Learning the English phonemic chart using IPA characters can be a challenge, easily dismissed as unimportant when so many other things need doing, yet many students really appreciate seeing words written phonemically on the whiteboard and actually learn better because of it.

Most phonemic charts available for sale are large size wall posters, I have yet to see A4 sized charts or miniature credit card sized charts. All of my dictionaries also include an explanation of the phonemic sounds using either IPA or Diacritical methods, but the books are cumbersome, aren’t easily photocopiable, and with copyright restrictions, are not easily photocopied to give to students as a handout.

To solve this problem, I’ve made up my own IPA English Phonemic Chart which is available in several formats, they are all free to download and print as many times as you need them and are endorsed ‘Photocopiable’. ESL teachers of English might like to keep these on their USB sticks.

Each version is the same, with vowels, diphthongs and consonants split into groups, and includes a sample word spelt alphabetically and phonemically.

The versions are;

1. A4 black and white

2. A4 colour

3. Credit card sized, useful for keeping in your pocket

4. A4 black and white blank, so your students can use their own words

To make it easy to download, all versions are included in a handy phoneme charts zip file, simply download this, extract the contents and open the included .pdf files.

ESL Teachers wanting to know how to use the phonemic chart should subscribe to my blog. I plan to provide additional information about the IPA charts and their usefulness in class.