The H sound (/h/): hello, house, happy

Objective & content

This Sound Check video (about 2 minutes 30) fixes one sound: the h of hello, house and happy. Freya (British) and Cody (American) show that h is only a little breath, like fogging a mirror. Students feel the warm air on a hand. The hosts also give two warnings. Do not add an h where there is none: eggs, not "heggs". A few common words keep a silent h: hour and honest. Students repeat house, happy, hello, hand and one sentence, Harry is happy at home, then play a three-round game: hair or air, eat or heat, old or hold.

Pedagogical guide

In many languages the h is silent, so hello becomes "ello". French, Spanish, Italian and Portuguese speakers often drop it. Some then add an h where there is none, like "a happle". German and Dutch speakers usually have an h already. Polish speakers have the opposite problem: their h is rough and strong, but English needs a light breath. Both hosts say the h the same way.

Suggested procedure

1. Before (2 min). Write hair and air on the board. Ask students to say both.
2. Watch (3 min). Play the video once. Students breathe on their hand when the hosts say "Try it with us". They repeat aloud at "Say them with me" and "Now the whole thing, with me".
3. Game (2 min). Play the game again. Pause after a host says the word ("Listen..."), before the other host gives the answer. The class votes: breath or no breath?
4. After (3 min). In pairs, one student says heat or eat, hold or old. The partner says if there was a breath.

Materials & prerequisites

• The video, a screen and sound for the whole class.
• The example words are at about A1 level. No symbols needed.

Assessment & extensions

Say hair, old, heat, air and hold in random order. Students hold up a hand if they hear the breath.