Accents

I like to say accents are like fingerprints--we each have our own unique accent. 

Accents have always been a touchy subject for me. My native language is (American) English, but when I was younger and up into my teenage years, I would not say the “r” sound the right way. It wasn’t too much of a problem when I was younger, but when I got into middle school people definitely would ask me if I was British or asked me why I sounded funny. 

It wasn’t until I started to learn Spanish that I realized the different sounds and that helped me improve the “r” sound in (American) English.

You know when you hear a voice and you know the voice without even knowing or seeing who it is? We all have our own unique way to say sounds--that is why I believe our accents are as unique as fingerprints. 

When learning another language, it is important to learn the sounds of the language, and to practice those sounds, but don’t get hung up on the accent. If people can understand you and you are practicing the language, that is all that matters.