Appendix A
Final Project: Mirroring an Intelligible English Speaker
What:
Choose a native speaker of English or fluent nonnative English speaker you would like to imitate.
Why:
This project will help you improve your pronunciation in the following ways:
 You will practice nonverbal cues in effective, comprehensible American English speech.
 You will demonstrate your understanding of the principles of the English sound system by
analyzing and reproducing real speech.
 You will demonstrate an understanding of how social roles and identity interact with
pronunciation to achieve a purpose (inform, inspire, persuade, etc.)
How:
Week 1: Choosing a Pronunciation Focus, Speaker, and Segment
Based on the area of pronunciation you need to improve, choose someone who has spoken
English you admire and whom you want to imitate. Find a video in which this person is
conveying an emotion or trying to accomplish a goal that you want to accomplish. For instance,
if it’s difficult for you to show confidence when speaking English, you may want to find a model
who demonstrates confidence. If you want to be more persuasive in your spoken English, find
an example in which the speaker tries to persuade someone to do something.
Week 2: Analyzing the Spoken Language, Voice Characteristics, and Body Language
Your marked transcript will help you analyze how the speaker achieves his/her purpose and how
the speaker uses spoken language, body language, and his/her voice to do so.
Week 3: Recording your “Cold” Version
When you have gotten as near to the person’s speech as possible, video record yourself saying
the same words as close to the original speaker as possible. If possible, TRY to memorize the
short (5–7 sentence) speech.
Week 4: Recording your Final Version
View the clip of your recording and critique it in terms of your focus points. Critique both the
areas in which you did well, as well as those in which you still need to improve. Based on this
critique, do the best you can.
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Week 1 Worksheet: Choosing a Pronunciation Focus, Speaker, & Segment
Please fill out this worksheet and hand it in during your next class. You and your instructor will
discuss your choice.
1. What aspect of pronunciation do you need to work on the most? If you’re not sure, ask
your instructor for his/her advice.
_____ clear enunciation & word stress (for better pronunciation of stressed
words)
_____ smooth rhythm (lengthening content words, reducing grammatical
words [e.g., to, for, they, etc.], linking to produce smoother speech)
_____ thought groups & focus words (for better fluency)
_____ intonation patterns (to show enthusiasm & energy)
_____ volume and voice projection (to show confidence)
2. Who are you going to “mirror” for your project? What “role” does this person play in
the video recording (e.g., teacher, speaker, news reporter, etc.)? What is this speaker
trying to achieve (e.g., inspire the audience to do something courageous, inform the
audience of new information, persuade the audience to make changes, etc.)? Obtain a
video recording of this person speaking. The address of this recording is:
____________________________________________________
3. Why did you choose this person & this particular segment? (Hint: Think about what
makes this person/scene a good choice to imitate. What do you like about this
person/segment? Is this person’s pronunciation a good model for you? Why or why not?
On the other hand, what difficulties might you face either with the character or the
segment? If it seems too difficult, you may want to choose another person and/or
segment.)
4. In the space below (or on the back of this sheet), transcribe 7–10 consecutive sentences
you will use for your project. Double space because you will need room to mark your
transcription for aspects of pronunciation, nonverbal communication, and voice
characteristics.
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Week 2 Worksheet: Analyzing Language to Achieve a Purpose
1. Purpose, Tone, and Level of Formality. Turn off the sound and watch the video
segment. How much can you tell about the segment? What is the speaker trying to do?
Inspire? Persuade? Teach? How does s/he use nonverbal communication (eye contact,
gestures, use of space, etc.) to do so? What emotions is the speaker trying to
communicate—anger? Surprise? Frustration? Enthusiasm? How can you tell? What is
the relationship between the speaker and his/her audience? Formal? Informal?
2. Speech characteristics: How would you describe this person’s speech? Is it fast or slow?
Does it have a lot of variation or is it in monotones? Does the person lengthen his/her
vowels (typical of North American English) or not? Is the speech loud or soft? Does the
person pause a lot or very little? If the speech changes during the segment, how and why
does it change? How do these characteristics affect the emotion and purpose of what the
speaker is communicating?
3. Pronunciation Focus. Mark the transcript for the pronunciation focus that you have
chosen. For example, if you are focusing on speaking in thought groups and highlighting
focus words, mark the pauses that the speaker uses with a slash mark (/ or //) and the
focus word in each thought group with a large circle.
Example: The night before I was heading for Scotland,/ I was invited to host the final/
of China’s Got Talent show/ in Shanghai/……
4. Body Language. Now, mark the body language that the speaker uses for the
pronunciation point that you are working on. For example, if your pronunciation point is
focus words, mark the body language (gestures, facial expression, etc.) the speaker uses
to highlight each focus word.
(moves hands upward)
Example: The night before I was heading for Scotland,/
(raises eyebrows)
I was invited to host the final/
(bends downward)
of China’s Got Talent show/
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Week 3 Worksheet: Preparing “Cold” Version
1. (Optional) Retype or transfer to slips of paper.
At this point, it might be easier to retype your transcript in very large font (24 point) with
the focus pronunciation point in bold. Or, you can transfer each thought group onto
separate slips of paper and number them chronologically.
(raise hands up)
The night before I was heading for Scotland
2. Practice with video.
Next, go to the original video and practice with your transcript. Listen to each thought
group at a time, pause the video, and repeat exactly as the speaker says the phrase. Then,
go back and do the same thing, adding in the body language.
3. Practice using read/look up/say technique.
As soon as you are familiar with the script, lay it out in front of you and practice reading
each line, looking up, and saying it to a partner. Try to put feeling into it so that it’s more
than just a mechanical exercise.
4. Record “cold” version.
When you feel ready, have a classmate record you saying your transcript with a cell
phone, flip video camera, or other video recording device. At this point, don’t worry if
you’re not doing a perfect job. You will need practice. View the recording and do the
practice again, if you don’t feel satisfied.
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Week 4 Worksheet: Final Version
1. Analyze your “cold” version. View the clip of your “cold” version and analyze what
you did well and what still needs to be improved. Write your comments below. For
example:
I’ve captured some of the pausing, but I still don’t show the
emotion as the original speaker does. I need to show more
enthusiasm.
2. Practice your script for your final mirroring project. Practice at home as much as
you can until you feel comfortable and confident delivering the final version of your
project.
3. Record your final version. Make a recording of yourself reciting the segment. Ask
other students to be your “directors” and give you suggestions and feedback. When you
feel satisfied, stop recording and save the best version. Do not feel you need to be perfect.
A minor mistake is fine.
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