Sound Concepts
An Integrated Pronunciation Course
Christina Michaud and Marnie Reed
Intermediate
Sound Concepts makes transparent to both teachers and students what the main
problems in pronunciation are, and how to solve them. Sound Concepts creates
the conditions for success in pronunciation. Students are
systematically introduced to the predictable sources of speech
signal distortion (i.e. linked, altered, and reduced sounds)
and the regular patterns of English stress, intonation, and
timing, which are essential to communicative competence.
Reflective journals, strategies for
listening and speaking, and a guided approach to creating
pronunciation logs help students self-monitor as a necessary
step toward accurate, spontaneous speech.
Focusing on the supra-segmental aspects of
pronunciation, Sound Concepts addresses the four following aspects of
pronunciation in each unit through listening and speaking
activities:
• Sound Concepts, the communicated content—what is said, taking
into account linked, reduced, deleted, and altered sounds;
• Intent, the
communicative intent—what is meant, as conveyed by
syllable structure, stress, intonation, timing, and pauses;
• Endings, regular
verb and noun endings; and
• Sounds, individual
consonant and vowel sounds
Features
• Provides
initial diagnostics and final
cumulative activities in every
chapter to help students and teachers assess and evaluate
pronunciation challenges
• Offers
abundant contextualized
listening and speaking opportunities for meaningful pronunciation practice
• Shows
students how to improve their speaking through Pronunciation Strategies like making sense of intonation and using
intonation to hold the floor
• Provides short course in teaching pronunciation
section at the beginning of the
book for teachers, outlining principled approach to
pronunciation instruction
