Improve Speaking With YouGlish 

Hello ELT!

If you are like me, teaching pronunciation is one of those award moments during an English language lesson. I tend to avoid teaching pronunciation. 

I am always worried about what pronunciation model to use in my class. I am not a native speaker of English. I speak French and a host of other indigenous languages. So my accent in English is also influenced by these languages.

Today, we will put that worry to rest. As much as I do not believe that there is a “best” pronunciation in English. However, I think that it is an excellent idea to improve one’s pronunciation of English.

Today, we will explore YouGlish, an incredible tool that teachers can use to help their learners to learn and improve their pronunciation. 

The first impressive thing about YouGlish is the layout. The website is not fussy, and it is easy to navigate.  

How does YouGlish work?

As simple as ABC. All you need to do is to input a word or phrase, sit back and listen to how it is spoken in the native language of your choice.

Did I say YouGlish is used for other languages other than English? YouGlish support several other languages: Chinese, Dutch, French, German, Turkish, Arabic and a host of other languages.

And Sign language too!

One important feature of YouGlish is that the pronunciation of a word is provided within a real-life context.

Once you type the word you want to hear how it is pronounced and hit the Say it button, the website loads videos from Youtube videos in which that word or phrase has been used. It could be a conference talk, a casual conversation. 

You also have the options to choose the variants of English you want to hear the word. You can choose between English, US, UK, CAN, NZ, Irish, and Scotland…

Below the video, there is a wealth of information related to the words you want to hear. 

There is the definition of the word and other words in the video. Click on the word, and the definition will pop up. 

If you scroll further below, you will also find a list of words that share some phonetical similarities with your word. For “funny” for example, you will find the following words. You will also find the phonetic transcription of the word

Do you want to have a good grip over the word? Then YouGlish provides tips to do that. 

YouGlish Cons

No! Not all languages are supported. For English, not all variants of English are taken into consideration. Only variants that are termed as “native” are supported. I wish Nigerian, Cameroonian, Indian, South African, Chinese and other variants of English were supported to reflect the diversity of videos on YouTube.  

My take: 

YouGlish is an impressive free tool for teachers and students and everyone who wants to improve their speaking skills.

Have you ever used YouGlish in the classroom or to improve your speaking skills? Leave your thoughts in the comment section!

(All images credit: YouGlish)

Online Resources for ELT Professionals 1

Onestopenglish

Hello ELT!

We live in an era of abundant resources. There are so many online materials that we can use to boost our teaching. However, as I always say, more isn't always better!

Like the lonely Londoner, English language teachers can be frustrated choosing the correct resources for a particular lesson or teaching context.

In the following two articles, we will visit two websites where you can have some excellent resources for English language teachers and students.

Let us begin with Onestopenglish

 

Have you ever visited a one-stop-shop? Have you ever experienced the incredible feeling of shopping for all your items in a single shop and not moving from one shop to another?

Well, that does not happen only in a grocery or clothing shop! There is also a shop where you can have all the resources you need to teach and learn English. 

What are you looking for? Resources for teaching grammar? Vocabulary? Reading? Listening? Speaking? 

Are you searching for resources to help your students learn English independently? 

Let’s go shopping for some resources!

General presentation of the website

Onestopenglish contains more than 8000 resources. There are resources for each age group as well as for ELT. 

Resources for children

 

These resources are grouped into CLIL, Grammar, Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship, Support for Teaching Children, Vocabulary & Phonics and Warmers & Fillers.  

Resources for teenagers

In addition to the same sections for children, teenagers have resources for developing their skills, for General English and Exams. These include resources to prepare for Cambridge English Qualifications, IELTS, and TOEIC.

 

Resources for adults

Onestopenglish provides solid content for adult learners. In addition to the above sections, there are ESOL and Business and ESP resources. 

Resources for professional development

Onestopenglish is an excellent place where ELT professionals find resources for their classrooms and can also be brought to the spotlight by sharing their skills. Onestopenglish hosts a Lesson Plan competition and the winners have their resources shared on the website. It also contains abundant resources for Methodology, Classroom Management.

Onestopenglish also believes that teaching English is not only done onsite. The COVID-19 pandemic reminded online sceptics that education is fast-moving online. Do you plan to build a career online? Stop at Onestopenglish to learn about Tech tools for online teaching, Online Education, Interactive worksheets and tons of resources to launch your online teaching career.

Navigating the website

One thing that I love at Onestopenglish is how easy it is to search for resources. They know that teachers are very busy and have less time to search through tons of resources. Here is where the search filter of Onestopenglish comes in handy. 

You can filter resources by Language skills, Level, Format or Age.

Cons of Onestopenglish

As the saying goes, perfection is not of this world!

The website is not FREE! Not all resources on the website are free. To access some resources, you have to buy an annual subscription of £21.00.

You don’t mean it. Did you say £21.00 for 12 months! Yes, you have right. £21.00 for 12 months, £1.75 per month! Even though some materials are not free, the yearly subscription is still reasonably affordable. 

Overall, Onestopenglish is a great place to shop for pedagogic resources. 

Enjoy!

Have you ever used a resource from Onestopenglish? Leave your thoughts in the comment section!

(All images credit: Onestopenglish)