Cot or Caught? The accent clash (/ɒ/ vs /ɔː/)

Objective & content

This Sound Check video (about 3 minutes) is about an accent difference, not a learner mistake. In British English, cot is short and sharp and caught is longer and rounder. In most American English the two words sound the same. Freya (British) and Cody (American) show both. Students repeat cot, stock, caught and stalk, and one sentence: I caught the ball, then sat on the cot. Then they play a three-round game: which word did you hear?

Pedagogical guide

Neither accent is wrong. The video says that if British English is your goal, keep the two sounds apart; if American English is your goal, one sound is enough. Students who aim for British English need the difference in length and in lip rounding: short for cot, long for caught. Students who aim for American English do not need to separate them. Some students will hear no difference, like Cody. This is normal. All three game rounds are British English, spoken by Freya. Cody reacts after each answer.

Suggested procedure

1. Before (2 min). Write cot and caught on the board. Ask: which accent are we learning, British or American?
2. Watch (4 min). Play the video once. Students repeat aloud when Freya says "Say them with me, in British English" and "Now a sentence, with me".
3. Game (3 min). Play the game again. Pause after Freya says "Listen..." and the word, before Cody gives the answer. The class votes: short or long?
4. After (3 min). In pairs, one student says stock or stalk, don or dawn. The partner says which one.

Materials & prerequisites

• The video, a screen and sound for the whole class.
• The example words are at about A2- level. No symbols needed.

Assessment & extensions

Say cot, dawn, stock, caught and don in random order, in British English. Students say short or long.