Lesson Number:        2                Lesson Category:            Pronunciation
Lesson Level:        Basic            Lesson Date:            03/28/2010

TOPIC:    The Incredible, Unpronounceable  ə

     One of the greatest problems that Spanish speakers have with English pronunciation can be symbolized by this character: ə, called a sächwa.” Part of the beauty of the  Spanish language is how clearly every vowel is pronounced.  The same is NOT true of English.  In a typical word, only ONE vowel receives stress when spoken; the other vowels in the word become this sound:  ə

    This sound does not exist in Spanish.  The best way to represent it is as a dull, flat, unaccented  "uh"sound, as in the English word "but."Let us look at an English word: predictable, meaning previsible.  If it were a Spanish word, it would be pronounced preh-deek-TAH-bleh, with every vowel getting a full sound.  In English, however, it is pronounced pr ə-DICT-t ə-bl, or pruh-DICT-uh-buhl.

    This sound presents a challenge to a Spanish speaker, because all he has been saying his vowels very clearly all his life!  Now, with English, he must learn NOT to say them clearly.  As you learn English words, pay close attention to this unaccented sound.  Use a good dictionary and learn how to read the phonetic spelling of the word.  And, whenever possible, listen to a native speaker say the word. 

    The trick is, not to believe your eyes and your lifelong habit of clearly pronouncing your vowels.  It will be difficult at first, but soon, you will realize that the sound of  ə is the most common vowel sound in English.
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Lesson Number:        1                Lesson Category:            Grammar
Lesson Level:        Basic        X        Lesson Date:            03/24/2010

TOPIC:    The verb “to be”

The most important verb in English is the verb “to be.”  Like most languages, English has a highly irregular verb of being.  Here is the full conjugation.

Spanish Equivalent:                    ser/estar
Infinitive:                        to be
Gerund/Present Participle:                being
Past Participle:                    been
Imperative:                        be

Singular                        Plural
Present Tens
1  I            I am                we            we are
2  you            you are            you            you are
3  he/she/it        he/she/it is            they            they are

Past Tense
1            I was                            we were
2            you were                        you were
he/she/it was                        `they were

Future Tense
1            I will be                        we will be
2            you will be                        you will be                    3            he/she/it will be                    they will be

Present Perfect Tense
1            I have been                        we have been
2            you have been                    you have been
3            he/she/it has been                    they have been

Past Perfect Tense
1            I had been                        we had been
2            you had been                    you had been
3            he/she/it had been                    they had been

Future Perfect Tense
1            I will have been                    we will have been
2            you will have been                    you will have been
3            he/she/it will have been                they will have been

Notice that although “to be” is irregular, the differences occur in only the First and Third Person Singular forms, and in 3 of the Tenses, all the forms are exactly the same.

    1.  This blog is meant to add to your current studies, not to replace them.  Learning a language is not easy, and a variety of materials makes the job more fun and more rewarding.

    2.  I have been teaching myself Spanish for three years now, and I think I have gained some insight into the process of learning a foreign language.

    3.  This blog will be written in English.  One of the ways to learn a language well is to work at reading it.  At first, this is a difficult job, with many trips to a dictionary.  However, in the long run, that process doubles your understanding of the new language.

    4.  Because this is not a professional study program, I am free to write lessons randomly, as well as to address questions and suggestions from my readers.

    5.  I plan to use four lesson categories:  Grammar, Vocabulary, Usage, and Pronunciation.  Sometimes, these categories may overlap, but there will always be one major focus.

    6.  I was born in, studied English in, and have lived my entire life in, The United States.  Although I am familiar with some aspects of British English, my orientation will always be the English used in the United States.

    7.  I plan to use four lesson levels:  Basic, Easy, Medium, and Difficult.  I understand that these levels are MY opinion, and not yours!  I will try to be consistent.

    8.  This blog is fungible, and the more comments, questions, and suggestions I get, the more I can plan future lessons.  I will always answer specific questions that are asked in the Comments.

    9.  My aim is to improve communication.  I am not so interested in perfect grammatical correctness, which is a noble goal, but too much concern about perfection sometimes makes it more difficult to communicate on a basic level.  This basic understanding should come first; perfection may follow at a slower pace.

    10.  Finally, my single word of advice to my Spanish-speaking readers is this: RELAX!   Believe me, having lived in the United States for 50 years, I can promise you that few people here speak or write English well, or clearly.  Yes, the people who write language books DO, but you must not compare yourself to those professionals.

Please feel free to tell anyone you wantabout this blog, if you like it.  I am excited by the chance to help people learn English.  I have had so much help from my Spanish-speaking friends in my own studies that I look forward to returning the favor as well as I can!