An American English Accent?

How do you pronounce the "A, E, I, O, and U" while speaking Spanish? Do you find you carry an American accent?

For example, do you use the American "A" sound in Spanish words with the letter "A" in them? Then what about the other letters? Do you continue to speak with an American or an English accent?

You may notice that Spanish people use their vowel sounds with English or American English words. That's why most people think they have an accent.

Collect a list of words with the vowels in them. Determine if you are sounding out the words in another language's vowel sounds. Say them often to note the differences.

For example, if you choose a simple word in English such as "cat" and are using the American accent, do you notice if someone else may be using the "AH" sound instead of the typically more common sound? What about the word for "apple?" Are people using the correct sound, or are they using the "AH" sound as in "father?"

The Spanish word for cat uses the "AH" sound. Do you use the American "A" or the Spanish "A" for that sound. Try saying "gato" with an American accent and with a Spanish accent. Notice how different the sounds are to the mouth, to the tongue, and generally how they sound when spoken out into the air.

Noting what you do with the vowel sounds will help you appreciate what the tongue has to do to distinguish the sounds.

If you ever get together with a study buddy, try noticing what goes on with the mouth and the tongue of the speaker. Are they switching sounds of another language for the spoken words or are they using the correct vowel sound?

After a bit, you should become more of an expert in pronouncing the words correctly and recognising why it is that you carry an accent in the particular language you are studying.

In schools, too, children are placed in English As A Second Language programs, because their words and pronunciations are switched around.

Talk to them about that when you have a chance or the time. It clarifies a great deal of things and will solidify uniformity of the spoken words and clarify misunderstandings in the attempt of the spoken word. It also will help with the sequencing of sounds in common language skills such as spelling. You will have to choose the correct sounds and sound order in the letters of a given word.

Ask others if they can hear an accent in your speech if you haven't realised it yet. Their input may mean a great deal in months to come.

Carry on speaking, reading, and writing in Spanish!

Scary and Tame Words

Happy New Year!

It is a brand new year to learn the language you are pursuing. This blog focuses on Spanish, and so welcome, if that is your aim.

This year, keep a list of words in Spanish that you consider too scary to tackle. Write down why and when you noticed that you were having a problem with the words. Also, note which ones are easier to master. You may find just as many words that appeal to you and the tongue if you take a look at the words.

Later on, this process will help you to keep going. Don't stop when you encounter a scary or difficult word. Jot it down and keep going. Writing them down lets you know tangibly you are dealing with the word, and that you know what you will have to do when the time comes to adding it to your vocabulary.

You may recognize patterns such as word endings or masculine or feminine sounds that make you falter or stumble. Dealing with them is just the thing you need to do. Perhaps, you will discover you are confusing the word or words for something in English or in another language, or you are having a problem remembering the meaning of a particular word.

Just jot them down and look at them periodically. Some of them may become more familiar in the process, and you will discover you took the right steps to remedy the problem.

Enjoy the New Year! Don't allow any words or phrases to get the best of you.

Gift of Words

This site provides words from A - Z. Study them at leisure. Words are basically a bank, a word bank. Study them, hold onto them, and construct sentences, phrases, or communicate with them. The more you know, the more you can use the words, and you can increase communication.

http://spanish.speak7.com/spanish_vocabulary4000_t_z.htm

In a previous post, I talked about words being likened to beads. Each one is a separate bead that you string together to form meaning and shades of meaning. You then convey the meaning to another. Words are your wealth that you store within yourself and tangibly inside notebooks or books.

You can also develop your own lexicon of words that are meaningful to you. Others can learn these words from your collection.

The list provided will give you words from "T - Z." You can click on the appropriate letters for "A - S."

Increase the knowledge of your vocabulary today!

Pronunciation

http://spanish.about.com/od/spanishpronunciation/Learn_Spanish_Pronunciation.htm

I spent part of a day pronouncing Spanish words and getting my tongue acclimated to the sounds. That is a way you can assess if you are having problems with the sounds in the language, and what sounds are more problematic for you.

Later, I thought of pronouncing English words with Spanish pronunciation just to be a bit silly. It actually helped me place the sounds in Spanish next to English sounds, and my brain was able to study how the mind and tongue worked together to pronounce foreign sounds.

For instance, I pronounced "State and Lake" (train station) as "stahtay y lahkay."
Even though it didn't make sense to the ear, and in print, it looked so incorrect, I was able to see what Spanish speakers may be doing when they pronounce English words.

It helps you to put yourself in their shoes.

On the other hand, what would happen if they pronounced Spanish words with an English accent or an English pronunciation? It would be humorous. For example, "casa" may turn out to be "quesay" or "cahsay." (If you took each letter phonetically and literally, that is.) "Casa" is a common word in the United States, and so most people pronounce it 'as is.'(with the Spanish pronunciation intact)

If you ever meet young children that first arrive to the states or their families, you will hear the Spanish pronunciation being used for English letters and vowel sounds. That is what gives them an accent. Even after years of staying in the states or learning English, you will hear the subtle accents of their original tongues.

Write down a few words in Spanish and English. Reverse sounds for both groups. Try to formulate how and when your brain wants to use English and when it wants to use Spanish. It will be informative to you about your own choices regarding sounds, and you will be able to see the accent you bring to the language, whether it is an English one or a Spanish one.

Have fun with it!

If you want actual pronunciations of letters, go to the link at the top of the page from a site called, "About.com," and you will be able to hear them in certain instances as well.

Best wishes and good luck with all the Spanish you are learning!

Readings

Reading is a silent skill that often aids in our comprehension. At times, no one will know if you are reading or gleaning from reading. Most people read on their own and don't involve others or tell others. That is why it is a silent skill.

If you share with others, then most probably people know that you are learning and comprehending things outside of your arenas. If you receive a newsletter that helps you learn, that is shared knowledge, although you do the readings on your own time. Newsletters in your inbox or email also stimulates your reading and increases your reading and knowledge slowly and surely.

Here's a site that gives you links and websites that will strengthen your learning skills through reading.

http://www.ihes.com/bcn/spanish/reading.html

If the material is a bit too difficult for you, note that and save the website for later when you are ready for it. Explore the sites that are recommended and at leisure. If you need to find other sites search for some that interest you individually.

Some people think reading intimidates the reader because of academic or rigorous study, but reading can be a very fun hobby, especially if it involves foreign language study. It is your overall attitude that brings you to read or stimulates you to read. It helps you work with patterns in words, sentences, phrases, and also gives you a chance to learn a particular country's idioms and other colloquial speech.

Browsing some sites for readings in Spanish will allow you to give yourself time to read. Reading is possessing power over subject matter. Only you can understand what to do with the material you are learning, and it puts Spanish in your court.

Try some newspapers in Spanish too!

Reading is literacy!

Practice Spanish on Twitter

If you use twitter, you may be familiar with pages that use Spanish.  Here's one for example.

https://twitter.com/spanishlanguage

The Tenses

http://www.learnspanishtoday.com 

Browse on the above link/ site and look at the categories. Then take a visit to this blog's supplemental page to practice the tenses.

You will work with the present, the past, and the future tenses.

Happy practicing!