Intonation - The Melody Of A Language 2a2h6j

Intonation is the melody of language and is made of pitches (high or low qualities of a sound) that rise and fall. Intonation is used to communicate our intentions and emotions, and it is used in spoken language to replace punctuation. Intonation can indicate anger, surprise, hesitation, confusion, sarcasm, interest or lack thereof. It is very important to learn and use correct intonation so that your spoken English is more dynamic and more interesting to listen to. In English we have four kinds of intonation patterns: (1) falling, (2) rising, (3) non-final, and (4) wavering intonation. Let’s learn about each one.

1. Falling Intonation Falling intonation is when we lower our voice at the end of a sentence. This usually happens in statements and in questions that contain words like where, when, what, why, how, and who (these are called information questions). Here are some examples:

Statements 1. My name is Adir Ferreira. 2. Nice to meet you. 3. I’m going to the movies. 4. I’ll be back in an hour. 5. Have a great day.

Questions 1. What’s your name? 2. Where does he live? 3. Why did you do that? 4. Who’s that woman over there? 5. How can I open this?

2. Rising Intonation Rising intonation is when we raise the pitch of our voice at the end of a sentence. We use this kind of intonation in questions that are answered with “yes” or “no” (these are called yes/no questions). Check out some examples: 1. Are you American? 2. Does she know about this? 3. Can you lend me a pencil? 4. Is the movie good?

5. Are we leaving soon? Rising intonation is also used in expressions like: 1. Excuse me? 2. Really? Here are some question pairs with both rising and falling intonation. Listen and practice saying them! 1. Do you know that woman? How do you know that woman? 2. Do you go to school here? Why do you go to school here? 3. Did you buy a new laptop? What kind of laptop did you buy? 4. Do you work? Where do you work?

3. Non-final intonation In non-final intonation sentences, the pitch rises and falls within the sentence. This type of intonation is used with unfinished thoughts, introductory phrases, series of words and also when we express choices. Let’s listen to some examples:

Unfinished thoughts 1. She bought the magazine, but she didn’t read it. 2. When I finished high school, I got a job. 3. If I study hard, I’ll the test. 4. I’m going outside, for some fresh air.

Introductory Phrases Phrases like as a matter of fact, as far as I’m concerned, actually, in my opinion, if you don’t mind and by the way also indicate that a thought is not finished, so we use non-final intonation. Some examples: 1. As a matter of fact, I do know where she lives. 2. As far as I’m concerned, she was not suitable for that position. 3. Actually, the movie was pretty good. 4. In my opinion, this car is way too expensive. 5. If you don’t mind, I’m going to bed. 6. By the way, have you read that book I lent you?

Series of Words

Suppose that you say you like playing several sports like football, tennis, basketball, and volleyball. Here’s how it would sound in English with non-final intonation: I like playing football, tennis, basketball and volleyball. We have rising intonation on football, tennis and basketball. The intonation falls on volleyball. Listen again: I like playing football, tennis, basketball and volleyball. Some more examples: 1. At college I’m taking psychology, French, history, and linguistics. 2. He left work, came home, took a shower, and went to bed. 3. I need rice, beans, lettuce, and sugar. 4. “I learned law so well, the day I graduated I sued the college, won the case, and got my tuition back.” – Fred Allen

Expressing Choices Non-final intonation is also used when you choose between two or more things. Some examples: 1. Do you want to stay home or go to the movies? 2. Are you going to travel in March or April? 3. Do you speak Spanish or Portuguese? 4. Is your name Mary or Mandy? 5. Would you like a coke or some juice?

4. Wavering Intonation Wavering intonation is used when we express specific emotions or attitudes within a word. You can express, for instance, surprise, anger, sarcasm, hesitation, fear, amazement, among others. Take a look at these two words: you did. I’m going to say them showing that I’m curious, very surprised, disappointed, angry and in agreement. Listen! 1. You did? (curious) 2. You did? (very surprised) 3. You did? (disappointed) 4. You did? (angry) 5. You did. (in agreement) Check out some more examples: Thanks a lot. (normal) Thanks a lot. (very happy) Thanks a lot. (sarcastic)

Okay. (normal) Okay. (hesitant or unwilling) Okay! (very excited) Okay! (frustrated and angry)

No! (angry) No? (surprised) No… (hesitant) No. (sarcastic)

Information for Teachers

 Intonation Patterns: o The description of an intonation pattern is the manner a person's voice raises and lowers dependent on what they are speaking about. An example of an intonation pattern is raising your voice at the close of a question. o It is the variation in the pitch of the speaker’s voice used to convey information or alter meaning.

