Hummingbird is a method of teaching phonetically correct Global Standard English in which students learn to synchronize their speech to recorded video presentations of speech which is accompanied by printed text, mouth movement characters, and tongue placement guides.
What is Patented:
1. A method of teaching spoken English using a mirror and audio/video presentation by an audio/video presenting means, containing recorded speech together with close-up views of a model speaking English, comprising the steps of:
a. instructing said student to watch said views presented by said audio/video presentation means while comparing the shape of the model's mouth to the shape of the student's own mouth as viewed by said student in said mirror;
b. instructing said student to view a video presentation of 8 mouth position characters which indicate respective mouth movements, said mouth position characters being displayed in sequences that correspond to the movements of the mouth during speech, said mouth position characters displayed with accompanying text and placed beneath the letters of the text that symbolize the sound associated with the movement, said mouth position characters including: Open, Triangle, Base, Pucker, O-shape, Lips-in, Bottom- lip-in, and Closed, and;
c. instructing said student to view a video presentation of eight contact points demonstration where the tongue touches the teeth and gums when English sounds are spoken.
2. The method described in Claim 1, wherein said students speak sounds in imitation of and in synchrony with the model and compare both the mouth positions of the student's own mouth in the mirror versus the mouth positions of the model, and the sounds produced by the student's own mouth versus the target sounds produced by the model.
3. The method described in Claim 1, wherein connected speech is taught as combinations of said target sounds, with movements of the mouth from position to position, accompanied by mouth position characters with text, whereby said students develop fluency by speaking simultaneously with said model demonstrating the speech and mouth positions.
4. The method described in Claim 1, further including the step of:
d. instructing said students to repeat steps a.- c. in order to practice following the mouth positions such that a more exact pronunciation of the target sounds is achieved.
English speech consists of a stream of phonemes, each physically generated by a specific combination of lips, teeth, tongue, jaw, and voice. Therefore, correct movements of the speech mechanisms are required to generate accurate English speech.
Once students learn how to form the mouth positions, they can listen to a phrase and repeat the phrase while reading the text and following the mouth position characters. Students of this method can compare their mouth movements to a model of standard pronunciation visually as well as auditorily.
Visual information about the mechanics of speech sound production are essential for foreign-born people to acquire English pronunciation. Active student participation adds an important kinesthetic component. Students of English thus have a more reliable audiovisual means of learning and practicing correct English pronunciation.
Video presentation of speech instruction, with real-time feedback about students' performance, is an ideal format that greatly accelerates language learning. The use of videotape in language instruction is now gaining credibility as American media become the dominant source of information for people around the world."