E or I? Pen & pin (/e/ vs /ɪ/)

Objective & content

This Sound Check video (about 2 minutes 30) fixes one pair of vowels: the e of pen and the i of pin. Freya (British) and Cody (American) show the jaw. For pen, the jaw opens a little, a medium gap. For pin, the jaw stays tight, with almost no gap. Mixing them changes the word: set and sit, well and will, bell and bill. Students repeat words and one sentence, I will sit and get a pen, then play a three-round game: which word did you hear?

Pedagogical guide

Many languages have one vowel for both sounds, so pen and pin sound the same. This is common for speakers of Spanish, Italian and French. German, Polish and Dutch speakers have an e close to pen, and they often use it for pin too. Both sounds are short, so the video works on the jaw gap, not on length: medium, then tight. Both hosts say them the same way. The game tests listening only: check the speaking yourself.

Suggested procedure

1. Before (2 min). Write pen and pin on the board. Ask students to say both.
2. Watch (3 min). Play the video once. Students repeat aloud when the hosts say "Try it with us", "Say them with me" and "Now a sentence, with me". The sentence has two parts.
3. Game (2 min). Play the game again. Pause after a host says "Listen..." and the word, before the other host gives the answer. The class votes: medium or tight?
4. After (3 min). In pairs, one student says set or sit, well or will, bell or bill. The partner points to the right word on the board.

Materials & prerequisites

• The video, a screen and sound for the whole class.
• The example words are at about A1+ level. Students do not need phonetic symbols.

Assessment & extensions

Say pin, bell, sit, pen and will in random order. Students show a medium gap or a tight gap.