Using tongue twisters to improve pronunciation

Rediscovering tongue twisters

The dictionary of the Royal Spanish Academy defines tongue twisters as a word or phrase that is difficult to pronounce, especially when it is used in a game. With this word game, children, without realising, can learn to pronounce difficult words in a language in a fun way.

Tongue twisters exist in any language. Their origin dates back to the ancient Greece, where wise people began to create these word games as educational method to improve speaking and reading skills.

Tongue twisters have been created to be pronounced out loud. They are frequently used as an exercise to develop agile and expeditious diction, especially in children.

The new GCSE specifications for MFL in the UK highlights the relevance of phonics to develop a clear and reliable pronunciation. It also states that a strong awareness of phonology is vital to be able to understand, decode words and overall being successful when communicating with others. This makes tongue twisters a good resource to be used in lessons to ensure students develop a solid base of phonics and experience success when using a second language.

TEN Benefits of using tongue twisters

Most tongue twisters don’t make sense because they lack full sentences. Many are just a challenging grouping of words based on their pronunciation and not on their meaning. However, they are helpful to learn different sounds and a great variety of vocabulary in an amusing way. Here are some benefits when using them in teaching and learning. 

Number 1

• Tongue twisters improve student’s diction of words and pronunciation and give clarity to the brain. Children must say each word correctly, which will increase articulation agility.

Number 2

• Tongue twisters increase students’ memory since children will seek to learn the tongue twisters in order to say it correctly.

Number 3

• Tongue twisters encourage competitiveness in a relaxed and fun way. Saying the tongue twister correctly is a personal challenge, so the person must practice saying all the words correctly and overcome the obstacle.

Number 4

• Tongue twisters promote interest in reading as they expand students’ vocabulary and reading comprehension.

Number 5

• Tongue twisters develop students’ imagination as they allow them to create new tongue twisters and share them with family and friends. I have created the one about 'las ideas ideales de Isaías ...' to practise the "i" sound with my students.
  

Number 6

• Tongue twisters increase confidence because when students speak, they will be heard more clearly, and their listeners will understand better. They also give students a feeling of accomplishment when they say them correctly.

Number 7

• Tongue twisters improve concentration and discipline. In order to master them, students will need to practice slowly, focusing on individual words carefully. 

Number 8

• Tongue twisters help to warm up and stretch the mouth muscles, vocal cords and the tongue. This helps students to improve their speaking ability.

Number 9

• Tongue twisters promote self-awareness as they show students what words and sounds they have trouble pronouncing.

Number 10

• Tongue twisters help children to manage frustration and laugh at themselves in a healthy way. Children might get frustrated at first because they want to say the words correctly the first time and don’t allow themselves to make a mistake, but when they realise that they are not the only ones who makes mistakes, they will see the fun part and repeat them.  
  

 How to choose and use tongue twisters in lessons

Tongue twisters can be slightly varied, so one can find several versions of the same text. When deciding which ones to use in lessons, you can bear in mind the following:

Take into account the sound.  Most tongue twisters are made for mastering specific sounds so one can find or create a tongue twister to practise those such sounds that students find difficult to pronounce.  

Consider the level of difficulty.  Some challenging-to-pronounce expressions were explicitly created for kids, while others are tricky, even for adults. In this category, they can be easy or hard. 

Below are different tongue twisters to practise Spanish pronunciation. If you want to hear them, click HERE.

 

 

 

 

 

 

To conclude, tongue twisters are popular, nonsensical sayings that are very hard to say. Evey second Sunday in November, the International Tongue Twister Day is celebrated. However, you don’t have to wait until November to use them with your students to support them; practise and improve their pronunciation while having fun.

 Bibliography 

•         BBC Languages. "Tongue Twisters." Available at: https://www.bbc.co.uk/languages/yoursay/tongue_twisters.shtml  
• Oxford House. (2023) "English Tongue Twisters to Improve Your Pronunciation." Available at: https://oxfordhousebcn.com/en/english-tongue-twisters-to-improve-your-pronunciation-2023/  
•  TV Pública. "¿Qué Son los Trabalenguas?" Available at: https://www.tvpublica.com.ar/post/que-son-los-trabalenguas  
• Educa y Aprende. "Trabalenguas para Niños." Available at: https://educayaprende.com/trabalenguas-para-ninos/  
• National Geographic en Español. "¿Qué Son y Cómo Funcionan los Trabalenguas?" Available at: https://www.ngenespanol.com/fotografia/son-y-funcionan-trabalenguas/  
• Promova. "The Tricky Art of English Tongue Twisters." Available at: https://promova.com/blog/the-tricky-art-of-english-tongue-twisters