Jack's ESL Blog

2012-02-09T17:13:00.000-05:00

How to spell so people understand

2011-12-22T16:21:00.002-05:00

There is an art to spelling, especially names.
First, pronounce what you are going to spell. "I live on Atherton Drive."
Second, spell it by grouping the letters IN SYLLABLES. "That's spelled ATH ER TON."

Here's another example:
"My last name is Williamson. WILL IAM SON"

And here is a spelling joke from http://www.best-funny-jokes.com/spelling-jokes-8974

THE teacher announced that to practice spelling, each member of the class would say what their fathers did for a living and then spell the occupation. Mary went first. "My Dad is a baker, b-a-k-e-r, and if he were here, he would give everyone a cookie." Next came Tommy. "My dad is a banker, b-a-n-k-e-r, and if he were here, he'd give each of us a quarter." Third came Jimmy. "My dad is an electrician.'' But after struggling through a number of attempts to spell the word, the teacher asked him to sit and think about it for a moment while she called on someone else. She then turned to Johnny. "My dad's a bookie, b-o-o-k-i-e," Johnny said. "And if he were here, he'd lay you 8 to 5 that Jimmy ain't never gonna spell electrician."

2011-12-01T10:07:00.001-05:00

I wonder if you know that Microsoft Word has a dictionary attached to it. All you have to do is right-click on the word and choose either "look up" or "synonyms" to get a definition or a list of synonyms.

Adding the letter e to a word changes it's sound.

2011-02-21T15:47:00.003-05:00

Adding the letter 'E' after many words changes the pronunciation of the other vowel in the word from the short to the long vowel sound. Here are some I picked at random: Bit, bite, cut, cute, at, ate, fat, fate, hat, hate, rat, rate, jut, jute, kit, kite, con, cone, win, wine, pin, pine, fin, fine, din, dine, dim, dime. This tip is also helpful for longer words like conflate or congratulate, where the last 'a' is pronounced like it's name.

Video on Pronunciation

2011-01-19T08:10:00.014-05:00

Here are the sounds of the 26 letters of the Alphabet and small words containing them. This is essential for learning reading and good pronunciation.

Click on the video below. I pronounce the following 19 words containing all 26 letters of the alphabet: bag, cat, dog, fox, gun, hat, jet, kid, leg, map, nut, pez, rug, sun, tag, van, wig, yak, quit.

Learn English as a second language from the comfort of your home.

2007-01-14T17:20:00.003-05:00

Learn English as a second language (esl) with a private tutor using the Internet and Skype.

You can improve your command of English over the Internet, speaking face to face with a native American while in your home. I was born in Washington DC and have lived in the area for many years. I use a combination of speech, video, and IM (instant messaging) techniques to get you to read and write, listen and speak better. I use the Skype VOIP telephony service. You can pay via PayPal, check, or cash.

BS Economics 1969 University of Maryland.
Montessori Teaching Certificate 1972

Tutoring since 2005

Download the free Skype program at http://www.skype.com/ and call me at Skypename jackdoitcrawford or email me at JackCrawford@aol.com. You need a microphone and speakers for this program to work on your computer or, for a small extra charge, we can use your telephone at home.

Tell me your name and how and when I can reach you.

Jack Crawford 301-938-1931 9am-9pm eastern time USA