Topic 3: Producing Short and Coherent Oral Messages – English Lesson Notes New Syllabus
Producing short and coherent oral messages involves selecting the most relevant points and presenting them in a logical sentence, using appropriate language and tone for the intended audience.
When producing short and coherent oral messages, you have to do the following:-
1. Be clear. Use simple and direct language express your message in a few words
2. Use proper tone and pronunciation to pronounce words properly
3. Use simple sentence
Short sentences are easier to understand and remember
4. Focus on the main idea without adding unnecessary details.
Think about
1. What prevent you from speaking easily
2. The importance of speaking clearly.
Pronounce the following pair of words
Pray- play
Crowd -cloud
Gape -cape
Die -tie
Arrive -alive
Pay- bay
Air – hair
The words above are called minimal pairs. Minimal pairs of words means pair of words that vary in meaning by only one sound (phoneme) while sharing pronunciation in other words.
FOR EXAMPLE
rice – lice
These words differ only in the first consonant sounds. The word rice begins with the consonant /r/ while lice begins with the /1/. It is very important to get the pronunciation right because if you pronounce the word wrongly, you change the meaning completely. Ship- sheep
These words differ only in vowel length. In the word ship ‘i’ is pronounced as short vowel /1/ while the word sheep, ‘ee’ is pronounced as the long vowel /i:/ r Pit – pin
These words differ only in the final consonant sounds. The word pit ends with the consonant sound /t/ while the final word pin ends with the consonant sound /n/.
Activity
(a) pronounce the following tongue twister with minimal pairs of words. Then identify those minimal pairs in each tongue twister.
1. She sells sea shells by the seashore.
2. Peter piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
3. How can a clam cram in a clean cream can?
4. Betty botter bought some butter, but she said the butters bitter
5. Nine nice night nurses nursing nicely.
6. Fred fed Ted bread and Ted fed Fred bread.
7. She threw three free
8. A big black bug bit a big black bear
b) Fill the gap game and produce minimal pair
Example of fill up gap game
Fill in the Gap game with Minimal Pairs-words
Fill in the Gap with Minimal Pairs
Choose the correct word to complete each sentence:
• She couldn’t hear him because he was too_. (soft/ ‘k-lf-k**)
• The cat sat on the _. (mat / ‘k-lf-k**)
• I love reading a good __ at night. (book I __ *)
• The wind was so strong, it almost blew off my_. (hat/ ‘k-lf-k**)
• He bought a new pair of __ for running. (shoes I __ *)
(c) Match the words in list A with their corresponding words in list B to create minimal pairs. Thereafter, read each word in a minimal pair you have created. Then, select five minimal pairs and construct one sentence using each of the words in th and minimal pairs you have selected.
COLUMN A. | COLUMN B |
Sick | rider |
Flesh | grow |
Gate | load |
Glow | live |
Road | get |
Ten | seek |
Jail | lamp |
Leave | pen |
Writer | fresh |
Camp | nail |
NOTE : Revise Minimal pairs games in topic two for further understanding.
such games are :-
I
s it a pair, odd one out, minimal pair up, minimal pair slap, Minimal pair pelmanism, minimal pair journey.
PRACTISING PRONUNCIATION WITH PROPER WORD STRESS
Stress
Stress refers to the degree of emphasis given to a syllable in a speech. Or refers to the extraforce used in ultering particular word or syllable. It is the emphasis placed on a syllable in a word or a word in a sentence.
When we pronounce a multi-syllable word, one of the syllables is pronounced with more prominence, and this is called a stressed syllable.
Stressed Syllable – The syllable pronounced more loudly or with greater emphasis (e.g., BEAUtiful → “BEAU” is stressed).
Unstressed Syllable – The syllable pronounced with less emphasis (e.g., aWAY → “a” is unstressed). In longer words, stress patterns affect meaning and pronunciation (REcord vs. reCORD)
Stress, therefore, is the force used when saying a syllable in a word. The other syllables in the word are pronounced with less emphasis and referred to as unstressed syllables.
proDUCE – He works on a farm and helps to proDUCE fresh vegetables.
