1. Elsy Dayan Arrazola Ramos 20221000964

2. Jahir Eduardo Sorto Jimenez 20211031955

3. Maria Gelin Colindres Salgado 20211023410

4. Zulema Alexandra Mendoza Mendoza 20221000752

Pronunciation errors are common and can make it hard for learners to be understood. These errors happen for various reasons, like the influence of the learner's native language or difficulties with certain sounds. Common mistakes include misplacing stress on words, using the wrong intonation, or mixing up similar sounds. These errors can make communication difficult, so it's important for teachers to help correct them.

Teachers can use several techniques to fix pronunciation errors. They might teach students how to hear and produce sounds correctly, using listening exercises and practice drills. Visual aids, like diagrams showing mouth positions, can also help. Repetition and practice are key, with teachers giving positive and helpful feedback to guide students toward better pronunciation.

Another issue is the overgeneralization of pronunciation rules. Spanish speakers might apply the regular past tense rule (-ed) uniformly without considering the phonetic environment. A clear example is the mispronunciation of the verbs ¨talked¨ [tɔːkt] might be pronounced as [tɔːkɪd] or [tɔːked], by adding an [ɪd] or [ed] ending. 

Spanish speakers can address mistakes in pronouncing past tense verbs in English through targeted practice and awareness of the phonological differences between the two languages. Also, learn and apply the specific rules for past tense pronunciation in English: 

1. Verbs ending in voiceless sounds (except [t]): past tense [t] "kiss" [kɪst].

2. Verbs ending in voiced sounds (except [d]): past tense [d] "grab" [græbd].

3. Verbs ending in [t] or [d]: past tense [ɪd] "want" [wɒntɪd].

   
   

Remember, the feedback is an important tool to correct the mistakes.

One winter evening, Lucy and Charles went to the theatre. They wanted to watch a play called Romeo and Juliet. The play started at 8:30 pm. Lucy and Charles enjoyed the play. It was a love story and it was beautiful.

After the play, they walked together in the park and looked at the stars. They stopped for a moment to sit on a bench. They talked about their future. Lucy said she wanted to live by the sea. Charles said he liked the mountains better. They agreed to think about it later.

When Lucy and Charles went home, their children were not asleep. They were excited to hear about their parent´s evening! Charles told the children about the play. Then the children went to bed. Charles and Lucy were very tired and went to bed too. They had a lot of fun this evening!

The issue with consonant clusters for Spanish speakers learning English is a common challenge. Spanish, especially as spoken in Latin America and Spain, tends to have simpler consonant cluster structures compared to English. When Spanish speakers learn English, they often apply the phonetic rules and patterns of their native language to English words. This means they may simplify or modify English consonant clusters to fit more familiar.

One example of this pronunciation error is the initial cluster /sk/ in "school", Spanish speakers might simplify it to /esk/ because Spanish does not typically use clusters starting with /s/ followed by another consonant, especially not at the beginning of words. The initial cluster /spr/ in "spring" may become /espr/ due to similar reasons. When facing these particular consonant clusters, Spanish speakers tend to insert an E sound at the beginning of these words.

Other examples can be in the word "plant, which has a consonant cluster at the beginning of the word, its cluster is /pl/, combining /p/ and /l/, the word /simple/ with the cluster /mpl/ in the middle of the word, and the word /find/ with the cluster /nd/ at the end of the word.

Working on detecting pronunciation errors in Spanish speakers and creating exercises to correct them was interesting. I learned that pronunciation errors are due to different reasons in each person, so correcting them requires a careful and personalized approach. Making good exercises to help with pronunciation was both challenging and rewarding. It taught me to be patient and accurate in finding and correcting errors.

One of the best parts of this project was the hands-on experience of finding and correcting mistakes. I enjoyed the challenge of creating exercises and seeing how they helped people improve. However, I faced some problems, such as the difficulty in detecting some errors and devising effective exercises. These challenges showed me that teaching requires constant learning and adjustment. Overall, this project helped me to better understand teaching and to be more understanding in helping others learn.

By Alexandra Mendoza

Identifying and correcting English pronunciation errors in Spanish speakers involves a careful approach because the two languages have different sounds. Spanish speakers often find it hard to pronounce English diphthongs, consonant clusters, and the differences in vowel length. These difficulties can lead to mistakes that make speech harder to understand. By knowing common errors like using Spanish vowels instead of English ones or simplifying consonant clusters teachers and learners can focus on fixing these problems. Effective methods include practicing minimal pairs, using tongue twisters, and doing listening and shadowing exercises to improve control over difficult sounds.

