Hi. I'm Tom Kelley, a Rachel's English teacher. And today's practice tip is how to use your
own vocabulary for drilling.
There's all kinds of material out there to help you practice your English. But a great
way to make sure that the vocabulary you're practicing is a vocabulary that you can put
to use immediately in your everyday speech, is to record yourself speaking freely. Or,
record a conversation you're having in English with a friend. Then, listen back to the recording
and transcribe it. Find all the language that you're using. Then, dissect each of those
words. Circle where the diphthongs are. Circle where challenging linking sections are. Look
at: oh, here's a, here are lots of places where I can reduce more, maybe the function
words 'to' and 'for'. Right now you're saying them 'to' and 'for' instead of 'tuh' and 'fr'.
And we have lots of videos on reduction right here.
So, take a second to record yourself, transcribe it, and start really using your own vocabulary
as your practice ground. This way, you can actually start integrating all of the great
work you're doing into your everyday speech. It takes a while, but it's worth the work.
I would also encourage you to apply Ben Franklin exercises to your own speech. You can check
out more about Ben Franklin exercises here.
That's all for today's practice tip. You can learn more about taking private lessons with
me here. I also offer pronunciation evaluations, where I help you identify and focus on your
specific pronunciation challenges. Keep practicing, have fun, and thanks for watching Rachel's English.