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Care For Your Voice!

How to protect and make the most of your voice in Language

Teaching!

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TALK, Chatter, gossip,

EveryoneAll things to all peopleAll day long, every

dayWhether you feel like

it or not!!Amounting to a lot

of….

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VOICE WORK!

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Common Vocal Challenges in LanguageTeachingVariety of interactionsProblem spacesChallenging situationsLearners’ needsThe need to keep on top

of everythingVery little voice training

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FUNDAMENTAL RESOURCE

Healthy

Flexible

Protected

Over worked

Neglected

Abused

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Poor reception by student!

Lack of clarityWeak carrying powerRestricted vocal

varietyReduced tonal quality

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PERSONAL STRESS!!!!!!!!!! Leading to..

FATIGUE

EXHAUSTION

COLLAPSE

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How stress affects the voice

Difficulty swallowingAching neck Backache & muscle

tension Fatigue Frequent urination &

diarrhoea Immune system reduced IndigestionClarity problems

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PROFESSIONAL STRESS!!!!!!!!!! Leading to..

Over preparation and over work

Lack of effectiveness

Confidence problems

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Left unchecked this can lead to..

Vocal strain

Vocal problems

Voice Loss

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The Vocal Tract

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What do vocal folds look like?

BREATHING

Vocal Cords are Open

SPEAKING

Vocal cords close and vibrate

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Vocal Folds Opening and Closing

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Many Times!

Men

110 Cycles/Second

(Hz)LOWER PITCH

Women

180-220 Cycles/Second MEDIUM

PITCH

Children

300 Cycles/Second HIGH PITCH

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Vocal Cord Nodules

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Keep the vocal folds moist!

Sip of water for ever 15 – 20 mins speaking!!

Rest whenever possible!!!

DRINK TO YOUR HEALTH!

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For clear speech we need……..

Power +

Vibration +

Resonance

and

ARTICULATION!

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Understanding

Clarity

Intent

Focus

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Posture - make an entrance!

Are you in control?

Are you relaxed?

Ready for action?

What are my bad habits?!

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POSTURE POINTS

Open

Balanced

Free unrestricted

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Vocal Restriction?

Slumped

Restricted

Depressed

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Prepare the body for speech

StretchingMovingOpening the chestRelaxing the

shoulders,head and neck

Jaws!Face

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BE PREPARED!

Warm up!

Tune in!!

Calm down!!

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BEFORE YOU BEGIN

Unrestricted clothing

Drop the heavy clutter

Free the body – free the voice!

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- A warmed voice means warm tones!

Yawn with an ah to open the throat

Breathe out to a ‘sh; Hum up and down a scale

Me ma mo may me Many men, many men etc

All I want is a proper cup of coffee made in a proper copper coffee pot .

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Are my breaths big enough?!

Freeing the voice

Big Sound/volume

Balancing our thinking

Breath for speech

Breath for Life!

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Easy Breathing

Sit with back to chair elbows on knees, chin on hands – breathe in

Breath and out on fff, vvvv, zzzzzStand in star position, breathe out on an s, as

you do bend over to touch floor(allow knees to bend) pause until you feel the need to breathe.

Say the months of the year (in English or Welsh) on one even breath!

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Work those consonants

Where do you perceive the consonants are formed?

Which articulators are connecting?Both lips? Top teeth and bottom lip?Tongue and teeth?Tongue to gum ridge?Tongue to hard palate?Back of tongue to soft palate???

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Consonants

Clocks ticking, ticking clocks, tick tock,Five from four fives leaves fifteenCharlie chose hunky chicken chips‘K’ kkkkk, ‘g’ggggg ‘p’ppppp bbbbb

‘t’tttt ‘d’dddd

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Place and use your vowels

Where are they formed?

Long or short?

Carrying power?

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Vowels

as/oo/ay/or/ah make the vowels last as long as you can

Ah – chest resonanceW – mouth resonance Eat up Arthur I urge you!The five parked cars are mine Ahoy there, Ahoy

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Be clear! Be Heard! Be Effective!

Consonants for:•Clarity•Audibility•Impact (clout!)

Vowels•Warmth•Mood•Meaning

What do need to say?How do I want to say it??

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Establish your vocal territory

Fix the state of mind

Establish control

Find breath, tone, focus

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How do you sound?!

WobblyTightNasalHigh pitchedMonotonousRoboticUncomfortable?

Change your tuneMatch your ‘music’ to the

message

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And your tone?

This is an interesting topic?

You’re going to enjoy this

I’m so lucky to be doing this

It’s so lovely to see you all

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Muscularity

Energy in wordsVitality of voicePower rather

than projection!

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Vocal Variety – Increase your Personal Presence

PitchPacePausePronunciationPower

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Relax, Breathe and articulate the following

“Oh! But he was a tight-fisted, hand at the grindstone, Scrooge! A Squeezing, wrenching, grasping, scraping, clutching, covetous old sinner! Hard and sharp as flint, from which no spark had ever struck out generous fire; secret and self-contained as an oyster.”

From A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens

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What must I do to make it easier?

Breath support Warm ups Effort away from throat!! Anchoring when having to

speak loudly Avoid shouting/clearing the

throat Not competing with

background noise Devising other methods of

calling attention Sips of water Relaxed body – safeguarding

posture

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Each Day

Keep a check on PostureBreathingRelaxationArticulationReduce lecturer talking

time Increase volume through

resonanceUse face and gesture,

non verbal communication!

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Problems and Warning Signs

Breaks in the voiceChanges in pitch or volume Changes in vocal quality Changes in the body Increased effort Recurring loss of voiceSensation of ‘lump in the throat’

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DANGER!

Talking or singing at a high or artificially reduced volume levels

Talking or singing with cramped neck position, distorted laryngeal position, a clenched jaw, inadequate or excessive mouth opening

Throat clearing or coughingShouting, screaming or yellingTalking or singing with insufficient air

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AVOID!

Keeping larynx too high in the neck or using too high or low a pitch level.

Talking or singing for too longTrying to be heard over the top of other

speakers or background noise.Making noises, imitating animal sounds, TV

characters.(small children) Tryng to over-compensate for a vocal problem,

thereby altering muscle position and tone.

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Home Help

Reduce voice use Increase hydration,

reduce alcohol, cigarettesVoice and body restKeep larynx and vocal

tract moist – steam the back of the throat

Gargle with salty water Always warm the voice

before useAvoid medicated throat

pastilles that kill pain

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Seeking medical help

Go to GPReferral to ENTENT takes case history

and visualises larynx with endoscope or laryngeal mirror

If nothing sinister, refer to SLT for further assessment & advice

Individual or group therapy as necessary

Voice clinic