Using these strategies regularly helps Spanish speakers improve their English pronunciation and speak more clearly and confidently. Visual aids, phonetic transcription, and interactive apps can provide extra help by showing how to make the correct sounds. By working on these pronunciation challenges step by step, Spanish speakers can make significant progress and achieve more accurate and natural-sounding English speech.

Jahir Sorto´s conclusion!

In my journey of learning English as a native Spanish speaker, I have discovered that identifying and correcting pronunciation errors is crucial for clear communication. While working on the blog, I realized that I also have these pronunciation errors. It was a lot of fun in the process of creating it, because the more I researched, the more I learned, and I wanted other people to feel the same way I did.

Also, one important thing I learned is the value of listening and repeating. Listening to native English speakers and repeating what they say helps us hear the correct sounds and practice making them ourselves. Using online resources like pronunciation videos and apps can also be very helpful. These tools allow us to practice anytime, anywhere, and get feedback on our progress.

And finally, patience and consistency are key. Learning to pronounce English correctly is not something that happens overnight, but with dedication, progress is inevitable. Writing this blog has helped me not only share information and fun ways to practice these difficult topics for us as native Spanish speakers but also reinforce my learning. By discussing these issues, I have become more mindful of my speech and more motivated to continue improving. I hope the person who reads this blog finds this information useful and is encouraged to keep practicing and refining her/his English pronunciation.

By Elsy Arrazola

Improving the pronunciation of a new language or second language is indeed a challenge that requires time, dedication, and constant practice in the areas that need improvement. What I learned from this work is that, as Spanish speakers, we have several errors to correct, which we related to our mother language. It has also helped me recognize my own pronunciation mistakes and thus be able to correct them.

The project has been a step forward my path as a student, now a could say that I have a deeper understanding of some common errors that Spanish speakers learning English tend to make. What I noticed is that Spanish speakers adopt the linguistic patterns of Spanish in their learnig process.

On the other hand, while working on this project, the only problem I encountered was finding meaningful exercises to propose that would truly lead to improvement in the reader's pronunciation. However, in the end, we always find what we are looking for and I am pleased with the result.

By Maria Colindres

• Escape

• Approach

• Dislike

• Address

• Important

• Complete

• Control

• Expert

• Translate

• Hundred

For example, Spanish speakers might say "dis" instead of "this" or "tink" instead of "think". Spanish speakers might pronounce these sounds as "t" or "d" because these are similar sounds in Spanish. And these errors are a normal part of learning a new language.

For Spanish speakers, errors with "th" sounds are common.

These errors can be fixed with practice. Teachers can help by showing how to move the tongue to make the correct "th" sounds. Using exercises and listening practice can also be useful. With time and practice, Spanish speakers can improve their pronunciation of "th" sounds.

• Time and Team

• Fine and seen

• Mine and Mean

• Toy and Tore

• Show and Shore

• Pair and Pet

• Now and Nor

• How and Haw

• Hear and Hit

• Go and Gore

Jump to the place that contains the right answer before the time is up.

Each time your time is up or you jump to an incorrect place, you sink in the water and lose a life (you only have three lives).

The game finishes when you get to the shore or lose all your lives.

Controls:

CELLPHONE OR TABLET

Jump to any place by tapping it on the screen.

Press and hold the place or drag up with your finger to zoom in on the answer. Once enlarged, if there is a picture you can tap on it to see it in full screen.

COMPUTER

Jump to any place by clicking on it with the main mouse button. You can also do it with the keyboard arrows (left, up, or right), or with the A, B, or C keys.

Hover over a place to enlarge its content.

Score:

You will win some points proportional to the number of questions in the game for each correct jump, up to a maximum of 100 points if you answer them all correctly.

• I spy with my little eye a bright light in the sky.

• The rain in Spain mainly stays in the plains.

• How now, brown cow?

• The boy enjoys the noise of his toy.

• Go slow, Joe, don't throw stones.

• Clear the rear of the deer.

• The rare bear dares to care.

• I might take a break and bake a cake today.

• How do you know Joe won't go out now?

• The boy and the bear share the joy of the fair.