Sounds and Writing Symbols in English
Summary
TLDRThis educational video script focuses on the distinction between the writing and sound systems of the English language. It emphasizes the importance of recognizing the difference between spelling and pronunciation, as English uses 26 letters to represent 44 distinct sounds. The script encourages learners to pay close attention to these nuances, engage in exercises to identify vowel and consonant sounds in words, and understand the intuitive nature of speaking versus the learned skill of writing. By highlighting the complexity of English sounds and their representation, the video aims to enhance learners' speaking and writing proficiency.
Takeaways
- 📝 The English language has a distinct writing system and sound system, which are two separate entities that should be understood separately for effective learning.
- 🔍 The script emphasizes the importance of paying close attention to the differences between spelling and pronunciation in English.
- 📚 Learning to write is a skill that can be developed with effort, whereas learning to speak, especially for children, is more intuitive.
- 🌐 The script introduces the concept of 'upper case' and 'lower case' symbols in the English alphabet and invites learners to think about their necessity and usage.
- 🤔 It poses a question about the difference between the two sets of letters and why we can't just have one set, encouraging learners to ponder and find the answer themselves.
- 🔑 The script points out the disconnect between the first letter of a word and the sound it represents, highlighting the complexity of the English writing system.
- 📈 The importance of recognizing and understanding the 44 sounds of the English language, which are represented by the 26 letters, is stressed for better speaking and writing skills.
- 📑 The script provides exercises to help learners identify and practice vowel and consonant sounds in different words to improve their understanding of English phonetics.
- 📖 It is suggested that learning the sounds associated with each letter can help fix patterns in the subconscious, leading to more confident language use.
- 📝 The script differentiates between vowels and consonants, noting that vowels are more fundamental to natural language and are the focus for understanding the sound system.
- 📚 Lastly, the script encourages learners to observe their own language output to see the impact of their learning on their performance in English.
Q & A
What are the two main aspects of the English language discussed in the script?
-The two main aspects discussed in the script are the 'writing system' and the 'sound system' of the English language.
Why is it important to differentiate between the writing system and the sound system in English learning?
-Differentiating between the writing system and the sound system is important because they are very different things. The sound system is contingent upon how we speak, while the writing system, particularly in English, has a different set of symbols to represent sounds, which can affect learning and understanding.
What is the significance of the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters in the English writing system?
-Uppercase and lowercase letters are significant because they serve different functions in writing. Uppercase letters are typically used at the beginning of a sentence or for proper nouns, while lowercase letters are used for the rest of the words in a sentence.
Why might learning to write be considered a skill that can be developed with effort, while learning to speak is more intuitive?
-Learning to write is considered a skill that can be developed with effort because it involves learning a system of symbols to represent sounds. On the other hand, learning to speak is more intuitive, especially for children, as it is a natural part of language acquisition and less reliant on a formal system.
What is the purpose of the exercise involving finding words for each vowel and consonant sound in English?
-The purpose of the exercise is to help learners understand and become more familiar with the 44 distinct sounds of the English language. By identifying words with specific vowel and consonant sounds, learners can improve their pronunciation and comprehension of spoken English.
How many vowel sounds are there in the English language according to the script?
-According to the script, there are 20 vowel sounds in the English language.
What is the difference between the pronunciation of the letter 'a' and the sound it represents in the word 'apple'?
-The pronunciation of the letter 'a' is represented by the sound /æ/ as in 'cat', but in the word 'apple', the sound it represents is different and there is no direct 'a' sound in 'apple'.
What is the role of paying attention to the differences between the writing and sound systems in learning English?
-Paying attention to the differences helps learners to be more aware of the disconnect between how words are written and how they are pronounced. This awareness can lead to a better understanding of the language and can improve speaking and listening skills.
Why are there two different sets of letters, uppercase and lowercase, in the English writing system?
-The two sets serve different purposes in writing. Uppercase letters are used at the beginning of sentences and for proper nouns, while lowercase letters are used for the rest of the words. The distinction helps in organizing written text and providing emphasis where needed.
What is the significance of the script's emphasis on the importance of paying attention to the details of the English language?
-The emphasis on paying attention to details is crucial for learners to develop a deeper understanding of the language's complexities, such as the disconnect between spelling and pronunciation. This can lead to more effective learning and better language proficiency.