PROduce – The local store sells a variety of fresh PROduce.
reCORD – She likes to reCORD her favourite songs on her phone.
REcord – The police officers have made a REcord of the crimes in our area.
inCREASE – The company plans to inCREASE its production capacity.
INcrease – There is an INcrease in the cost of running the business.
DEsert – The camel navigates through the hot DEsert.
deSERT – After a long wait, he decided to deSERT the company.
reJECT – The admissions committee decided to reJECT her application.
REject – He felt like a REject in a new school.
reFUND – He decided to reFUND the money he had borrowed from his friend.
REfund – The store issued a REfund for the damaged item.
PERmit – The city requires a PERmit for building construction.
perMIT – They perMIT their children to participate in sports.
In each sentence, the capitalised syllables are pronounced with stress.
The difference in stress of the syllables results in the difference in meaning.
Activity.
(a) Think of the three other words with shifting stressed syllables. Then, make a pair of sentences from each to differentiate their meanings.
(b) choose five words in the table below and construct a sentence for each. Then read the sentences while observing the stressed syllables in them.
beautiful | neighbour | demonstrate | incredibly |
advertisement management disappoint |
appreciate moment referee |
question community disobey |
government experience discontinue |
(c) Read the following sentences while stressing the underline parts
1. It is absolutely correct
2. He taught me English
3. She walked to school
4. They brushed their teeth
5. Kenzo is good at volleyball
6. A zebra is a beautiful Animal
NOTE : syllable is a unit of pronunciation that made up of a vowel or a vowel preceeded by a consonant or a consonants cluster.
Clap or Finger Snap Game to practice stressed syllables.
How to Play
• Read a word pair aloud (e.g., proDUCE vs. PROduce).
• Clap or snap on the stressed syllable while saying the word.
• Example: proDUCE ➔ (clap on “DUCE”)
• Example: PROduce ➔ (clap on “PRO”)
• Repeat for the rest of the words in the list.
Variation Ideas
Team Challenge: One team says a word, and the other team must clap correctly.
Speed Round: Say words quickly, and players must keep up with the correct claps.
Memory Game: Say a sentence, and players must remember where to clap.
PRODUCING WORDS WITH SHORT AND LONG VOWELS
ENGLISH VOWELS
1. Short Vowel: A vowel sound that is pronounced quickly and does not sound like the letter’s name.
Examples of Short Vowels:
1. “Cat” (a)
2. “Bed” (e)
3. “Sit” (i)
4. “Dog” (o)
5. “Cup” (u)
2. Long Vowel: A vowel sound that is pronounced longer and sounds like the letter’s name.
Examples of Long Vowels:
1. “Cake” (a)
2. “Meet” (e)
3. “Bike” (i)
4. “Hope” (o)
5. “Cube” (u)
Short vowels are pronounced quickly and without elongation.
Long vowels are pronounced with a prolonged sound.
