This document presents a step-by-step description of an activity that demonstrates how learners at all levels and all ages can use percussion and percussion instruments to support their learning of English pronunciation.

This engaging text clearly presents essential concepts that teachers need to guide their students toward clearly intelligible pronunciation and more effective communication skills. Based on a sound theoretical background, the book presents practical, imaginative ways to teach and practice pronunciation that go beyond simple "Repeat after…

Increasingly, Chinese students are pursuing their studies abroad in English-speaking countries, such as the USA, the UK, Australia, and New Zealand. Despite the fact that they have studied English as a compulsory subject for a number of years and have passed multiple English proficiency tests, many still find it is difficult to communicate well in…

Adult English language learners in the United States approach the learning of English pronunciation from a wide variety of native language backgrounds. They may speak languages with sound systems that vary a great deal from that of English. The pronunciation goals and needs of adult English language learners are diverse. These goals and needs…

This article discusses two activities--Readers Theatre and Rhythm Walks--that encourage students to "get moving" with fluency instruction. Movement can be a motivating factor for struggling students, as well as a kinesthetic tool for conceptualizing the rhythm and flow of fluent reading while triggering brain function for optimal learning. Also…

This book offers practical ways of teaching students about the close connections between the meaning, rhythm, and meter in poetry. The major assumption of the book is that a close reading of a poem--one that explores the nuances of structure--can increase one's appreciation and enjoyment of poetry. In the words of the authors, "What the poem is…

Describes vocabulary development in a college reading program that involves students writing and singing lyrics to the tune of "Puttin' on the Ritz." Discusses the theory behind this practice, specifically how rhyme and rhythm aid recall. (SRT)

The author rejects the point of view that says that the development of prose rhythm is "largely a question of sensitiveness and of experience." Prose rhythm is analyzed, to provide objectives for a unit of instruction. (RM)

Classes of 9th-grade and 11th-grade students with deafness read contemporary poetry and created their own poems through writing, sign language, and mime. The poetry of the profoundly deaf students followed the syntax of sign language, while students with residual hearing focused on the elements of form, especially rhyming. (JDD)

Metrical phonology, a linguistic process of phonological stress assessment and diagrammatic simplification of sentence and word stress, is discussed as it is found in the English language with the intention that it may be used in second language instruction. Stress is defined by its physical and acoustical correlates, and the principles of…

Use of poetry is recommended as a means of making French phonetics instruction more interesting and rewarding, and some classroom activities and techniques are outlined. The role of phonetics in current language-teaching methodologies is examined, and special considerations for beginning-level language instruction are discussed. (MSE)

This activity for K-3 students helps them learn to decode and spell words using rhyme, noting that hearing and creating rhyme helps children hear similarities among words. Books with the Dr. Seuss imprint are recommended because they appeal to children. A sample poem entitled March, by Solveig Paulson Russell, is included on a reproducible sheet.…

A variety of classroom activities using songs to enhance French language learning are described. Strategies include sensitizing learners to aspects of the music; looking at themes, key words, and symbols; and manipulating music and language in relation to current cultural issues. A list of singers and themes is offered. (MSE)

The ways in which poetry can offer the French second-language learner insights into French daily "culture" are examined. Aspects of poetry discussed include the creation of atmosphere in physical context, the power of words to evoke emotion, and the use of rhythm. Two poems are presented for illustration, and reading and writing exercises are…

It is proposed that the target for teaching pronunciation in English as a Second Language must be the authentic, connected speech that is used by most native speakers, not an artificial and over-correct model too closely tied to the writing system, a different modality entirely. In English, this means learning the language's rhythmic patterns to…