Outlines
📚 Introduction to English Sounds and Writing Systems
The instructor begins by emphasizing the importance of distinguishing between the sound system and writing system of English. They highlight that while learning to write is a skill acquired through effort, speaking is more intuitive, especially for children. The class aims to explore the differences between spelling (writing system) and pronunciation (sound system), noting that English uses various symbols to represent its sounds, a fact that learners should pay close attention to for effective language acquisition.
🔤 The Alphabet: Uppercase and Lowercase Letters
The script delves into the English alphabet, discussing the difference between uppercase and lowercase letters, and their usage in writing. The instructor invites learners to contemplate why two sets of letters exist and how English spelling uses these symbols to represent sounds. They also mention different methods used to teach and learn the alphabet, such as rhymes and associating letters with words, but note a disconnect between the letter names and the sounds they represent in spoken English.
🔍 The Disconnect Between Spelling and Pronunciation
This paragraph addresses the discrepancy between the written form of English words and their pronunciation. The instructor uses examples like 'apple' and 'cat' to illustrate that the first letter does not correspond to the initial sound of the word. They underscore the importance of recognizing this difference for learners and suggest that paying attention to these nuances can enhance one's understanding and confidence in the English language.
🎓 Learning Strategies and the Subconscious
The focus shifts to learning strategies, where the instructor advises learners to pay attention to the differences between written and spoken English, allowing these observations to influence their subconscious. They propose that this attentiveness will improve learners' confidence and performance in English. The paragraph also introduces the idea of observing one's own output to assess the impact of learning efforts.
📈 Understanding English Vowels and Consonants
The script introduces a chart of English vowel and consonant sounds, explaining that while there are only 26 letters in the alphabet, they represent 44 distinct sounds. The instructor emphasizes the importance of understanding these sounds for effective communication in English and provides examples of words that contain specific vowel and consonant sounds, encouraging learners to explore and recognize these sounds in their speech.
📝 Exercises for Sound Recognition
The instructor suggests exercises to help learners identify and differentiate between vowel and consonant sounds in English. They recommend creating lists of words that contain each of the 20 vowel sounds and 24 consonant sounds, using these lists to deepen understanding of how these sounds function in spoken English. The paragraph concludes by emphasizing the value of these exercises in improving speaking skills.
🌟 The Miracle of Language: Finite Sounds, Infinite Words
In the final paragraph, the instructor marvels at the ability of a finite set of 44 sounds to generate an infinite number of words in the English language. They reflect on the complexity of learning to write using 26 symbols to represent these sounds and the importance of closely examining these sounds for improved speaking abilities. The script concludes with a reminder of the exercises and the promise of continued exploration of the English sound system.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Writing System
💡Sound System
💡Alphabets
💡Uppercase and Lowercase
💡Phonetic Transcription
💡Vowels
💡Consonants
💡Intuitive Learning
💡Learning Strategies
💡Disconnet
💡Subconscious Learning
Highlights
The class focuses on distinguishing between the sound system and writing system in English, emphasizing their differences.
Learning to write is an acquired skill, while learning to speak is more intuitive, especially for children.
The English writing system uses 26 letters to represent sounds, with variations in upper and lower case.
The difference between upper and lower case is not merely stylistic but serves specific functions in writing.
The disconnect between the first letter of a word and its corresponding sound is highlighted as a common issue in English learning.
The importance of paying attention to the differences between written symbols and spoken sounds for effective English learning is underscored.
Vowels are identified as more fundamental to natural language and are distinguished from consonants in the learning process.
There are 20 vowel sounds in the English language, each with examples provided to aid understanding.
An exercise is suggested to find five words for each of the 20 vowel sounds to deepen comprehension.
Consonant sounds are also categorized and exemplified, with 24 distinct sounds presented in the transcript.
The transcript encourages finding sets of words for each consonant sound to improve sound recognition.
The finite set of 44 English sounds is responsible for the creation of an infinite number of words, a concept likened to a miracle.
The class transcript provides a detailed chart of vowel and consonant sounds with corresponding words for learning purposes.
The importance of phonetic transcription in understanding the pronunciation of English letters is discussed.
The transcript concludes with a reiteration of the significance of understanding the 44 sounds of English for improved speaking.
The class transcript is designed to improve learners' confidence in writing, reading, and speaking English by focusing on sound and writing systems.
