The two i sounds: ship & sheep (/ɪ/ vs /iː/)

Objective & content

This Sound Check video (about 2 minutes 30) fixes one pair of sounds: the short i of ship and the long ee of sheep. Freya (British) and Cody (American) show how to make each one: the long sound is a big smile, held long; the short sound is quick and relaxed. They show why it matters with pairs of words where one sound changes the meaning (sit and seat, chip and cheap, bin and bean). Students repeat words and one sentence with the hosts, then play a three-round game: which word did you hear?

Pedagogical guide

Many languages have only one i sound, so learners say ship and sheep the same way. This is the case for most speakers of French, Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Polish. German and Dutch speakers know long and short vowels already, but they often change only the length and keep the same mouth shape. The video works on length, because length is easy to see and to hear. Both hosts say these two sounds the same way: there is no British or American difference to explain here. The game tests listening only, so check the speaking yourself.

Suggested procedure

1. Before (2 min). Write ship and sheep on the board. Ask a few students to say both words. Do they sound different?
2. Watch (3 min). Play the video once. Students repeat aloud each time the hosts say "Try it with us" or "Say them with me".
3. Game (2 min). Play the game again. Pause each time a host says the word, before the other host gives the answer. The class votes.
4. After (3 min). In pairs, one student says ship or sheep, sit or seat, bin or bean. 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 five words from the video in random order. Students show one finger for the short sound and two fingers for the long sound. For more practice, add two pairs: chip and cheap, fit and feet.