorking Adults+1
B11
Common English Phrases to Keep Your Conversation Going!
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
B211
Lesson 1 - Speak English Clearly! The Imitation Technique
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B21
18 Advanced Adjectives to Describe PERSONALITY
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B13
Practise Speaking With Me | Daily Routines
TeensHigh School Students+2
B14
English Speaking Practice (Shadowing) on Brain Health & Turning 40!
University StudentsBusiness English+2
✨ Video Öner
B115
202 cümleler
The Schwa Sound: How to Pronounce the Schwa in Words and Sentences (The Complete Guide)
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
B11
329 cümleler
Practice English with Wednesday Addams | Shadowing Sounds & Intonation
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B1139 cümleler
Speak Fluent English like Snape
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B1220 cümleler
Pronunciation Training: 3 Ways to speak English MUCH more clearly!
British Accent, en-GBHigh School Students+4
B11
167 cümleler
Why is English Pronunciation So CONFUSING? | Silent Letters
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
B12
247 cümleler
Sound More Like A Native English Speaker Episode 1
American Accent, en-USHigh School Students+4
B11
95 cümleler
Learn American Accent Fast.
University StudentsBusiness English+2
B11
51 cümleler
10 ENGLISH TONGUE TWISTERS to improve your speaking skills
High School StudentsUniversity Students+4
B13
183 cümleler
14 Minute Daily Pronunciation Practice for English Learners
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B1142 cümleler
A new way to practice irregular verbs (pronunciation practice)
High School StudentsUniversity Students+3
B12
140 cümleler
Linking sounds rules #1 & 2
High School StudentsUniversity Students+2
Context & Background
In this enlightening lesson, Emma provides a deep dive into the schwa sound, one of the most critical elements of English pronunciation. She emphasizes its importance for learners who want to sound more natural and fluent in their spoken English. The schwa sound, recognized as the most common sound in the English language, is crucial for understanding English rhythm, stress patterns, and the overarching flow of conversation. Despite its frequency, the schwa can be challenging to master because it often appears as different vowel letters or even combinations of vowels in various words. This intricacy makes it a perfect topic for learners aiming to reduce their accent and enhance their overall pronunciation skills.
Top 5 Phrases for Daily Communication
- “Can I get a coffee?” - Notice the schwa in “can” and “a.”
- “I want to go.” - The “to” becomes /tə/, contributing to the schwa sound.
- “What do you want?” - The “do” often turns into a schwa sound in natural speech.
- “Please give me that.” - “Please” and “that” can both contain the schwa in casual conversation.
- “I would like some.” - The word “would” often reduces to a schwa, especially in quick speech.
Step-by-step Shadowing Guide
To effectively tackle the nuance of the schwa sound, follow this shadowing technique that focuses on making you feel comfortable and relaxed while practicing:
- Find a quiet space. Ensure you can concentrate without interruptions for successful shadowspeaking.
- Listen carefully. Focus on Emma's pronunciation in the video. Pay close attention to her relaxed delivery of the schwa sound.
- Repeat after her. When Emma demonstrates the schwa, mimic the sound. Feel the relaxed nature it carries.
- Record yourself. Use a recording device to capture your attempt. This will help you notice areas for improvement.
- Review and refine. Listen back to your recording and compare it to the original. Pay attention to where you may have stressed syllables that should have contained a schwa.
By engaging in this active practice and utilizing effective shadowing methods, you can enhance your pronunciation and develop a more fluid and natural speaking style in English.
Gölgeleme Tekniği Nedir?
Gölgeleme, başlangıçta profesyonel tercüman eğitimi için geliştirilen ve çok dilli Dr. Alexander Arguelles tarafından popüler hale getirilen, bilim destekli bir dil öğrenme tekniğidir. Yöntem basit ama güçlüdür: ana dili İngilizce olan bir sesi dinler ve hemen yüksek sesle tekrar edersiniz — konuşmacıyı 1-2 saniye gecikmeyle takip eden bir gölge gibi. Pasif dinleme veya dilbilgisi alıştırmalarının aksine, gölgeleme beyninizi ve ağız kaslarınızı gerçek konuşma kalıplarını eşzamanlı olarak işlemeye ve yeniden üretmeye zorlar. Araştırmalar, telaffuz doğruluğu, tonlama, ritim, bağlı konuşma, dinleme anlama ve konuşma akıcılığını önemli ölçüde geliştirdiğini göstermektedir — bu da onu IELTS Konuşma hazırlığı ve gerçek dünya İngilizce iletişimi için en etkili yöntemlerden biri yapar.