Modifying your accent and achieving noticeable results is absolutely possible. While it may feel like a lengthy process, with motivation and consistent practice, meaningful changes can be made. If you're looking to improve your accent to boost confidence or increase clarity, speech therapy can provide the tools and guidance to help you reach your goals.
Read MoreA constant perspective I hear from bilingual individuals, particularly those whose first language isn’t English, is that they feel inferior. That having an accent and speaking another language puts them at a disadvantage for building connection, respect and growth as communicators both personally and professionally.
This article will demonstrate why that is not true. It will demonstrate that you as a multilingual speaker are at an advantage - even when it doesn’t feel like it. In this article, the term bilingualism will be used to embody both multilingualism and bilingualism.
Read MoreAs a speech-language pathologist (SLP) at Well Said, I’ve had the privilege of working with many individuals who are navigating the journey of accent modification. Whether you’re learning English as a second language and are new to Canada, refining your pronunciation for professional reasons, or simply wanting to feel more confident in your speech, I want to start by saying this (as I say to all accent clients): No one should ever feel ashamed of their accent (every has one after all, no matter your linguistic background).
Read MoreMany of the adults I work with speak more than one language (and many speak more than two!). When a client’s concerns are centered around the languages that they know, usually the language system (i.e. grammar) and speech sounds that are associated with it are often the areas that are top of mind.
Read MoreMany clients who would prefer to modify their accent often consider speech sounds such as a different production of the sound ‘r’. However, another way to modify an accent is to consider the rhythm of the language. Every language has its own prosody which helps speakers sound more similar to native speakers. This can be an important area to consider when modifying an accent.
Read MoreThere four basic types of word stress that lead to proper intonation in English. These include: Tonic stress, Emphatic stress, Contrastive stress and New information stress.
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