Part 4
of this free online ESL course teaches the student how to
slow down and have a better pronunciation. In many cases
the student doesn’t have any pronunciation problems, but
it sounds as if he does because he speaks too fast.
Slow Down
When we
speak we should not speak too fast nor too slowly. There’s
a middle point which is perfect. We try to speak quickly
in our new language in order to be fluent. I understand
this. I did the same thing when I learned French and
Dutch. We don’t do it on purpose. It just happens.
It’s a
race to see how fast we can get to the last letter of the
sentence. Reminds me of tigers jumping through a flaming
hoop in circuses.
It is a
difficult habit to lose. It is difficult, but not
impossible.
An Actor’s advice
I have a
good friend who is an actor. Although our careers are very
different, we both work with words.
Actors
face many of the problems language students have. One of
these problems is speaking too fast. One day he shared one
of his secrets with me. Over the years I shared it with
many ESL students.
It never
fails. Every time I introduce this exercise, my students
start laughing, and they can’t stop. Well, I understand
them. I did the same thing when the actor explained it to
me. It is a strange exercise—but it works.
The Exercise
1. Take
an easy book. A child’s book is fine. I suggest a child’s
book because:
