November Contest
November 01, 2008
James LeVeque of Troy, Alabama, is the September
contest winner –
Congratulations!
Vowel sounds can be especially challenging to pronounce for non-native speakers. The vowel sound YU, as in “cute,” may be considered its own sound or two sounds: Y plus the U sound as in “blue.” The point is—there is a Y sound before the U.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which words below have this YU sound?
beautiful
communicate
contribute
continue
few
menu
usual
view
Vowel sounds can be especially challenging to pronounce for non-native speakers. The vowel sound YU, as in “cute,” may be considered its own sound or two sounds: Y plus the U sound as in “blue.” The point is—there is a Y sound before the U.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which words below have this YU sound?
beautiful
communicate
contribute
continue
few
menu
usual
view
October Contest
October 01, 2008
James LeVeque of Troy, Alabama, is the September
contest winner –
Congratulations!
It's fall! Another word for fall is “autumn”--pronounced AH tuhm. The N is “silent”--there is no ending N sound.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Email us any word that has a silent N. (Hint: Several words, like autumn, ending with the letter -mn have silent N sounds.)
It's fall! Another word for fall is “autumn”--pronounced AH tuhm. The N is “silent”--there is no ending N sound.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Email us any word that has a silent N. (Hint: Several words, like autumn, ending with the letter -mn have silent N sounds.)
September Contest
September 01, 2008
Anna Yin of Ontario, Canada, was the August Contest
winner – Congratulations!
When it comes to pronunciation, English spelling can be misleading. Each vowel sound may be spelled several different ways. Some consonant letters have several different pronunciations. Some letters are “silent”--that is, not pronounced at all.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
What sound do these three words share? (You may want to look at a dictionary.)
people
machine
suite
When it comes to pronunciation, English spelling can be misleading. Each vowel sound may be spelled several different ways. Some consonant letters have several different pronunciations. Some letters are “silent”--that is, not pronounced at all.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
What sound do these three words share? (You may want to look at a dictionary.)
people
machine
suite
August Contest
August 04, 2008
Hannah Beck of Ridgefield, CT, was the July
contest winner –
Congratulations!
Some words have “silent” consonants. That means the sound is not pronounced. For example, we don’t pronounce the T in “mortgage” or the L in “would.”
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Each of these words has a silent letter. What 3-letter word results from these
three silent letters?
wrist
rose
debt
Some words have “silent” consonants. That means the sound is not pronounced. For example, we don’t pronounce the T in “mortgage” or the L in “would.”
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Each of these words has a silent letter. What 3-letter word results from these
three silent letters?
wrist
rose
debt
July Contest
July 01, 2008
The April contest winner was Roy Veteto of Grand
Prairie – Congratulations!
Each American English vowel sound may be spelled many different ways. That is why it is important to listen carefully to how a word is pronounced and not depend on the spelling to know how to pronounce it.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
With summer here, our thoughts turned to the sports involved. If Kate is a sailor and plays baseball and John plays soccer, by matching the vowel sounds, pair these names of people to their sport.
1. Susie a. swimming and gymnastics
2. Linda b. tennis
3. Issac c. canoeing and scuba diving
4. Ben d. biking and hiking
Each American English vowel sound may be spelled many different ways. That is why it is important to listen carefully to how a word is pronounced and not depend on the spelling to know how to pronounce it.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
With summer here, our thoughts turned to the sports involved. If Kate is a sailor and plays baseball and John plays soccer, by matching the vowel sounds, pair these names of people to their sport.
1. Susie a. swimming and gymnastics
2. Linda b. tennis
3. Issac c. canoeing and scuba diving
4. Ben d. biking and hiking
June Contest
June 01, 2008
The March contest winner was Carol Ezovski of San
Jose, CA – Congratulations!
Words have syllables (beats of energy) that can be counted. Use your fingers to tap each time you hear a syllable when you say the word “summer” “su”-1, “mmer”-2. Two, right? If you tap just the way you say it, you will notice that the first tap is louder/longer than the second or third—that means the first syllable is stressed: “SU-mmer.”
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which words below have two syllables with stress on the first syllable?
Careful, don’t let the spelling mislead you . . .
business
chocolate
history
open
umbrella
vacation
Words have syllables (beats of energy) that can be counted. Use your fingers to tap each time you hear a syllable when you say the word “summer” “su”-1, “mmer”-2. Two, right? If you tap just the way you say it, you will notice that the first tap is louder/longer than the second or third—that means the first syllable is stressed: “SU-mmer.”
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which words below have two syllables with stress on the first syllable?
