Private English Accent Training

American and British English accent and pronunciation training

Personalized Private English Accent Training with a native-speaker trainer will help you sound great, feel confident and be understood when you speak English. We help clients pronounce words correctly, improve their flow, and sound more native and relaxed when speaking. Good pronunciation is an important part of effective communication!

Why is English pronunciation so hard?

English is derived from many languages (Latin, French, German) and the spelling is a poor predictor of the sounds of the language. If you have learned English from a textbook, or with a non-native speaker, if you have never been corrected and taught the right sounds, you will make many mistakes.

How do I know if I need accent training?

Any business person who works with internationals will benefit from this training, but many clients come to us because they feel they “sound bad,” or because they are often asked to repeat themselves, or simply because their boss said, “You have to work on your spoken English!”

This course is most often followed by speakers at B and C levels. The trainer will adjust the course to fit you, your level and your goals.

During your sessions you will work on-

• New sounds.
• Rhoticity (Rs).
• The schwa sound.
• Separating spelling from pronunciation.
• Intonation (which carries lots of meaning).
• Stress patterns.
• Articulation.
• Omissions, substitutions.
• Pace.
• Vocal placement.
• Vowels, consonants and consonant clusters.
• Fossilized errors.

Who gets accent training?

People who work in many sectors and positions get pronunciation training, but good spoken English is especially important for sales and customer service. We have trained bankers, creatives, therapists, famous Dutch actors, realtors, small business owners, international executives and museum fundraisers.

How long will it take to improve my English accent?

Many people will need about 12 hours to make a significant and lasting change, but we are happy to begin with a bigger or smaller learning package. We can discuss “how many hours will I need” in the first appointment.

Accents are habits that we have learned. They can be unlearned, but it does take some practice. Sometimes you have to learn how to make a sound that does not exist in your native language, and that can be difficult and tiring, but the rewards are great when people understand your spoken English with ease. There’s truly nothing more tiring and discouraging than having people ask you again and again, “Excuse me? What did you say? Can you repeat that?”

Are the trainers native speakers? Can I choose British or American English?

All our trainers are native speakers. They come from many English-speaking countries. You will be assigned an American English (AE) trainer or a British English (BE) trainer.

But I just want to sound good. Is there an international accent I can learn?

These days many people speak a mix of AE and BE and that’s often fine.

Where can I do the private English accent and pronunciation training? Can I take this course online?

You can work with us Online with Zoom, or in person. We offer face to face pronunciation courses at our several outstanding locations in Amsterdam – in the beautiful, artistic Museum Quarter close to the Vondelpark and Van Gogh Museum, and at 2 historic locations just minutes from Amsterdam Centraal Station. Plus we see clients in Den Haag, Amstelveen and at in-company locations.

How can I get started with private accent lessons?

Request a free online consultation appointment and meet online with a native-speaker trainer. Or just contact us to learn more. We are happy to speak with you.

Tree or three?

The unique ways we speak can be charming and add a sort of music to language. And most people do not need to completely eliminate an accent when they speak English. But sometimes accents can be problematic, interfering with everyday communication. If people often ask you to repeat what you said, you may have pronunciation errors that are making you hard to understand. These errors are pronunciation habits that can hurt your professional or academic career. In simple terms, when your accent is “thick” (strong), it is a lot of work for others to listen to you. They have to guess the misspoken words from context. Here are some examples-

• tree or three?
• very or ferry?
• sheep or ship?
• seek or chic?
• junk or chunk?

If you are Dutch, the classic pronunciation error is replacing the TH sound with a T or D. If you are Asian, the problem may be R and L. Such mistakes affect other’s ability to understand you, and can also make it hard for you to learn to be a good listener and to spell correctly.

Would you like some free English accent and pronunciation training advice?

• Train your ear! Do more listening/watching and less reading.
• Use our WATCH LEARN SPEAK video app.
• Learn about intonation: It carries a lot of meaning.
• Accept the fact that English spelling does not consistently predict English pronunciation.
• Prepare to change your habits. Pronunciation is a habit.
• Slow down and discover your alveolar ridge, lips, teeth and tongue.
• Practice, practice, practice.
• Use tongue twisters.
• Use Rachel’s English videos.
• Use our interactive Learn English App.
• Request a copy of our booklet, “Sounding Great.”

Contact us today.

We are happy to speak with you in English or Dutch, on the phone +31 (0)20 823 0569 or via Zoom. With just a short conversation we will give you good advice about improving your English pronunciation.