One of the most difficult pronunciation issues that English language learners face is saying /l/ and /r/ correctly. For Japanese and Korean speakers, for example, these sounds can be quite hard to say in such a way that native speaker listeners can understand them easily. This week, we’ll focus on helping you improve how you say these two sounds because they are so important to making yourself understood to listeners. In this series of activities, you will listen to yourself say /l/ and /r/ words, learn how to say them properly, and then you'll be able to listen to your improvement. 1.) First, record yourself saying these words with your phone or computer, with video if possible. /l/ and /r/ at the beginning of the word: Late rate alive arrive fly fry light right long wrong lead read blew brew blush brush clash crash lap wrap late rate lather rather blight bright flee free flees freeze /l/ and /r/ at the end or in the middle of the word: belly berry steering stealing pilot pirate ladle later 2.) Now, watch yourself. It might feel uncomfortable, but it’s definitely worth it to see your improvement. Watch your lips. Where were they for each word? If you turn the sound off, can you tell which word you’re saying each time? Try it. Turn the sound off, watch yourself. At a random point in the video, pause the video, and try to guess which word you said. If you don't have video and just used a voice recorder, try to write down the words that you said at some random point in the recorder. Then compare them to the list above. Did you hear them right? 3.) Now, watch the video of me saying the words. Listen to it with the volume on first and then with the volume off. Pause the video from time to time to re-watch me say a pair of words with the volume off. Can you figure out which words I’m saying? Turn the volume on, and re-watch that pair to see if you were right. 4.) Now, watch Rachel’s English video that compares how to make these two sounds: 5.) Using a mirror, or the reverse camera on your phone, watch yourself make the /l/ and /r/ sounds. Watch your lip and tongue position. Are they in the right spots for each sound?
6.) Re-record yourself saying the same list of /l/ and /r/ words. Did you notice any improvement? You probably did. If not, or if you didn’t see as much improvement as you’d like, watch the video again, and record yourself again. 7.) Watch the video of me saying the list of words again, and try to see if you can tell which words I’m saying with the volume off. How did you do this time? Let me know how you did! Did you see any improvement? Was this activity helpful for you? Email me at Leyla@empowerenglishtutoring.com if you have any questions or comments!
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Check out our video on how to pronounce the past tense of verbs and some adjectives in English. There is A LOT of new vocabulary in the video, and I give you examples on how to use most of the words. Even if you're confident in how to pronounce these verbs and adjectives, you might learn some new words by watching it. CHALLENGE! Around the 8:30 mark in the video, there is some advanced pronunciation practice and lots of new vocabulary and adjectives in English. SPECIAL OFFER: Email me at leyla@empowerenglishtutoring if you found the word that starts with an "r" that I didn't give a definition for in the adjective part of the video. Your email MUST include the word AND a sentence that uses the word correctly. If you're a current student, you'll get 20% off your next lesson. Check out our short video below for how to use 3 idioms about excitement! Photo courtesy of : https://freephotos.cc/job-interview#288477
When you submit your resume to an employer for review, is it getting the attention it deserves? Or is it immediately thrown into the trash? Likewise, are the words you use in a job interview ones that will get you hired? What kinds of words are you using to express your skills and experiences? Are they words that will impress an employer? Or are they words that every employer has heard or read from just about every applicant? Think carefully about the words you’re choosing when you list your skills and accomplishments. Cliché words are ones that are used so often that they essentially have no meaning anymore. For example, do you tell employers that you’re a “great team player”? Employers have heard this phrase over and over again. Your job, as the applicant, is to explain, very specifically, how and why you’re the best applicant for the job. Instead you might write or say something like, “(I) Collaborated with individuals from multiple departments to solve an international logistics problem, resulting in a successful close on a $100 million deal” on your resume. The word “collaborated” indicates that you work well on a team, and, since you used it in a sentence that used specific numbers and a particular situation to explain how you work well on a team, you’re telling the employer exactly what they want to hear: why you’re the best person to choose for the position. Check out these links for vocabulary to help you get away from the mundane (boring) resume and job interview words that no employer wants recited (words people say that are memorized): https://www.themuse.com/advice/185-powerful-verbs-that-will-make-your-resume-awesome https://www.workitdaily.com/top-resume-words/ Image source: commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Handshake_icon_BLACK_and_WHITE.svg
The interview handshake is one of the most important parts of the whole interview. If you are interviewing with an organization in the United States (and in many other countries), it is vital that you master how to shake the hand of the interviewer. Let's first start with a disclaimer: Not all interviewers will shake your hand in the way that I'm about to describe. HOWEVER, in general, in the United States, it is a good idea to shake everyone's hand like this:
Also, avoid shaking lightly, with just the tips of the fingers. Here is why: Shaking hands lightly indicates, in general, that you are not confident in yourself, that you are not trustworthy. As a result, interviewers may already have reservations about you, from the second you introduce yourself. They may subconsciously doubt your ability to do the job, to interact with customers, to present the organization well to the public. Another note: If, in your country, men don't shake hands with women, or they just shake their hands lightly, not looking them in the eye, don't do that during a job interview where women are present, whether you're a man or a woman. Shake a woman's hand like you would shake a man's hand, not because she is a man or wants to be treated as one, but because it indicates respect for her position and professional abilities. If you are a woman, shake a man's or woman's hand firmly. Grasp the whole hand, and greet each interviewer with confidence. Finally, SMILE when you shake hands. A firm handshake, eye contact, and a smile can go a long way to creating a great first impression. Remember: Whether you're a man or a woman, you were invited to the job interview for a reason. That reason is that the employer thinks you might be able to do the job well. During introductions and leave-taking at the end of the interview, shake each interviewer's hand firmly. Look each in the eye, smile, and introduce yourself. In the U.S., it shows you're ready to jump into the game (start working at the company) and that you are confident in your professional experience and skills to do the job well. The thought of going to a job interview that will be conducted in English can be daunting (rather scary). All the different types of questions you have to answer can make your head spin (make you feel like there's too much to learn.)
Let's focus on one type of question, though, one that is often not given enough attention among English learners: What are your weaknesses? When you answer this question, keep in mind these points:
"One of my weaknesses is that I'm too needy. I am always asking people in my family to help me." That's it? You're going to tell the interviewer you need help all the time and leave it at that? Nope. DON'T do that. Instead, try this: "One of my weaknesses is that I sometimes get a bit overwhelmed by large amounts of work I need to do. I've recognized that this limits my productivity, so I now prioritize (decide what's most important) what I have to accomplish and then work on the most important tasks first. I get the less difficult tasks done in the first few minutes of the day." The second answer is not too long. It is direct and to the point, and it indicates a few things about you as an employee:
A key part of getting better at understanding and using English is to listen to people speak it. This young lady, Adora Svitak, is a published story writer and blogger. She uses many high-level vocabulary words like "imperative." Listen once or twice all the way through. Identify the main idea of her talk. Then listen again, stopping the talk every minute or so. See if you can summarize what she has said up to that point. Rewind and listen again and again until you understand the whole talk. Write down new vocabulary words, and look them up in a dictionary. Pick three of them, and use them in your conversations, emails or other communications this week to remember then. Finally, be inspired by this amazing child.
Some English language learners are not ready to speak English outside the safety of the classroom or away from their computers and online English tutor. It is a daunting, or scary, experience. Finding a job is necessary for many people, however, whether they feel comfortable communicating with co-workers and customers in English, or not. They have bills to pay. If this is you, don't worry. Here are a few job options that might help ease you into the job market. Remember that any entry-level job you take is not going to be your job forever. The purposes this job serve are to provide job experience in your new country, English practice, and to help you pay bills.
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