Voice and the Teacher

1
Voice and the Teacher

• Managing your Voice for Effective Communication

2
Communication

• Good, effective teaching depends on good
  communication
• Our prime means of communication is speech
• Our ability to communicate orally is influenced
  by.

3

• The personality of the speaker
• The sensitivity of the speaker ability to
  listen, to read the audience and respond
• The body language of the speaker unconscious
  signals through body stance and gesture.

4
Therefore the effectiveness of our teaching must
be influenced by these things too.
5
BUT dont worry about.

• Accent
• Dialect unless it is so extreme that it affects
  your listeners ability to understand what you
  are saying.

6
DO be concerned about.

• Ungrammatical speech
• Inappropriate volume
• Clarity (articulation)
• Speed
• Modulation (variety of tone and pitch to create
  interest)

7
Remember to.

• Select words for emphasis
• Use pauses to break up a passage
• Use silence effectively

8
Practical Work
9

• Be bored!!!

10

• Be more interested in talking about your own ideas

11
Voice Exercises

• Looking after your voice..

12
Breathing

• We take in oxygen and get rid of unwanted carbon
  dioxide which we then use to speak/activate the
  voice cords.

13
Vocal Cords

• These comprise of muscle tissue which makes a
  breath-controlling valve in the larynx. This can
  be activated involuntarily in the form of a grunt.

14
Speech

• We borrow from the digestive system using lips,
  teeth, tongue, hard and soft palate, and jaw to
  help us articulate speech while this same system
  can also be used as a wind instrument by blowing
  air through it.

15
Exercises

• Are good for relaxing, energising, etc, which may
  also have the side effects of decluttering the
  mind, being good for your heart, digestion,
  nerves and brain!

16
So

• Stand up
• Breathe in
• Speak out

17
Preparation

• Stretch from toes through whole body to neck and
  face
• Shake arms and body
• Stand and feel the warmth
• Lengthen spine, roll shoulders, lift and drop
  them allowing arms to be heavy
• Have weight balanced
• Reach up with crown of head
• Let side of body be free and easy release any
  neck tension
• Look straight out almost up

18
Breathing

• Shoulders relaxed think of dropping shoulders as
  you breathe in front of chest widening expand
  tummy/diaphragm
• Let jaw drop open a little, lick lips and
  continue to observe breathing cold air in, warm
  air out. Concentrate on outgoing breath.
• Put one hand on diaphragm, breathe in and as you
  breathe out say HUH-HUH-HUH (Basement!)
• One hand on upper chest, raise pitch slightly,
  jaw down and say HA-A-A-A (Ground Floor!)
• Both hands under chin and fingers resting on
  cheeks take a sizeable breath and raise pitch
  slightly saying HOO-OO-OO-OO (First Floor!)
• Thumbs in ears, fingers on forehead, raise pitch
  and say MM-MM-MM-MM (Attic!)

19
Articulation Tongue

• Put out tongues
• Point, relax, round
• Tip inscribe a circle
• Shoot it in and out rapidly
• Add voice LA-LA-LA-LA

20
Articulation Nose

• As it is cartilaginous it is a means of carrying
  sound forward.
• Use a higher note, hum forward, pulsing sound and
  reaching out with doing as many as breath will
  allow.
• ING-ING-ING a clock striking
• ONG-ONG-ONG you are a gong
• ANG-ANG-ANG an American trolley-car

21
Articulation Lips

• Soft and malleable tissue giving definition to
  speech.
• Blow through like a horse
• Shape into p sound and do triplets
  ..ppp-ppp-ppp
• That was just air, now add sound
• bbb-bbb-bbb
• Now add accent Bbb-Bbb-Bbb
• bBb-bBb-bBb
• bbB-bbB-bbB

22
Articulation Lips cont.

• Now do the same for the following-
• t..d
• k..g
• lL
• Try saying these nonsense words slowly at first
  and then as quickly as you can
• NIMINY TOPOKOTA

23
Remember

• Speak out not up

24
Projection depends on

• Breath enough not too much
• Cords using a natural middle pitch
• Resonance using your head
• Articulation bolder type face
• Where you are classroom, gym hall, football
  pitch, assembly hall, etc.
• How you say it dynamics, emphasis, tone

25
Relaxation Helps

• After work or even before a lecture try this
  simple exercise stand tall, shake arms
  vigorously, roll shoulders, let head drop
  forward, roll it gently from side to side. Now
  put your head back where it belongs but dont
  thrust chin. Lift your arms, stretching them
  overhead. Now raise first arm and then other.
  Feel the lift from the base of the rib cage. Now
  let arms come to rest by sides. Bend knees a
  little and then return to upright position. Ease
  shoulder blades back and down, take deep breath
  and let air out with a WHOOSH!

26
Handy Hints for a Healthy Voice

• Warm up your voice
• Drink plenty of water
• Relax shoulders and neck
• Breathe from diaphragm
• Be aware of posture
• Adjust the environment to reduce background noise
• Consider tone of voice
• In a large lecture hall, use a microphone

27
More handy hints..

• Use silence to emphasise a point or get attention
• Wait until the class is quiet before speaking

28
And more

• Learn to be sensitive to the first sign of vocal
  fatigue
• Take time off work if you have been diagnosed as
  having laryngitis
• Chewing gum helps lubricate the throat

29
Try to Avoid

• Smoking
• Very hot foods and drink
• Coughing, instead sip water or swallow gently
• Speaking over noise
• Shouting
• Throat sweets