Examples:
1. Short vowel “a” – Cat (/æ/) vs Long vowel “a” – Cake (/eɪ/)
2. Short vowel “e” – Bed (/ɛ/) vs Long vowel “e” – Bead (/iː/)
3. Short vowel “i” – Sit (/ɪ/) vs Long vowel “i” – Site (/aɪ/)
4. Short vowel “o” – Not (/ɒ/) vs Long vowel “o” – Note (/oʊ/)
5. Short vowel “u” – Cup (/ʌ/) vs Long vowel “u” – Cute (/juː/)
VOWEL SOUNDS | SPELLINGS/WRITING | EXAMPLES |
a, ai, | Man, cat, plald. | |
[A] | U, 0. 00, OU | jug. bul, much, run, sum, money, monkey, blood, fload, double, tough |
[e] | a. er, | about, above, sister, better, |
[e] | e. ea, ie, u, | Egg. end, bread,, friend, bury, |
i, e, o, u. ui. y | įt. swim, gnable, women, busy. bysļness, build gujlty, gym |
|
[o] | o, a | Qdd, golf, honest, want |
[u] | u, 0, 00, oul | Pu̱t, full, bu̱sh, wo̱if, loo̱k, book, shoujd, could, would |
[a:] | ar, al, a | Arm, car, apart, are, calm, alms, father |
[3:] | ir, er, ur, ear, or, our, |
bird, first. shirt, stir, tørm. bum, further. heard, pearl, eam, word, |
work, world. jourey. | ||
[i:] | e, ee, ea, ey, ie, ei, eo |
bg, sge, bee, haal, meat, køy, grief, recalve, decejve, paople |
or, aw, al, ore, oar, our, augh, ar, ough, au |
for, born, tom, fork, Saw, jaw. paw, ball, all, call, bald, more, shore, tore fore, board, roar, four, pour, caughi, war, thought, bouaht, sauce, |
[u:] | u.o. ew.ue. co. oe. ough, ui, OCU. OU |
tuno, flute. whio. . Jow. fow, bigw dew, blue, duo . zoo, room. shog, Ihrough, fult, suil, manguvor, group. |
[ai] | i, y. Igh ie, uy. ye |
4 wrke.by, my. spy fly. daht slab dle. drigd, bux. guy, Dye. dyg |
[ao] | OW, OU. | cow, row, shout. |
ar, are. ere. ew. | thek. | |
a. ay, ai, oigh1. | ache, caso, malo. pay, dax, brair, | |
aigh, , ei, au, | pain, mald, stralght, welgh. glglil. | |
ea, By | gauge, brgak, they, prey | |
ear, ero, eor, | 9FI, deat 13f, here, PseL sier | |
[ou] | 0. oe. ow. ough. ew |
open, loo bew thouab, sow |
oi, ay | oj, nojse, boy igy | |
ure. our | suro, puro, cure, tour |
OTHER VWELS
PRONUCIATION | ITS SPELLINGS/WRITING | EXAMPLES |
Our | ||
. hour’aoa/: | ||
* four. flaca! | ||
. | ||
a a1 | ||
. impize/In spara/ |
Words with short vowels
In English, there are five short vowels and their corresponding sounds:
Short Vowel Sounds and Examples
/A/ – cat, bat, hat, man
/e/ – pen, bed, red, ten
/1/ – sit, big, milk, fish
/o/ – hot, dog, rock, box (used in British English; in American English, this often sounds like /a:/)
I tJ – cup, sun, bus, luck
These are different from long vowels, which sound like the letter names (e.g., cake, bike, hope).
(a) Recite the following poem and answer the questions that follow.
In a cozy corner, a cat did stand
With a rat in her paw, she felt so grand
Her fur so sleck, not an ounce of fat
She played with the rat, and that was that.
The cat took its time, it had its own plan
Till the rat fought back, got away and ran
The cat gave chase tried to give it a whack
But the rat escaped. through a small crack.
Oh, the cat was so sad, really really mad
But inside the crack the rat felt so glad
The rat had been clever and seen the gap
And that is the way it escaped the trap.
Activity
1. Copy all the words written in boldface in the poem
2. Read the words you have copied
3. Construct five sentences with other words that rhymes with the words writen in bold type.
EXERCISE
Use the words below to complete the sentences that follow. Mug, car, ran, shop, win, tune, vote, hit, hat, fell, bit.
1. I heard a nice ……… from the singer who entertained us during our get – together party.
2. The naughty boy climbed on a tree and …….. Into the well.
3. Taifa stars will. ……. all the remaining matches.
4. They encouraged all citizens to ……… in the presidential election.
5. The dog …….. the cat in the neck.
6. I hope my grandson will buy a …….. for me
7. Can I have a coffee ……… Please?
8. Do you work at mlandege ………. ?
9. A motorcycle ……… the wall near our school gate.
10. The drunkard drove his ……. into the lake.
Complete the following table by filling in ten words for each short vowel.
