{"id":15409,"date":"2020-10-28T20:09:18","date_gmt":"2020-10-28T12:09:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.i-learner.edu.hk\/?p=15409"},"modified":"2020-10-28T20:10:24","modified_gmt":"2020-10-28T12:10:24","slug":"speaking-slips-to-watch-out-for","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www23.i-learner.com.hk\/studiowebsite\/2020\/10\/speaking-slips-to-watch-out-for\/","title":{"rendered":"Speaking Slips to Watch Out For"},"content":{"rendered":"

When a child is learning English as a second language, they may make mistakes due to translating from Cantonese to English, mixing features of the two languages, or from lack of exposure to spoken English. Try spotting some of these common mistakes in your child\u2019s speaking to help them improve:<\/p>\n

Subject-Verb Agreement<\/b><\/p>\n

A child may forget subject-verb agreement when talking excitedly. He <\/i>have<\/i><\/b> a cat!\u00a0<\/i><\/p>\n

As Cantonese only has one form of each verb, students forget to switch between \u2018has\u2019 and \u2018have\u2019 or to add an \u2018s\u2019 at the end of a verb. Alex <\/i>run<\/i><\/b> very quickly!<\/i><\/p>\n

Forming Questions<\/b><\/p>\n

One of the more common mistakes with Cantonese speakers is with question formation. A question like \u2018\u4f60\u6709\u5187\u5144\u5f1f\u59ca\u59b9<\/i>?<\/i>\u2019 can be incorrectly translated word for word into \u2018You have brother or sister?<\/i>\u2019 instead of \u2018<\/i>Do <\/i><\/b>you have <\/i>any<\/i><\/b> brother<\/i>s<\/i><\/b> or sister<\/i>s<\/i><\/b>?\u2019<\/i> or \u2018Do<\/i><\/b> you have <\/i>a<\/i><\/b> brother or sister<\/i>?\u2019<\/p>\n

Countable vs Uncountable<\/b><\/p>\n

I have so <\/i>many<\/i><\/b> homework!<\/i><\/p>\n

The quantifiers \u2018many\u2019, \u2018much\u2019, \u2018a few\u2019 and \u2018a little\u2019 confuse many students who either haven\u2019t learnt how to use them yet or have forgotten how to. The student may use \u2018many\u2019 in place of \u2018much\u2019 for uncountable nouns. Countable and uncountable nouns is a topic in our Advanced Grammar and Reading<\/a> L3 course and is taught in schools around primary 2-3.<\/p>\n

I have so <\/i>many<\/i><\/b> homework!<\/i><\/p>\n

Pronouns: He or She?<\/b><\/p>\n

In Cantonese, \u2018\u4f62\u2019 can be used interchangeably for \u2018he\u2019 or \u2018she\u2019, so students tend to combine English pronouns in the same way and use \u2018he\u2019 for \u2018she\u2019, \u2018his\u2019 for \u2018her\u2019 and \u2018him\u2019 for \u2018her\u2019.<\/p>\n

(Pointing at a girl) He<\/i><\/b> took my pencil!<\/i><\/p>\n

Wrong Choice of Word<\/b><\/p>\n

Some words may seem very similar but have a different meaning in English such as \u2018look\u2019, \u2018see\u2019 and \u2018watch\u2019. \u2018Don\u2019t <\/i>see<\/i><\/b> my work<\/i>\u2019 is a common example where a child has confused \u2018see\u2019 with \u2018look\u2019.<\/p>\n

Adding \u2018<\/b>\u5440<\/b>\u2019 (ah) at the End<\/b><\/p>\n

Where are you going <\/i>ah<\/i><\/b>?<\/i><\/p>\n

Final particles are a key feature of Chinese, and the most common one students incorrectly use when speaking in English is \u2018\u5440\u2019 at the end of sentences and questions. Unlike Cantonese, there is no final particle at the end in English.<\/p>\n

Tenses<\/b><\/p>\n

When a student is speaking, they often forget to change their verb forms when referring to the past. Yesterday, my family and I <\/i>go<\/i><\/b> to Disneyland.<\/i><\/p>\n

On the other hand, students can be aware of the need for past tense but don\u2019t remember their tenses, so they add \u2018-ed\u2019 to the end of irregular verbs or use the wrong word.<\/p>\n

I <\/i>brang<\/i><\/b> my sticker chart to school and <\/i>stucked<\/i><\/b> the stickers down.<\/i><\/p>\n

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Correcting the Slips<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n

Instead of correcting your child mid-sentence and knocking their confidence, allow them to finish speaking to improve their fluency. After they have finished speaking, identify the mistakes through one of the following ways:<\/p>\n