Alphabetical order and pronunciation

[phuketsub]

Does anyone have any tips on how to get Thai kids to pronounce words ending in 'g',  like 'pig' and 'dog',  correctly?

 

Listen and repeat isn't working because they always try to make it like a 'high tone' (starts high and goes higher) in Thai, and they also make the 'g' more like a 'kor kai', rather than down deeper in the throat. It is pretty frustrating.

 

At least when teaching the 'V' sound, as one example, you can teach them how to move their lips, tongue and teeth into the right positions. Not so in this case. Only my pre-K students can do it correctly, but all the exposure to Thai teachers in their mainstream schools tends to drive it out of them once they hit pratom level.

 

I am also wondering if other teachers still bother to teach the students to put words in alphabetical order, which used to be a key skill for using a dictionary --  another dying art thanks to Google.

 

None of my kids even know how to use a Thai dictionary, which is more confusing than the English one.

 

Is it going the way of cursive writing...? eg. no longer relevant in this day and age of keyboards?

[Speedo1968]

I used to teach privately, all ages, normally one on one but sometimes three if abilities were similar.

 

Regarding the letter 'g' at the end of a word, have you tried exaggerated head movements, i.e stretching the head upwards to pronounce the 'g'' ?      Also, when saying the word draw out the sound as you stretch your head upwards.    It's very difficult to give a 'k' end sound if you stretch your neck high.  Alternatively try saying the word softly and dropping your head downwards.   You could use words starting with 'g' for example 'girl' which has a similar sound.    

 

Yes, I used to ask student to sort a list according to the alphabet.    I would also draw up short lists for pronunciation of difficult sounding letters e.g 'th', 'p', 't'.

 

I feel sorry for the children learning English now, whether they are native speakers or as a second language.   Phonics ?!   It's hard enough learning the basic alphabet.    

 

Unfortunately here the standard of English is worse than it was 10 years ago.     Many parents do not speak English themselves and, others have no interest / time to bother about their child's education.   Drop them off at 7 pick them up at 3, then have grandma look after them.

 

Perhaps we should go back back to "speak as she is spoke not as she is wrote" when it comes to a top heavy in grammar format of teaching.

 

For older / mature students the use of a dictionary / thesaurus can be useful; preferably in book form but if they use a computer then try the thesaurus there.   

 

Good luck.

 

[phuketsub]

Thanks for that. I will try raising the head and see what happens...My classes are mostly small groups ranging in size from four to twelve, but I do a lot of one-on-one to try and ensure they are getting the pronunciation right. ..I will keep you apprised and thanks again for the input.

 

 

[rijb]

I would make a joke out of the /g/ sound by grabbing my throat and making a gag sound /guh/.  I also used the word 'go' as a keyword (example) of the sound.  

 

'bigger' and 'ghost' are also good practice words.

[Slip]

It sounds like you are describing a deeper problem than the correct use of the end consonant sound. If they are tonalising the sound, your challenge is to get them to drop that entirely and just choral from your model.  This is an ongoing problem for dealing with Thai teenage students (and adults).

EDIT- Do you speak Thai?  If you do I would compare this to when you were learning it.  You may have been told it is a 'low tone' or a 'high tone' but that is not really about the pitch so much as the shape of the mouth and throat.  For English it really is about the tone and the emphasis on the syllable.

Edited July 25, 2017 by Slip

[rijb]

I've gotten a lot of mileage out the these 37 Basic Phonograms.

 

http://www.aacintervention.com/home/180009852/180009852/tips/2007/02feb2007/Wylie_%26_Durrell_List.pdf

[Annu Nair]

I think you are worrying too much about it. Try perseverance.

[phuketsub]

Perseverance is my middle name!

[garrya]

Annu Nair is correct. Just keep trying, and it will work. Nodding and other sort of strange things won't work. It has to be overemphasized.