Words with long vowels
English Long Vowel Sounds
Long vowels sound like the name of the letter itself. Here are the five.main long vowels and examples:
Long A (/ex/) – cake, rain, say
Long E (/i:/) – tree, beach, me, cheese
Long I (/a/) – time, kite, fly, pie
Long O (/ou/ or /au/) – home, boat, go, snow
Long U (/ju:/ or /u:/) – blue, music, cute, few
Some long vowels are spelled with silent e (like cake or time); vowel digraphs (like boat or cheese), or other patterns.
(a) Recite the following poem and answer the questions that follow.
I’m stuck in a train taking me home
Nothing to do but my thoughts roam
The engine hums, the wheels ery in pain
As train moves on through the pouring rain.
I look through the window at the plain
I look for some life, but all in vain
Yet lots of ideas dance in my brain
A world full of wonders to attain
Linked together, like a chain.
I’m stuck in a train taking me home
Nothing to do but my thoughts can roam
Journey’s so long, the train is so slow
But I’ll reach my dream, that much I know.
Questions.
1. Copy all the words in bold face from the poem. Then, pronounce” the words and construct a sentence for each.
2. Identify other words with long vowels in the poem and pronounce each word to the class.
Supportive diagram about long vowel words
EXERCISE
Complete the following sentences using the words given in the box below.
1.The … is flying in the sky ..
2. He told us a long ….. about how he felt his country.
3. The …… tree produces delicious fruits
4. She wore a beautiful … dress to the party.
5 .. The …… rolled gently onto the sandy beach.
6 The stretched across the vast horizon
7. He played a nice ……. on his guitar, and everyone clapped
8. The …. shimmered in the sunlight
9 We went for a hike on the …. and saw breathtaking views.
10.The …was painted with vibrant colours and intricate patterns.
WORDS
Mountain, waves, peach, lake, tale, tune, green, mural, desert, and kite.
Same or Different Game (Minimal Pairs Listening Activity)
How to Play:
The teacher or a partner says two words (e.g., ship – sheep).
The listener decides if they are the same or different and responds accordingly.
Word Pairs:
· Lake – Late (Same / Different?)
Feel – Fill (Same / Different?)
. Shore – Sure (Same / Different?)
Pine – Fine (Same / Different?)
Blue – Blew (Same / Different?)
2. Pronunciation Maze Game
How to Play:
Start at one word and follow a path to the end by only moving to words with the same vowel sound.
Players must pronounce each word correctly as they move.
Example Maze (Long ‘i’ Sound Path)
Start at “light” and find your way to “white” by connecting words with the same vowel sound.
Maze Grid:
| light | read | pine | bake |
| shine | tree | fine | rope |
| ship | white | nice | store |
| cup | seen | blue | roast/
Correct Path: light ->shine -> pine -> fine -> white
PRACTICING PRONUNCIATION OF UNFAMILIAR SOUNDS
If certain English sounds are difficult, here are fun and effective ways to practice:
1. Minimal Pairs Drill
Minimal pairs help you focus on small pronunciation differences.
Example: /1/ vs. /i:/
· /1/ (short): bit, sit, ship
· /i:/ (long): beat, seat, sheep
How to Practice:
. Say each pair aloud slowly.
. Record yourself and listen for differences.
. Use mirrors to check your mouth shape.
2. Tongue Twisters for Difficult Sounds
/e/ (thin) vs. /ð/ (this)
“Thirty-three thirsty thieves thought thrilling thoughts.”
/r/ vs. /l/
“Red lorry, yellow lorry.”
How to Practice:
. Say slowly at first, then speed up.
. Focus on mouth and tongue position.
