I love this song. It is by Norah Jones and is called “Sunrise”.

What to do:

1. Listen to the song and see what you can understand.
2. Read the lyrics (song words)
3. Try and say the lyrics or sing them!

Here is the video:

If there are any words in the song you don’t know, use your dictionary, or you can ask me in the comments!

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The movie is called ‘Gran Torino’.

It is about an old man who has lived most of his life in the same house.

One day an Asian family moves into the house next to him.

At first he doesn’t like them, but over time they become friends and he protects them from a dangerous gang.

I liked the movie and I also like the song. It was written by Clint Eastwood.

Listen to the Song. You can also read the lyrics (words):

Pronunciation Activity:

This is a nice slow song.

1. Listen to the song and copy the pronunciation.
2. In the comments below, record yourself reading some of the song.
3. Listen to yourself. Compare your pronunciation to the song.

If you don’t like your pronunciation, try again!

One of my friends mentioned the song ‘Hot Cross Buns’. I haven’t thought about that song in a long time!

I used to sing it in primary school!

So here it is! A nice memory for me, and you can learn to sing it too!

Activity: Can you find a picture of real Hot Cross buns on the Internet? Put a link to one in the comments!

PRONUNCIATION: Learn the ‘Hot Cross Buns’ song.

Record yourself singing or saying the words in the comments!

Don’t be shy! Give it a try!

A: G’day, means ‘hello‘ (short for ‘good day‘) and mate means ‘friend‘!

In Australian slang, we often use the word mate.

1. Click on ‘OPEN VOICE RECORDER’ below, to practice.

2. Record yourself in the comments! I will listen to your pronunciation and give you feedback!

Put your answer in the comments!

Q: What is the best way to learn English pronunciation?
            

A: You need to learn to pronounce words and sounds clearly. We already know that katakana is not a good way to learn English sounds!

The best way to learn how to pronounce the sounds of English is to practice the IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet).?            

Did you know English has a special alphabet for sounds? This is a special alphabet that has all the sounds of English. Click on the link below, to see the IPA.

A: It can be helpful to learn the IPA, but you don’t have to.

However, you should practice pronouncing the sounds of the IPA. The best way to practice is to say words that:

1. Start with the sound
2. Have the sound in the middle
3. Have the sound at the end

Let’s start to do this next time!

Question: Have you used the IPA before?

Today, let’s look at English pronunciation.

Q: What do I need to do to have good English pronunciation?

A: To have good pronunciation, you need to:

1. pronounce the sounds of English correctly
2. use the correct stress in English words and sentences
3. use the correct intonation
4. link words together correctly when you speak.

It sounds like a lot! But over the next few months we will practice all of those points!?

Question: Can you hear the problems in the speakers pronunciation in this example? What are the problems? What tips would you give them to improve?

Put your answer in the comments!