This rule will teach you how to speak English like a native speaker. The words come out of your mouth easily and fast and you understand instantly.

To do this, you must change the way you study English. Your first action is to stop learning separate words. Yes, do not memorize words. Native speakers do not learn English by remembering single words. They memorize thought groups.

This rule will teach you how to speak English like a native speaker. The words come out of your mouth easily and fast and you understand instantly.  

To do this, you must change the way you study English.  Your first action is to stop learning separate words.  Yes, do not memorize words.  Native speakers do not learn English by remembering single words.  They memorize thought groups. 

Thought groups are groups of words that go naturally together, sometimes in rhyme, and they are easy to remember, easy to say. In thought groups, a number of words work together in an agreed structure to express a specific meaning, so learning English through thought groups is 4-5 times more efficient than studying individual words.  Also, students who learn English through thought groups can speak more fluent and with much better grammar.

English teacher Lida Baker in Los Angeles advised, that your can improve English pronunciation by understanding the idea of thought groups. It's a way to break long sentences into shorter pieces, separated by slight pauses, to help listeners organize the meaning. Thought groups are something we don't even think about as native speakers of English, but English learners need help to develop this skill when they study pronunciation.

Take a sentence like: "I took the milk from the table and I put it in the refrigerator".  This sentence can be broken down into three smaller pieces: “I took the milk”, “from the table”, “I put it in” and “the refrigerator”.  To speak this sentence smoothly, you must learn and practice each group of word fluently, then put them together to make a complete sentence.

We can talk about other rules and guidelines like intonation (the voice moves up and down), pitch, reduction, pause, silence, articulation, etc. some other times.

The easiest ways to learn about thought groups is to listen to popular music. You can also to go any English broadcasts and look at the transcripts and then listen to the announcers. The Special English Programs at The Voice of America (VOA) is a wonderful place for learners to pick up the way sentences are broken down into thought groups, because on Special English the language is slowed down.

Another way is to down load MP3 files from the authenticated English broadcasters, and then you play it back again and again.  What you try to do is to imitate what they're saying, just one beat behind them, so the thought groups will sink deep into your brain, and you would be able to recall them for use later. 

Source:  www.voanews.com

Also, when you find a new word, always write down the whole thought groups it is in.  When you review, always review the whole group of words. You must start collecting though groups from now.  Make a Word Group Book, and carry it with you everywhere you go.  Review word groups whenever you have a free minute.  Make use of every single minute that you have.  Your English will get better in no time.

The following information can be read at: http://developingteachers.com/phonology/groups_prominence.htm

Thought groups

A really useful way to help our students with their listening is to help them become aware of 'thought groups' - a term from the excellent phonology book for learners 'Speaking Clearly' - Rogerson & Gilbert - (CUP). These are sometimes called 'tone units' or 'sense groups'.

Rogerson & Gilbert define 'thought groups': 'When we speak, we need to divide speech up into small 'chunks' to help the listener understand messages. These chunks or thought groups are groups of words which go together to express an idea or thought. In English, we use pauses and low pitch to mark the end of thought groups.'

A very nice way to highlight the importance is through an activity in 'Speaking Clearly' that looks at mathematical equations. Compare the following:

 
(A + B) x C = Y (A plus B, multiplied by C, equals Y)

 
A + (B x C) = D (A, plus B multiplied by C, equals D)

 
Say these two equations to yourself and note when you have to pause. Each pause means an end of a thought group and the start of another.

So how it is interpreted depends how the utterance is separated into chunks.

After an activity like this, there are a series of equations read out which when calculated give an answer. If the thought groups have been interpreted correctly, then the right answer will be given.

 
(2 + 3) x 5 = 25

2 + (3 x 5) = 17

 
With a listening text, after explaining the concept of thought groups with examples on the board, get your students to mark the groups on a short text. Then they can listen to the tape to see if they were right.

We mark the groups with slash marks at the beginning and the end of each group. Here is a short text, similar to one in the book, with the thought groups marked:

The division of the thought groups in line 6 tells us that Josh will be going on his own but Helen will go with Ben & Sarah with John.

Said often, but true - awareness is half the battle won! Get them marking & listening.

Improve your English with our website!