Careful, don’t let the spelling mislead you . . .
business
chocolate
history
open
umbrella
vacation
May Contest
May 01, 2008
The March contest winner was Carol
Ezovski of San Jose, CA –
Congratulations!
Many English words have more than one accepted pronunciation.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Are these words acceptable when pronounced more than one way?
often—with a T and without a T sound
either—with an EE (as in grEEn) and with an AI (as in whIte)
exit—with a KS and with a GZ
February—with an R and without an R sound
Internet—with a T sound in the middle and without a T sound in the middle
Many English words have more than one accepted pronunciation.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Are these words acceptable when pronounced more than one way?
often—with a T and without a T sound
either—with an EE (as in grEEn) and with an AI (as in whIte)
exit—with a KS and with a GZ
February—with an R and without an R sound
Internet—with a T sound in the middle and without a T sound in the middle
April Contest
April 01, 2008
The March contest winner was Carol
Ezovski of San Jose, CA –
Congratulations!
It’s April! "April" is pronounced with the AY, or "long a" vowel sound, as in "gray." This sound may be spelled many different ways. It may be spelled with:
-a, as in lazy
-ai, as in main
-au, as in gauge
-ea, as in great
-eigh, as in weigh
-ey, as in hey
-et, as in ballet
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which word(s) are pronounced with the AY sound, as is in "May"?
okay
favorite
aunt
sweat
valet
eight
keys
It’s April! "April" is pronounced with the AY, or "long a" vowel sound, as in "gray." This sound may be spelled many different ways. It may be spelled with:
-a, as in lazy
-ai, as in main
-au, as in gauge
-ea, as in great
-eigh, as in weigh
-ey, as in hey
-et, as in ballet
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which word(s) are pronounced with the AY sound, as is in "May"?
okay
favorite
aunt
sweat
valet
eight
keys
March Contest
March 01, 2008
The January contest
winner is Elena Mendoza of Mexico City –
Congratulations!
March ends with a CH sound. However, not all words that are spelled with the letters CH are pronounced with this CH sound. Some are pronounced SH, as in "chef"; some are pronounced K, as in "character."
Now, Here’s the Contest!
How many of these words has this CH sound?
mustache
Chevrolet
choose
child
echo
March ends with a CH sound. However, not all words that are spelled with the letters CH are pronounced with this CH sound. Some are pronounced SH, as in "chef"; some are pronounced K, as in "character."
Now, Here’s the Contest!
How many of these words has this CH sound?
mustache
Chevrolet
choose
child
echo
February Contest
February 01, 2008
The January contest
winner is Elena Mendoza of Mexico City –
Congratulations!
The letters TH are usually pronounced with one of two TH sounds. One is voiced as in “this”; the other is unvoiced as in “think.” However, a few words in English that are spelled with TH are pronounced with T.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which of these TH words are pronounced with a T sound?
Thailand
Thanksgiving
than
there
thermometer
these
Thomas
thousand
throat
The letters TH are usually pronounced with one of two TH sounds. One is voiced as in “this”; the other is unvoiced as in “think.” However, a few words in English that are spelled with TH are pronounced with T.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
Which of these TH words are pronounced with a T sound?
Thailand
Thanksgiving
than
there
thermometer
these
Thomas
thousand
throat
January Contest
January 02, 2008
October's contest was
Rita Alarcon of Westminster, CA –
Congratulations!
Words have syllables (beats of energy) that can be counted. Use your hand to tap each time you hear a syllable when you say the word “January.” Four, right? “jan-u-a-ry.” Again, tap your fingers when you say “January.” You’ll notice that the first tap is louder and longer than the others. That means the first syllable is stressed: JAN-u-a-ry.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
It’s the beginning of a new year. Count one point for each syllable in these words relating to beginnings. Then add the number of the stressed syllable in the word. For example, “begin” has 2 syllables and the second syllable is stressed so it has 4 points. Find the word with the highest points.
beginning
commencement
inaugurate
initiate
originate
pioneering
Words have syllables (beats of energy) that can be counted. Use your hand to tap each time you hear a syllable when you say the word “January.” Four, right? “jan-u-a-ry.” Again, tap your fingers when you say “January.” You’ll notice that the first tap is louder and longer than the others. That means the first syllable is stressed: JAN-u-a-ry.
Now, Here’s the Contest!
It’s the beginning of a new year. Count one point for each syllable in these words relating to beginnings. Then add the number of the stressed syllable in the word. For example, “begin” has 2 syllables and the second syllable is stressed so it has 4 points. Find the word with the highest points.
beginning
commencement
inaugurate
initiate
originate
pioneering