One of the most important aspects of your pronunciation in your work as a TA is the way you use thought groups, stress, and intonation. If you are unable to deliver spoken English patterns like a native-English speaker, your students may become tired, irritated, or unable to concentrate. If you can develop native speaker-like thought groups, stress, and intonation, your students will be able to respond positively to the content of what you are teaching instead of becoming distracted by the way in which you teach the content.What is a thought group?
A thought group is a group of approximately two to five words that form a unit of meaning. A thought group could also be called a phrase. The following sentence has three thought groups:The English language / uses thought groups / for clear communication.
What is phrasal stress?
Phrasal stress is the stressing of one syllable in a thought group and the lessening of stress in all other syllables in the group. The syllable that receives phrasal stress is usually the syllable with primary stress in the last stressed word in the thought group:
the English language What is phrasal intonation?
Phrasal intonation is the regular pattern of pitch change in thought groups. In American English the syllable with phrasal stress is pronounced with a high-level pitch. All other syllables are pronounced with a mid-level pitch.the English language What is sentence-final intonation?
Sentence-final intonation is the lowering of pitch on the syllables following the phrasal stress in the last thought group in a sentence.for clear communication