Transcripts
[Music]
welcome to the class
today we will talk about sounds of
english
we are going to talk about writing
system in english
these are the two separate things
and right at the outset that is right
at the beginning of this
class i would like to tell you
to pay attention to these things
carefully
in order to learn different aspects of
english language it is important to
separate
these two once again we are talking
about
writing system in english and
sound system of english
if we try to simplify it further we are
going to be talking about
how we spell things
that is writing system and
what happens when we speak
are these two things different
if it is surprising to you then
you require even closer attention to
these facts they are
very different things
speaking is
contingent upon sound system
and writing particularly in english
has a different system that is
we follow we have different cis
different symbols to represent
sounds of english we are going to
elaborate
on that today as a note
as a footnote to this let me also add to
you
that learning to write is one of the
skills
that we can learn by putting in efforts
but learning to speak
particularly for children is quite
intuitive
and once we pay attention to these
things
things become easier for us to learn
let's move ahead
and talk about it one more disclosure
right at the beginning we are going to
be talking about
writing system and sound system
we we don't intend or we don't
employ that we are going to begin
teaching you alphabets we understand
that you know language and
almost all of you are at many different
levels in the process of learning
through these things
we are trying to work on
something we are trying to draw your
attention to something
that is rarely paid attention to
in the process of learning so let me
talk about
let me talk more about it when we move
further
so one more time learning to speak
and learning to write
and we are going to look at these things
for the purpose of learning english
when you when you learnt english
alphabet for the first time i am sure
you have paid attention to this
but i want to draw your attention to
more questions and then going to invite
you to check
if these questions came to your mind i
am sure
what you see on the screen is familiar
to you
these are 26 symbols
of english writing system
we depending upon when we
started to learn english writing system
we have to learn this thing first
so and and these
these things are taught in different
ways
whatever method you you applied to learn
these things
you have learnt these 26 letters
they are a b
c d e f
g h i j k
l m n o
p q r s
t u v w
x y and z
right from this point uh
when we the the last part when we
some people say this as g
some people say as said the difference
is between
british and american spoken system in
american system
this is known as z in a british
british system this is known as zet
that's how we
irrespective of the method applied
in learning we learn these things
then you must have learned the second
set
as well set one and set two
the difference between these two sets is
one is called upper case and the other
is called
lower case so uppercase symbols
and lowercase symbols i
i do not mean anything else when i say
symbols i know
they are alphabets and
they are used in writing system but the
reason why i am calling them
symbols again and again is very simple
and i want you to know that
the reason is we use
these symbols to represent
sounds that we speak and
we will dwell upon that when we move
further but let's
stick to the other question and for the
time being
and here is what i am inviting you to
think
why do we have two different sets
why do we have upper case
symbols and lowercase symbols
i know one answer is very simple we use
uppercase in the beginning of
a word
when those words are used in a sentence
we used
the upper case only at the first
at the initial position of the first
word in the sentence
and then there are lot of words which
begin with
upper case we use
upper cases in abbreviations and so on
we know
that's not my question my question is
couldn't we have just one
what difference would it make why do we
need two different sets think about it
not sure we have an answer to this
question
have you found an answer to this
question for yourself so far
please look at that try to find an
answer for yourself
this is just an interesting thing this
doesn't have much to do with
learning part nonetheless whether or not
we have an answer to the question
we know that we are we have two
different sets
and we use them in a ah we we know how
to use them
so like i said upper case
like one of them at the initial position
of a word
and at several words within a sentence
also
but not every word within a sentence
begins with uppercase
so most often proper names are
for proper names the initiate initial
position
we use uppercase like names etc
we we were talking a minute ago we were
talking about learnings
learning different methods of learning
ah
we some people learn it through rhymes
they they have for particularly for kids
there are a lot of lines designed so
that it
sounds like sounds little
melodious musical and becomes easy
for children to memorize them
and at the next stage of learning is
they give they
they give words like
a for apple b for ball
c for cat d for dog
e for elephant f for fan g for girl
h for house i for inc etc
i remembered the other ones too but i
have purposely left them blank
because i want you to test your own
understanding of learning alphabet at
the initial point
and see if you can fill up the rest of
it
now so the first first thing is
ah learning the whole symbol through
rhymes
and then giving examples of those lines
so that these are the two different
stages
then i asked you a question why two
different sets like why uppercase and
lowercase
you are already going to you are going
to think about that now here is another
ah another question and with that
question
