4 Speaking
Intonation Scaffolding Activities
Pausing Before Tag Questions
You probably hear tag questions more often than you read them. Here’s an example:
That tag needs a label, doesn’t it?
As your English skills increase, you may state an idea, but then turn it into a question. You can use tag questions to soften your speaking style. Tag questions help us sound less direct. Tag questions make us sound less like an interviewer or a police detective and more like someone interested in a two-way conversation.
In this exercise, even a short silence is meaningful. By recognizing punctuation in written tag questions, we can train ourselves to pause. Pausing helps anyone listening to catch the change from statement to question.
Listen to the questions as you read along below.
- Roshan is an apprentice isn’t he?
- His parents live in Lethbridge don’t they?
- There was construction on the highway wasn’t there?
- Gilles could use his cellphone couldn’t he?
- Leela sent a package didn’t she?
- Candy tastes sweet doesn’t it?
- Claire shouldn’t drink too much coffee should she?
- We’re getting to know Roshan aren’t we?
- You know his sister is in India don’t you?
- I’ve read ten questions haven’t I?
In the audio recording, the speaker pauses between the statement and the tag that turns the statement into a question. The statements above are all missing punctuation.
Add a comma where the speaker pauses to begin each tag. Here’s an example:
Roshan is an apprentice, isn’t he?
Listen and read along again, with correct tag question pausing.
Tone Rising or Falling After Tag Questions
Tags can help us sound less direct, less pushy, or less aggressive because they turn a statement into a question. A tag question shows we would like our listener to confirm that our idea is correct. Tags give our listeners the power to correct us if we are wrong. Tag questions include other people in the conversation.
The sound, or pitch, of our voice in a tag can rise or fall. In this chapter, the tag questions CONFIRM understanding so, as in yes/no questions, the pitch of our voice gets higher. The higher (not louder) sound tells our listeners we’re waiting for them to agree or disagree with us.
In this exercise, the rising pitch is meaningful. If there is no rising pitch, listeners will likely not recognize that they should confirm by answering “yes” or “no.”
Listen to the questions as you read along below. Some of the tags have a correct, rising tone. Others have an incorrect flat or falling tone. Use a checkmark to show the kind of tone you hear for each question.
| Question | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. You tried to phone Claire, didn’t you? | |||
| 2. We’ve met before, haven’t we? | |||
| 3. You like folk music, don’t you? | |||
| 4. Your parents don’t camp, do they? | |||
| 5. Roshan can play guitar, can’t he? | |||
| 6. Gilles remembers the talent show, doesn’t he? | |||
| 7. Claire guessed Roshan works for Kerry, didn’t she? | |||
| 8. Kerry was waiting in the truck, wasn’t he? | |||
| 9. We should check out the festival on SpaceBook, shouldn’t we. | |||
| 10. I’ll have to listen again, won’t I? |
Read the questions aloud again. Use a correct, rising tone on each tag.
Speaking Tasks
The greater our English language skills, the more we adjust, or change, the words we say and how we say them to different people. Skillful speakers are aware of relationships, status, or power.
Here are some pictures of Bear Bottom Campground, which Claire manages.
To prepare vocabulary for the next speaking activity, list as many nouns as you can to describe each photo. Then add adjectives to those nouns. In addition, list verbs for actions that can happen in each place. For example, for the first picture:
- Possible Nouns: trees, forest, tents, campsite
- Possible Adjectives: tall, green, leafy, colourful, peaceful
- Possible Verbs: relax, sleep, sing
Speaking 1
Roshan hasn’t been to the Bear Bottom campsite yet, and he’d like to learn more. However, he’s just met Claire, so their relationship is distant. Claire seems older than his mother, so Roshan wants to be respectful. Claire is also the manager of a place where Kerry and Roshan will do some work, so Claire has more status than Roshan does.
Do the following speaking practice role play with someone else.
- One person speaks as Roshan.
- One person speaks as Claire.
Setting:
While Claire is sitting and drinking coffee in a café, Roshan walks up and starts the conversation.
Requirements for Roshan:
- Greet Claire and remind her who you are and how you met.
- Tell her the topic you are curious about.
- Use tag questions to confirm facts about Bear Bottom Campground that are shown in the photographs.
- Ask at least 10 questions.
- Close the conversation and walk away.
Requirements for Claire:
- Respond to Roshan’s greeting.
- Answer his tag questions with “Yes” or “No” or another appropriate answer such as “Sometimes” or “Maybe.”
- Respond when Roshan closes the conversation.
Production Task Rubric
You can us the rubric below to measure how well “Roshan” does when he’s chatting with “Claire.”
| Speaking Task 1
You chatted with an unfamiliar person to learn more about a new place or activity. |
Completely | Mostly | Somewhat | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You greeted the person appropriately. | ||||
| You introduced your topic. | ||||
| You asked 10 or more tag questions. | ||||
| You closed the conversation appropriately |
Speaking 2
Roshan’s friend Nick Lee has never been to Maskwa County, but Roshan has mentioned that there’s a beautiful campground there. Nick would like to know more about the campground, but he doesn’t even know its name. Remember, Nick and Roshan have been friends for years. They are about the same age and are pretty informal with each other.
To think of questions, use the same photographs as you did for Speaking 1.
Do the following speaking practice role play with someone else.
- One person speaks as Nick.
- One person speaks as Roshan.
Setting:
While Roshan is relaxing at home, eating some of his mom’s sweets, Roshan’s friend Nick phones and starts the conversation.
Requirements for Nick:
- Greet Roshan.
- Tell him the topic you are curious about.
- Use tag questions to confirm facts about Bear Bottom Campground that are shown in the photographs.
- Ask at least 10 questions.
- Close the conversation and hang up.
Requirements for Roshan:
- Respond to Nick’s greeting.
- Answer his tag questions with “Yes” or “No” or another appropriate answer such as “Sometimes” or “Maybe.”
- Respond when Nick closes the conversation.
Production Task Rubric
You can use the rubric below to measure how well “Nick” does when he’s chatting with “Roshan.”
| Speaking Task 2
You chatted with a very familiar person to learn more about a new place or activity. |
Completely | Mostly | Somewhat | Comments |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| You greeted the person appropriately. | ||||
| You introduced your topic. | ||||
| You asked 10 or more tag questions. | ||||
| You closed the conversation appropriately |