Week 1 · Session 3
The small words vanish
Why to, of, have, can disappear in real speech.
~35 minWarm up: what you learned so far
3 minutes
Two ideas so far: words glue together, and each word has one loud syllable while the rest get crushed.
Which is the loud syllable in “important”?
The small words are the ones that vanish
5 minutes
English keeps its content words loud — nouns, main verbs, adjectives. It crushes its small words — to, of, for, a, the, you, and, have, can, did. Those small words are exactly the ones you were taught first, so their disappearance is very confusing.
| You read | You hear |
|---|---|
| I have to go. | I hafta go. |
| a cup of tea | a cuppa tea |
| What do you think? | Whaddaya think? |
| I can help you. | I k’n help ya.“can” goes almost silent |
| Give it to him. | Givit-tuh-im.the h disappears |
| She should have known. | She shoulda known. |
Watch: why English does this
10 minutes
This is the single most useful video in Week 1. It explains why a word sounds one way alone and completely different inside a sentence. Watch it twice.
Listening drill
7 minutes
You hear “I shoulda gone.” What was written?
You hear “Where-zee-gone?”
Record your second voice note
3 minutes
“Describe the room you are sitting in right now. Then say what you are going to do after this session.”
Two minutes. No script. Save it as “Week 1 — Voice Note 2”.
Add to your Couldn't-Catch List
ongoing
Aim for three entries before your live class. Write down what you did hear, not what you think it should have been.