we begin our discussion in more serious
sense
when we say a for apple what do we mean
say the word apple for yourself and see
if you hear a in that apple
apple where do we hear a in that
there is no a sound in the word
apple
this is a disconnect so
what we basically mean
and let me underline this again
i am not trying to make fun of it
by drawing your attention to this
neither i am
trying to ridicule the
sense employed within this process
what i am trying to tell you is when we
teach kids and when kids memorize these
things
as a for apple b for ball c for cat
d for dog etcetera etcetera
what what happens in that is
they are they are trying to learn
or they are the purpose is to teach them
writing system what is the writing
system
in the word apple the first letter is
a in the in the word ball
the first letter is b that's how that is
the reason why
we say a for apple or a
as in apple b as in ball c
as in cat so we mean the first
symbol first letter in the writing of
the word
cat is c because there is no
sound as k no sound as
c in the word cat
what is the first sound in the word cat
which is represented with c that
sound is k
so what are the sounds in this world i'm
purposely taking this
monosyllabic one small word
so the word begins with k
sound but we write
in the when we write the word cat at the
initial position
we write c so
and if you if you look at all of them
i have i have given you just few
examples
of 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
9 words in
each one of them there is no a
sound in the word apple no b sound there
is no b
sound no c sound no
d sound in the word elephant
look at elephant do we have e
it's a elephant
f there is no f sound because the sound
is
power the form the sound is for
fan fine girl
g the sound is g
house begins with h the sound is
ha so if you if you pay attention to
me many words in english
you will realize that
the way we speak a word is different
from
the way we write in the sense that
there is no direct one-to-one
correspondence
between the sound system of english
that is the way words are spoken and
the way it is written with the symbols
representing those sounds this makes the
learning
little more difficult so
but my purpose of this the purpose of
discussing this for you here
is not to not to show you
difficulty my purpose is to draw your
attention to this
and please remember a key word here
paying attention please
keep paying attention to differences in
similarities
and the points where we are trying to
draw your attention
uh an effort in
looking at underlying pattern
and an effort in paying attention to
these things
will take you several steps ahead
learning as you know is subconscious
process
by paying attention to these things they
this effort will fix several things in
your subconscious
and then you will sound more confident
so first step is to pay attention
the second step is to allow
these things to function your
subconscious to fix some of them
and then third step is to observe your
own
output whether your learning has
whether your output has impact of your
learning or not
watch yourself through this process and
you will see
the results coming out
that is results of your efforts coming
out in your
performance that's a note on learning
but so so the idea is not to
show you difficulties the idea is not to
show you
problems but the idea is to bring your
attention to this point
point is there is a disconnect between
the two
not a big problem but we
we pay attention to this and through
that we learn
we give priority to learning
sounds and i'm going to
show you these things further and then
then it will have an impact on learning
we will also talk about
sounds to see the differences
between that is our effort in paying
attention to sound
system of english will also help us pay
attention
to how english sounds are different from
sounds in the language that we primarily
speak
and that difference that understanding
is going to sort them out
vividly clearly and it will have
impact on your learning so
this is what you have seen ah this is
just a
ah just another table of uppercase
and lowercase symbols so we use
only these 26 letters to represent
all sounds of english we are going to
talk about
all of them we are going to talk about
each one of them
and then we are going to find them in
different words
and you will see how they help you
learn to speak they help they help you
learn to
write and they help you feel more
confident
in writing reading and speaking
and and also in various different
aspects
various different stages of your
learning
english so here is here is
one more time i want your attention i
like this table
and therefore i brought this for you so
this is uppercase this is lowercase
uppercase lowercase
and this is english
this is this is a spelling of these
letters that is how these when we say
be how it sounds and in this one
you have been given a phonetic
transcription
of sounds involved so so pay attention
to that
so here is one
so you will understand why i have put
this
square brackets the first letter is
a how do we read it a
so b ba and long e
so the letter the pronunciation of the
letter
itself has at least two sounds in
in it that is ba and long e
same thing with c sir and long
e c so look at this it
b c d e
f g
h
h i j
k l m
n o p
q r
s t
u v w
look at this word this sound w
the the the pronunciation of this
one symbol involves
sounds which is like a word
x y z
or z as i said you can see here
z so this chart helps you
see the sounds involved in pronouncing
these symbols that is names of these
symbols
a b c d e
f g h i j
k l m n o
p q r s
t u v w
x y and z one more time
take any word any any one of these
letters and see
like t tur
so they sound like a word
and when we learn them memorize them
that's how we say these symbols
now
so that that's about writing
i i at this point when i am talking
about the difference between writing
and speech sounds
i am going to draw another distinction
ah and we will come back to these