3. Shadowing Technique
Choose a native speaker recording (e.g., YouTube,
audiobooks).
. Listen and repeat immediately while mimicking tone and stress.
vowels
Pronounce the following wlim uoncom
Example: Listen to a BBC news clip and repeat each sentence
exactly.
4. Vowel Length Contrast Exercise
Long vs. Short Vowel Sounds:
. ship vs. sheep
· cut vs. cute
. not vs. note
Practice: Hold long vowels slightle. CO nger and shorten short
Psychology, chore, champagne, zinjanthropus, Queue, debt, enzyme, ledger, examine, chaos.
2. Use a dictionary to find the meaning of each word above and compose a sentence for each of the words.
EXERCISE.
Complete the sentences by writing the correct word from the list.
WORDS: laugh, tough, bought. Caught, through, bough, thought.
1. He looked ….. the window.
2. The journey was …..
3. They …. they could win.
4. He was …. stealing.
5. She made us …… With her silly jokes
6. He …… a nice shirt.
7. An eagle rested on a tree ….
PRACTICING PRONUNCIATION OF WORDS WITH SIMILAR SOUNDS THAT HAVE DIFFERENT SPELLINGS.
Pronunciation of words with similar words with similar or same sounds but having different spellings and meaning is known as
-Bee | -New |
Farther -Father |
Tuk -Pawe |
Wea -Where |
|
Morsing -Mourning | Tnacked -Tract |
-Vnte | -Draught |
-Tee | DisoAt – Discrete |
-Heard | |
Cach | Pray Mai |
-Peephet | |
=Hre | |
Wwy Allowed – Aloud -Weig’s |
|
-Quarta | Dua — |
Stationary -Satkery | -rymn Descert -Dissert |
Weak | =Meet Guessed -Guest |
-Dght | -Leek |
Eyelet | |
-Whole | |
=Medil | |
.Hour , Our |
Coffers . Coughers ……. |
· Idle Idol |
. Sari ………….. Sorry |
.Niece …… …. Nice |
. Cousin ………. Cozen |
. Bread .. Bred |
. Coward .. … Cowered |
. Core. Corps |
. Coy ….. Ka |
. Baron … Barren |
. Sane .. …….. Seine |
. Wine Whine |
. Faun ….. Fawn |
. Mare …. ….. Mayor |
. Faze …. Phase |
. Wood. .. Would |
. Gorilla . … Guerilla |
. Which .. Witch |
. Grade. Grayed |
High | . Mrs. Misses |
. Lone … Loan |
. Lichen ….. .. Liken |
. Yule … . You’ll |
Literal m. Littoral |
– Yoke aumıu Yolk | . All =…. Awl |
. Cache mmumimn Cash | . Aural mumn. Oral |
. Cain m .. Cane | . Broach …… Brooch |
. Cheap ……….. Cheep | . Coal ……….. Kohl |
. Coolle …….. Coulee | . Flu a …… Flue ….. Flew |
HOMOPHONES.
Example of homophones
Activity
Read in pair the dialogue and complete the task that follows (page:37-38) TIE’s book F 1.
Pronounce the following words with similar sounds but different spellings, and do the exercise that follows.
For | four |
Flour | flower |
By To |
buy two bye too |
Dew | due |
Week | weak |
See | sea |
Hi | high |
No | know |
Ant | aunt |
Fare | fair |
Eight | ate |
Prize | prise |
EXERCISE
Complete the following sentences using the words above
1. My birthday is next ..
2. He was … to .. young ….. carry a big box.
3. Pounds ……. buy a ticket.
4. You in the classroom.
5. My sister is …… Years old.
6. She will ….. a plate of food.
7. The doctor said the temperature was very .....
9. Her terminal examination report is ……. tomorrow
10. River Nile pours its water into the Mediterranean …..
11. Joyce got a …….. for scoring high marks in English
12. A trip ……. Mikumi Will cost 60,000 shilings including the bus fare.