In an attempt to take some of the pain out of learning the kind of clear English pronunciation that prevents communication problems, I have here devised a set of memorable sentences as practice drills. The full range of English sounds is gone through systematically and spoon-fed in a form overseas students will want to repeat to themselves and then to the world. They might think it's just a form of entertainment, but before they know it they'll be speaking like a native!
David V. Appleyard
Saving the Audio Files to Your PC
- Start by creating a new folder
with a simple name like "Pronunciation" or "Drills".
- Right-click any MP3 you wish to
keep, select "Save target as..." or "Save link as..."
from the drop-down menu and direct the download to your designated folder.
- Once you're done, go back to
your new folder to confirm the downloaded files are all there.
- Go up one level and right-click
the folder itself.
- Select the "Play with
Windows Media Player" option from the drop-down menu, just as you
might do with a music album. (If this option is missing, you have skipped
step 3 and the PC hasn't detected any MP3s!)
- With the Windows Music Player
open in full-screen format, left-click the "Now Playing" tab
followed by the small arrow underneath it to access a new drop-down
menu.
- Under
"Visualizations" select "Album Art" to display the
phonetic symbol of each sound being practised.
- On your keyboard you can press
Ctrl+Shift+C to activate (or deactivate) the hidden captions feature. When
selected, the full text of each pronunciation drill will display during
playback like a movie subtitle.