consonants and vowels again
but it is important to mention them
right at this
at this point so when we
when we learn how many
vowels are there in english language
quite often you will find people say
5 and they are a
e i o u
a e i o u
a e i o
u so these are lower case
these are uppercase
what we and that's not wrong what we
mean
in that is some of these
symbols represent vowel sounds
that's another thing which i want you to
pay attention to
some of these these
five symbols represent vowel sounds
in english writing system
however when we look at
vocalic sounds vowel sounds
so so all the sounds are classified
in two categories one is
consonants and the other is vowel the
reason why we are talking about
vowels first is because vowels are more
fundamental
to natural language and you will see the
meaning of more fundamental being more
fundamental to natural language when we
move on further so here we have
this chart gives you an
example of 20
vowel sounds in english language
20 vowel sounds in
english language and
this chart also gives you an example of
a word
where they occur so
look at this look at some of them at
least
pit it has
a vowel e short e
pet and these
sounds are underlined in these words pat
burn burn
born boone bite
bait boy
toe house poor
ear air
these are 20
vowel sounds in english language
please look at this chart this
uh these examples carefully and
read them several times
these examples pay attention to these
sounds in these words
what it will do is it will
get you think about vowel sounds
in remaining words that you know vowel
sounds
in other words that you will speak
other than these what you must
also do is find another
five words at least
for each one of these vowel sounds
so that means you i'm asking you to make
a list of
hundred english words
where five five
examples for each one of these vowel
sounds
you don't have to do that in one go you
don't have to do that
in one day but if you can come up with a
set of 20 words 20
different words five times for each one
of these
20 vowels you'll get an idea of how
vowel sounds work if
five sets sound too much start with one
and then try to pay attention to
words that we write or speak what are
the vowels
involved in those words it it will be
quite an exercise
and will have serious impact on
how we understand vowel system
vowel sounds of english language
one more time to underline this thing
all these vowel sounds
are
all these vowel sounds become clearer in
the words
and not we are not talking about again
spelling that is the way we write words
we are talking about sounds
the way we speak
same way there are 24
consonant sounds in english
and this chart gives you example of
each one of them in with
with a within a word
so some of the words are repeated
and those sounds are those vowels
those consonant sounds are given in
capital
so what what we are doing here is like
pit
the sound is pa we we want your
attention to
sound per bit attention to
to sound ba tap attention to sound
dab attention to sound da
cab attention to sound ka
gab attention to sound ga
fan attention to sound
van sad zoo
man not hot lad
red red thought
them shy treasure
shine jam yum
sing so in the words thing
we want your attention to
sound so these are
20 consonant sounds in english
one more time i want to repeat myself
and i mean that is it possible
for you to find at least
five set of words with
these sounds it should be easier
with consonants
please pay attention to them please do
this exercise for yourself
and once you have these sets ready
the only thing you will need to do
afterwards
or you will end up doing afterwards
is every word that you have not not in
formal writing or speaking
not every moment every time but in
in your subconscious many times
you will end up finding
consonants and vowel sounds in the words
that you speak
and that's a very productive exercise to
do
so with that we are talking about
24 plus 20 that is
44 sounds of english language
remember there are only 44
sounds in english language and
these are the 44 sounds that are
responsible
for infinite number of words
that we make using these sounds
we speak infinite number of words using
these sounds
and i mean infinite in the sense that
nobody knows total number of words
in any given language do you know
about total number of words either in
english
or in the language that you speak as
your primary language
as your native language do you know the
total number of words
so how and why a finite set of
44 odd sounds are responsible
for infinite set of words
in any spoken language of the world
including english
is no less than miracle we will continue
talking about some of them for the
purpose of
learning english this is
this is a promise so one more time
this is yet another table
where 24 vowel sounds underlined
colored uh with their
phonetic transcriptions like pin bad
thin dog five
van thin that
man knows thing
half church jam
kind gun say
zoo ship measure
leg run work yes
sir 24 sound and then you have
again some examples here and finally
finally ah i know i have
talked about too many exercises for one
day
but they are they are not too difficult
exercises
ah we will we will stop
for today by telling you one more time
you do not have to do all these things
in one go but for the purpose of
learning
for the purpose of checking whether
the things that we have discussed that
is
writing using symbols
as a completely different exercise than
understanding sounds of the language
when we speak
they are two different things sounds are
definitely represented
using 44 sounds are represented
using 26 symbols in
for the purpose of writing that itself
is a
complex process which we go through and
learn
but paying attention paying close
attention to this
these 44 sounds of english
is going to improve the way we are going
to
speak or when you are when you are
speaking
its going to help you improve your
speaking better
thank you
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