PURPOSE OF THE CLASS

It is hardly possible for a pronunciation facilitator or instructor to be very effective without the
support and cooperation of regular teachers. Therefore, for the effect of pronunciation lessons
to be firmly rooted in learners, other teachers need to be carried along.

For example, if learners are taught how to pronounce a word correctly, and regular teachers, in
the absence of the pronunciation instructor keep saying the word the wrong way, they are in
effect teaching the learners to keep using the wrong pronunciation.

If, on the other hand, regular teachers try their best to pronounce words correctly at all times,
the learners follow suit. In the end, at least three things would be achieved:

1. Parents at home will see changes in their children's pronunciation.

2. Regular teachers are better appreciated by visitors and parents.
3. The school's public perception is improved.

Therefore, it is safe to say that the primary purpose of this training is to equip regular teachers
to carry on correction and grooming of learners in the absence of the pronunciation teacher.
This, in turn, puts both the teachers and the school ahead of their contemporaries in the
neighbourhood.

INTONATION
Intonation is the rise and fall of the pitch or tone of voice during speech. Intonation is used to
express attitude. The feelings of a speaker are expressed by the intonation he uses. Therefore,
you can tell that someone is excited, surprised, happy, angry or sad, by the way he speaks.

Intonation also has grammatical connotation. So it is only by paying attention to a speaker 's
intonation that you can tell whether what he says is a question, a command or just a statement.
Consider these examples:

1. He knew! Or: He knew?

2. Nobody told him? Nobody told him. Nobody told him!

Basically, intonation is either rising or falling. (The fall-rise intonation is also rooted in the two
major types.)

In this section, we will consider rising intonation as used in greetings. Thereafter we will
examine falling intonation.

When greeting someone, we usually expect a response. Also, we often greet in excitement. In
view of that, it is often best to use the rising intonation. Practise the greetings below with the
rising intonation. Capital letters are often to indicate a rise in pitch.

1. Good MORNING.
2. Good AFTERNOON.
3. Good EVENING.
4. How ARE YOU? How ARE YOU today?

WORD ENDINGS - PART ONE (al)

The 'a' in the 'al' ending of words is usually either not pronounced, or pronounced with the
schwa. Here are some examples; practise pronouncinɡ them correctly.
 metal /'metəl/ chemical /'kemikəl/ ritual /'rɪtʃʊəl/

casual /'kæʒʊəl/ medal /'medəl/ hospital /'hɒspɪtl/

local /'ləkl/ fatal /'feɪtəl/ medical /'medɪkl/

total /'təʊtəl/ vital /'vɑɪtəl/ leɡal /'li:ɡl/

capital /'kæpɪtəl/ principal /'prɪnsɪpəl/ social /'səʊʃəl/

initial /'ɪnɪʃəl/ ɡeneral /'dʒenərəl/ special /'speʃəl/

several /'sevrə/ federal /'fedrəl/ decimal /'desɪməl/

normal /nɔ:məl/ formal /'fɔ:məl/ verbal /'vɜ:bəl/

Can you think of more words with al ending?

Try to read the sentences that follow, pronouncing the underlined words correctly.

1. My baby coughs once in a while. Is it normal?

2. Ikeja is the capital of Lagos.
3. If an accident is fatal, it means that at least one person died in it.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.

CC WORDS
Some consonant letters have a soft and hard sound. Letter c is one of such letters. The
soft sound of letter c is /s/. Its hard sound is /k/.
Letter c would say /s/ when it comes before i, e or y; as shown in the following words:
decimal /'desɪməl/ recite /rɪsɑɪt/ decieve /'dɪsi:v/
decent /d'sənt cement /'səment/ recent /'rɪsənt/
cycle /'sɑɪkl/ bicycle /'bɑɪsɪkl/ cyber /'sɑɪbə/

Letter c wound say /k/ when it comes before a, o, u or another consonant; as shown in
the following examples.
corn /kɔ:n/ crew /kru:/ cultism /kʌltɪzm/
became /'bɪkeɪm/ can /kæn/ clock /klɒk/

When letter there is a double c followed by I or e, the first c is pronounced /k/, and the
second is pronounced /s/. Practise the following words.

accident /æksɪdənt/ accede /æksi:d/ accelerate /æksi:d/

accept /'æksept/ eccentric /'ɪksentrɪk/ succint /sək'sɪnt/
success /sək'ses/ access /'ækses/ accent /'æksənt/

Practise reading with the right pronunciation.

 1. Late coming is not accepted here.
2. I'm sorry I didn't mean to squash it. It was an accident.
3. The accident caused a very terrible traffic.
4. You can tell from his accent that he is from Delta state.
5. I wish you success in your exams.

COMMONLY MISPRONOUNCED WORDS

Here is a list of commonly mispronounced words. Practise the right pronunciation of each.

plateau roar pursue

favourite okro abbatior

drawer Christian ate

affidavit plait vowel

Sentences:

1. The capital of Plateau is Jos.

2. Have you tried okro with egusi?
3. Most Christians believe that all good people go to heaven. Why do Jehovah's
Witnesses believe otherwise?
4. What's your favourite colour?
5. Sandra, why didn't you plait your hair?
6. There are 5 vowel letters in the English alphabet.
7.
8.

/ʌ/ WORDS
The sound /ʌ/ is a vowel sound, a monophthong. A monophthong is a pure vowel
sound. The sound /ʌ/ is usually pronounced in letters, o, u and out as shown in the
words that follow.
o:
come /kʌm/ done /dʌn/ money /'mʌni/
stomach /'stʌmək/ tonɡue /tʌŋ/ onion /'ʌnɪən/
doctor /'dʌktə/ mother /'mʌðə(r) brother /'brʌðə(r)

u:
duck /dʌk/ hurry /'hʌri/ rush /rʌʃ/
brush /brʌʃ/ flush /flʌʃ/ tuck /tʌk/
trust /trʌst/ much /mʌtʃ/ stumble /stʌmbl/

ou:
touch /tʌtʃ/ country /'kʌntri/ trouble /'trʌbl/
double /'dʌbl/

Sentences:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.