Examines the effects of other linguistic structures on the process of phonological downstep (where pitch declines during the course of utterances) in Japanese. It is concluded that the downstep process involves not only a phonological aspect but two other aspects, metrical and rhythmic. (23 references) (JL)

Focuses on "stress-timing" in language rhythm, in which there are approximately equal intervals of time between stressed syllables. Discusses English as stress-timed, a belief established in pedagogical descriptions of English pronunciation, taught in teacher-training courses, and used as the basis for pronunciation exercises. Suggests that a…

Examined possibility that increased speech rate affects persuasion either by acting as an agreement cue or through impact on message processing. Fast speech inhibited participants' tendency to differentially agree with strong versus weak message arguments under both moderate and high relevance. However, fast speech was associated with increased…

Reports on Contrastive syllable timing (English-Spanish) and the acquisition of English syllable timing by Spanish native speakers. Results are used to explain the influence of the native language in the acquisition of a foreign language. (Author/VWL)

In this article, the author stresses the importance of welcoming preschoolers and babies into school libraries. She states that when read to from birth, a baby becomes used to the cadences and rhythms of spoken language, at the same time responding to the bright pictures and the presence of a loving adult. The baby associates books and stories…

In 2 experiments, bimanual 1:1 rhythmic coordination was performed concurrently with encoding or retrieval of word lists. Effects of divided attention (DA) on coordination were indexed by changes in mean relative phase and recurrence measures of shared activity between the 2 limbs. Effects of DA on memory were indexed by deficits in recall…

This article describes the benefits of teaching nursery rhymes to students, particularly as it relates to language and sound patterns. Most cultures have parallel forms of nursery rhymes, limericks and simple poetry that children easily understand and enjoy. Yet teachers of young children report that many of their students do not know a single…

In 2004, in response to the need to revise oral practice and assessment in the second semester of Beginners French at Monash University, an eight-week group-based theatre project was developed and trialled. A specially adapted version of Tardieu's absurdist play "Le Guichet" was used to give students the opportunity to focus on oral…

The use of rhymes in a reading program can result in improved listening skills, increased vocabulary, improved spelling, and greater proficiency in comprehension. A rhyme can be improvised and/or adapted for every skill in the reading hierarchy. In order to make knowledge about rhyming words useful for improving reading skills, the teacher must…

A study examined final vowel qualities in the speech of seven English speakers from the urban Tyneside area of England. It focused on variations in the pronunciation of the final "y" (e.g., city, happy, tiny) and their explanation by way of (1) the resonance characteristics associated with the articulatory gesture, (2) the…

Through careful selection of trade books, teachers can promote children's awareness of language. This paper cites numerous trade books that may be used to help children develop appreciation of alliteration, onomatopoeia, rhythm, and rhyme, and it recommends a number of alphabet books, animal stories, and books in which word meanings, interesting…

The English speaker learning French tends to interpret the sound characteristics of the second language according to English conventions. The term "sound characteristics" as used here refers to the phonetic aspects, the rhythm, and the intonation of French. A number of examples are given to support the theory that insufficient knowledge of these…

This paper reports on a case study of a Cantonese-speaking child age 2 and considers the implication of tone acquisition for tone studies in general, and Cantonese tonology in particular. (NCR)

A German lyric poetry course is described which is designed to convey to the student what it means to confront a poem. A poem is viewed as a design whose elements are based on general linguistic phenomena either directly or indirectly, and poetic language is linked with everyday verbal communication. (SW)

Understanding spoken English is often difficult for students of English as a second language because words are run together. Some of the common types of word blendings are: final consonant sounds, links with beginning vowel sound, same consonant is shared across word borders, and similar consonants blend. (SW)