Does speaking in public make you nervous or anxious? While speaking in public, do you stumble over words that you know? If yes, do not stress. It is very common. Many people face this difficulty while speaking in public. Due to social pressure, they stammer and make mistakes. One simple yet powerful solution is to read aloud. It’s enjoyable and impactful to enhance your confidence and speech skills.
Both for adults and children, it is a useful method. If used properly, it can be turned into a strong tool for enhancing speech fluency. It boosts confidence, enhances communication skills, and makes your speech flow evidently. It is a great workout for your muscles! So, pick a book, journal, or paper and start practicing. Initially, practice alone, later on, try to make your friends your audience. Collect their feedback and work on them. Let’s dive into five effective ways to make reading aloud a game-changer for your fluency.
- Pick Interesting Topic
Find materials that interest you. Do not go for random paper. Reading aloud works best when you enjoy what you’re reading. Go for motivational articles if you’re interested in upgrading yourself. Your voice will naturally have more energy and expression when you are passionately engaged in. This keeps you consistent and adds pleasure to the experience.
- Focus on Pronunciation and Intonation
While reading, do not just say the words rather pronounce them correctly. Online tools can be of great help to improve your pronunciation. You can choose a short paragraph, and read it aloud thrice. Then, focus on improving one aspect each time.
- Record Yourself
To track your progress, you can record yourself. At first, you might feel awkward by hearing your voice. Most of us think our voice sounds awful when it is recorded. But do not get distracted. Because it is an excellent way to determine the areas where you need to improve, self-judging can work greatly to improve your speaking skills.
- Try Shadow Reading
Look for native speakers in podcasts, audiobooks, or videos, and try reading aloud in their manner. Take note of their word stress, intonation, and rhythm. You can follow along by reading along with a native speaker who has read a passage on audio. This way, you’ll gradually create your own unique speech pattern, enhanced by your acquired knowledge.
5. Practice Tongue Twisters and Dialogues
Try using dramatic dialogue or tongue twisters to make reading aloud more enjoyable. While dialogues help you practice conversational tones, tongue twisters test your articulation and make your tongue work harder. Read a line from a play or movie, for instance, and see yourself doing it. It’s an enjoyable method to increase your confidence and fluency.
Reading aloud is a step towards becoming a confident and competent speaker. It is not a mere language practice. You’ll notice improvements in your general communication abilities as well as speaking fluency if you incorporate it into your regular practice.
Why wait, then? Take the first step towards speaking with ease and confidence today by picking up anything to read aloud. Keep in mind that development is what practice makes, not perfection.
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Writer
Mariam Mardia
Intern, Content Writing Department
YSSE