Schwa Sound
ə (the, about)

It is actually one of the most common sounds in English! This sound can be found in English words such as: 
a, the, about, around, present, banana, father, system.

Say these words out loud (the Schwa sound is bold):
1) a
2) the
3) about
4) around
5) present
6) father
7) banana
8) carrot
9) atlas
10) illness
11) offend
12) answer
13) letter
14) alone
15) sofa
16) system
17) supply
18) circus

Now say these sentences out loud (the Schwa sound is bold):
1) I have a carrot and a banana.
2) The atlas contains a lot of maps.
3) He talked about his illness.
4) I will answer this letter.
5) Father went around the apartment.
7) The company will supply the telephones.
8) I was sitting alone on the sofa.
9) The performance in the circus was amazing. 
10) He suggested a system.

Good job! Let’s move on!