WORKSHEET – LESSON 1

Sound /æ/ as in cat

Name: Date:

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🪞 1. MIRROR CHECK (Do this first!)

Action Done?
Open mouth wide (wider than Russian "а") ☐
Drop jaw down ☐
Tongue flat on the bottom ☐
Tongue tip touches lower teeth ☐
Lips relaxed (not rounded) ☐

Say /æ/ 5 times while looking in the mirror.
Is your mouth wide enough? ☐ Yes ☐ No

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🔍 2. DISCOVER THE RULE YOURSELF!

Read these words aloud:

cat bat mat fat hat black happy lamp hand man

Answer:

1. What sound do you hear? (circle one)
   Russian "А" / Something between А and Э / "Э"
2. Is the sound long or short? Long / Short
3. Do these words end with a vowel or a consonant? _________

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Now compare:

| cat /kæt/ | cake /keɪk/ |
| hat /hæt/ | hate /heɪt/ |
| man /mæn/ | mane /meɪn/ |

Complete the rule:

| If A is followed by a consonant (cat) | → A sounds like /____/ |
| If A is followed by consonant + E (cake) | → A sounds like /____/ |

This is called closed syllable (cat) and open syllable (cake).

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📝 3. PRACTICE: /æ/ or /eɪ/ ?

Word /æ/ or /eɪ/? Word /æ/ or /eɪ/?
bat ______ fate ______
cap ______ cape ______
mad ______ made ______
plan ______ plane ______
rat ______ rate ______

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🗣️ 4. TONGUE TWISTERS

Repeat each 5 times. Start slow, then speed up.

✅ Tongue Twister
☐ A black cat sat on a mat.
☐ The fat cat sat on the black mat and ate a rat.
☐ Pat had a hat and a fat cat.

Circle all words with /æ/ in the second tongue twister.

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📖 5. READ THE TEXT

“A fat cat sat on a black mat. The cat had a hat. The hat was flat. The cat was happy.”

1. Read aloud 3 times: slow → medium → fast
2. Underline all words with /æ/
3. Answer: Was the cat happy? _________

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🎙️ 6. SELF-RECORDING

Record yourself on your phone (3 speeds: slow, medium, fast):

1. "A black cat sat on a mat."
2. "Pat had a hat and a fat cat."

Listen and answer:

Question Yes No
Was your mouth wide enough? ☐ ☐
Did /æ/ sound different from Russian "а"? ☐ ☐
Were all words clear? ☐ ☐

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✏️ 7. WRITE YOUR OWN

Complete the sentences:

1. A _____ sat on the mat.
2. The _____ cat is very fat.
3. He is a _____ man.
4. She has a new _____.

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📋 8. QUICK SELF-TEST

Word Circle if you hear /æ/
cat Yes / No
bed Yes / No
hat Yes / No
red Yes / No
black Yes / No
pen Yes / No
bag Yes / No
big Yes / No

How many correct? ____ / 8

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📝 9. HOMEWORK (for next lesson)

# Task Done?
1 Learn 1 tongue twister by heart ☐
2 Record yourself (3 speeds) ☐
3 Listen and analyse your recording ☐
4 Find 5 new words with /æ/ ☐

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🌟 10. MY PROGRESS

Skill Before (1–5) After (1–5)
Pronunciation _____ _____
Hearing /æ/ _____ _____
Confidence _____ _____

The rule I discovered today:

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🎯 11. TEACHER'S NOTES

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