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      /i/ before words beginning with 's'
      Submitted by rayofmoonlite on 25 February, 2010 - 18:54

      Many of my students add an /i/ sound before words that begin with 's'. For example, 'ispeak', 'ischool', 'istart'. What drills or exercises can I use to help them correct this?

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      sidhaye's picture
      sidhaye
      Avoiding /i/ before cluster /sp/
      Submitted on 27 February, 2010 - 05:43

      Initially students can be asked to say /i/ silently and the remaining word aloud, explaining that /i/ should not be heard because it sounds unEnglish before the word. Gradually they overcome the habit. I found this method effective.

      suvarnau's picture
      suvarnau
      i before s
      Submitted on 4 March, 2010 - 06:22

      This is a problem that occurs while articulating consonant clusters. One of the tips that works is, start hissing like a snake and keep reducing the hisses till you have overcome the problem. Let me illustrate:

      ssssssssssssschool

      ssssssschool

      sssschool

      ssschool

      sschool

      school

      It works. Try it