50-47 / 46-43 / 42-39 / 38-35 / 34-30 / Below 30
Reading Test / Great effort to pronounce with a correct French accent. Delivery and accent could be easily understood by a native speaker. / Pronunciation, intonation, and pacing make the response mostly comprehensible; errors do not impede comprehensibility. / Pronunciation may not always be clear. A fair amount of interference from English/another language. Errors occasionally impede comprehensibility. / Pronunciation, intonation, and pacing make the response difficult to comprehend at times. Errors impede comprehensibility. Regular interference from English. / Pronunciation, intonation and pacing are heavily marked by English. Errors impede comprehensibility. / Answer is in a language other than French or incomprehensible.
Components that go into correct pronunciation and intonation in French include:
- Unaccented “e” is not pronounced
- Consonants at the end of words are generally not pronounced (with the exception of “c”, “r”, “f” and “l”)
- L’élision (J’aime, l’été)
- L’enchaînement consonantique (Il habite à Paris – ilabitapari)
- La liaison (Ils ont un enfant)
- Voyelles (a– e – i – o – u – y)
- Nasales (un, on, in, an)
- «R» français
The voice goes up for a question or when the sentence is not finished, and goes down at the end of declarative sentences
Components that go into correct rhythm in French:
- All syllables within a rhythmic group are pronounced for the same amount of time (equal emphasis)
- The last syllable of a rhythmic group is accented for emphasis in French
- Sentences are all connected (l’enchaînement consonantique, la liaison, etc.)
Self-Evaluation of Pronunciation
1. Evaluate your pronunciation skills according to this rubric and explain why you gave yourself that grade.
2. Identify at least 2 errors or pronunciation components that you could improve upon. List the words/phrases below and explain what you need to do to correct the pronunciation.
3. Use the Phonétique resource page of our wiki to complete at least one set of exercises related to a pronunciation feature you’d like to work on. Print out and attach your answers (to the listening activities in the Phonétiquechapter of your choice) to this sheet for credit.
Créditsupplémentaire
4. Record yourself completing the oral exercises in the Phonétiquechapter of your choice (using a program such as Audacity) and upload the mp3 to your pen pal correspondence page. You must include a few sentences on your wiki page (and the date of course) to describe what your mp3 is. You must also let Mlle Williams you did this so can receive the extra credit!