Intonation

Pitch variation in the utterance “Will you have marmalade or jam?”

In linguistic terms intonation is the system of rising and falling levels, as well as variations in pitch sequences, within speech.

In simpler terms intonation is a melody that belongs to an entire sentence.

Intonation is about how we say things, rather than what we say. Intonation helps us understand the expressions and thoughts that go with words and it helps communication.

Incorrect intonation can cause misunderstandings, loss of interest in what is being said or even taking offence at what is being said!

English language learners shoud be made aware of the importance of intonation and how it can improve their speaking and listening.

Activity

Explain that in English you have to give stress to certain words to deliver certain meanings. Go through a brain storming session to elicit some of the feelings we can convey through the appropriate intonation: disappointment, excitement, anger, surprise, happiness, annoyance, boredom, indifference, and so on.

Put on the board a simple A - B dialogue and get the students to read it out loud in a fairly neutral tone.

Get your students to repeat this mini dialogue over and over in a neutral tone. It should almost become a mantra! Then have them practice in pairs, still keeping a neutral tone.

Have ready some index cards where you have briefly outlined a scenario. Be inventive! Here are some possible scenarios.

• two actors out of work
• a sick person in hospital and friend who visits
• two old people who are all but deaf
• a divorced couple
• a landlady and her overdue tenant
• two people who have met before, but can't remember where
• two old friends who run into each other on a railway platform

Give each pair a card. [This is for their eyes only and they must not reveal its content to anyone else]

Get each pair to practice the dialogue they have just memorized using intonation, gestures and body language to suit their assigned scenario.

After each pair has practiced it for about 5 min call them up and have them perform the dialogue in front of the class.

The class will have to guess the scenario.

The idea behind this activity is that by by giving a different intonation to the same A - B dialogue they can appreciate the importance of intonation in speaking.

from an idea by Steve O'Connor, ESL teacher in Chengdu PRC