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Ten Tips for Accent Reduction
-by
Lisa Mojsin
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 | Observe
the mouth movements of native speakers and try to imitate them. |
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| Until
you learn the correct intonation and rhythm of English, slow down your
speech. |
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| When
you are watching T.V. look at the mouth movements of the speakers. Repeat
what they are saying, imitating the intonation and rhythm of their speech. |
If
you speak too quickly with the wrong intonation and rhythm, native
speakers will have a hard time understanding you.
Don’t worry about your listener getting impatient with your slow
speech – it is more
important that everything you say be understood. |
| Listen
to the “music” of English. |
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| Use
your dictionary. |
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| Don’t
use the music of your native language when you are speaking English. Each
language has its own way of “singing”. |
Become
familiar with the phonetic symbols of your dictionary and look up the
correct pronunciation of words that are hard for you to say. |
| Make
a list of frequently used words that are difficult for you to
pronounce and ask a native speaker to pronounce them for you. |
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| Buy
books on tape. |
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| Record
these words, listen to them and practice saying them. |
Listen
and read at the same time. Record
yourself reading some sections of the book. Compare the sound of your
English with that of the speaker from the book on tape. |
| Pronounce
the ending of each word. |
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| Read
aloud in English for fifteen to twenty minutes each day. |
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| Pay
special attention to “s” and “ed” endings. |
This
will help you strengthen the mouth muscles that you use when you speak
English. Research has shown
that it takes about three months of daily practice to develop strong mouth
muscles for speaking a new language. |
| Record
your own voice and listen for pronunciation mistakes. |
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| Be
patient. |
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| Many
people hate to hear the sound of their voice and avoid having to listen to
themselves speaking. However,
this is a very important exercise because doing it will help you become
conscious of the mistakes that you are making. |
You
can change the way you speak but it won’t happen overnight.
People often expect instant results and give up too soon. You can
change the way you sound if you are willing to put some effort into it. |