 Rising intonation o Rising intonation describes how the voice rises at the end of a sentence. Rising intonation is shared in yesno questions: o I listen to the Health Centre is expanding. So, is that the new doctor? o Are you thirsty?

 falling intonation o Falling intonation describes how the voice falls on the final strained syllable of a phrase or a cluster of words. A falling intonation is very shared in wh-questions. o Where’s the nearest Hospital? 

There are three basic pitches in English – normal, high, and low.

o The normal pitch is where the voice usually is. o High is where the voice rises to specify information focus.

o Low is where the voice falls, usually at the end of sentences. 

Tone: The certain pattern of voice movement is called ‘tone’.

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While teaching the lesson, the teacher should also consult textbook at all steps where and when required.

 Low Rise (A Rising Tone) o Yes/no questions are uttered with a rising tone.

 Fall (A Falling Tone) o A falling tone is by far the most common used tone of all. It signals a sense of finality, completion, belief in the content of the utterance, and so on. 

Rising Intonation: is answerable by yes or no.

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Falling Intonation: is a sentence, a question that is not answerable by yes or no.

Material/ Resources Chalk/marker, board, textbook

Worm up activity 

Begin by reading an example sentence aloud to the students (for example: Can you sing a song?

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Read the sentence the first time pronouncing each word carefully.

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Read the sentence a second time in natural speech.

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Ask students which reading seemed more natural and why it seemed more natural.

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Using the ideas students come up with, explain the idea of English having rising and falling tones.

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All yes/no answers having questions are rising tones and all others questions besides yes/no are having falling tones.

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Students often focus on pronouncing each word correctly and therefore tend to pronounce in an unnatural manner.

Development Activity 1 

Write all the ‘wh’ words on the board one by one and ask the students to guess their meaning and ask questions using that “wh” word from their class-fellows.

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Help them asking questions correctly with emotions and gestures according to the class/students’ environment, e.g. what is in the picture/drawing?

Activity 2 

Hold two things of different sizes. (For example: one small yellow paper and one big red papers) in your hand so that all students see.

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Ask the students: Which paper is big in size? (Expected response: Red paper.)

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Teach the students when to use ‘which’.

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Hold some colors in your hand. Ask from one student: Which color do you want?

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Give the colors to the student and tell him/her to ask another student: Which color do you want?

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Carry on the activity with a few more students.

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Go to a student’s desk holding your book. Hold your book in your hand and tell the class: This is my book.

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Hold the student’s book in your hand and ask the class: Whose book is this? Repeat the action if students don’t seem to understand. Use actions for students’ understanding.

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Encourage students with words like well done! Good! If they give correct answers. If they don’t understand or give wrong answer, tell the class (using actions): This is my book. This is Salma’s book.

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Tell the students when to use ‘whose’.

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Practice ‘whose’ with students as long as time allows.

Activity 3 

Questions having ‘yes’ or ‘no’ answers.

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Divide the class into two groups. One group makes questions having ‘

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Yes’ / ‘no’ answers only and the other group makes questions having answers other than ‘yes’ or ‘no’. give them 4 minutes for this activity

o Write the questions on the board. o Record all the responses on the board. o Ask students to read the sentence. o Note the pronunciation and style of reading of each student. o Ask students to try reading aloud again with focus on rising tone.

o Students must practice the questions carefully for few minutes. o You must listen carefully and provide and correction where needed.

Activity 4 

Explain to students the concept of pitch and its types.

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Ask them to read a sentence written on the board.

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Question: What! Where do you mean he’s?

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Answer: oh! How sad. He is no more.

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Ask students to read the above given question and answer two to three times aloud and see the difference in their tones and pitch.

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Let the two groups come up with one question and answer that you record on the board for very high pitch and ask the groups to practice reading it aloud.

Sum up / Conclusion 

Ask students which tone becomes rising and why.

Assessment 

Listen to students’ responses continuously and carefully to know their level of understanding.

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You must practice this concept in every lesson from now onwards.

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Teacher is also required to involve the student in solving the problems given in the exercise at end of unit/chapter.

Follow up 

Students must make one rising and one falling tone pattern question having high pitch of English and write it in their notebooks. Practice reading them with intonation patterns at home.