I am now on Pimsleur’s Italian 1 Audio lesson 8 and can not believe how many words in italian require multiple rolling of the tongue or rolling your R’s. I luckily had Spanish in high school and remember physically practicing this act over and over until I got it. But it still feels unnatural. I’m wondering if my kids will get this talent by just listening to others of if I’ll have to practice it with them. I listen to a cd every day on the drive to work and I literally arrive to work tongue tied. For those of you who are less than talented at rolling your r’s, here a few tips from Wiki.
Steps
-
Listen to a foreign language radio or an Internet radio station, and take note of the pronunciation. It’s easier to pick up the proper technique if you’re exposed to it.
-
Warm up your tongue so it can get used to some of the positions required for rolling “r”s. Try to fold your tongue in half, turn it upside down, flutter it, curl it up and down, and so on.
-
Relax your mouth and tongue, and slightly open your lips. Keep your mouth relaxed. If you purse your lips, your rolled “R” will come out too forceful.
-
Bend the tip of your tongue up very slightly just behind your top gums. Specifically the tip of your tongue should be loose and just below the roof of the mouth between the upper teeth and the hard palate: the alveolar ridge. The part of your mouth that contains the tooth sockets is the right place to be.
- Depending on the specific language, your tongue may be slightly touching your alveolar ridge, or not touching.
-
Tense your tongue, but leave the tip loose to vibrate. This sound is known as a trillbecause it is created with multiple vibrations.
-
Breathe out, allowing your tongue to vibrate with the passing air. This should produce somewhat of a “purring” sound.
- The rolling “R” sound is just the flutter of a tongue with the passing air, not a special curl or a fold.
- Some people find it easier to allow their tongue to vibrate against their mouth, while others prefer not to. Make sure that if you touch your teeth, do so lightly.
-
Try replacing the “r” with a “d” sound if your “r”s still aren’t rolling. (For instance, the word “practice” would become “pdactice”.) However, it won’t sound right if you say the word slowly, or if the word begins with an “r”.
-
Put your mouth in different positions and pronounce: [ri] (english sound: ree), [re] (es: ray), [ra] (es: rah), [ro] (es: row), [ru] (es: rew). Try to go through musical scales or a simple song singing “rrrrr.”
-
Use a foreign language dictionary to practice words containing a rolled letter “R”.
-
Don’t suffer through it if you just CAN’T. There are many studies on genetics that prove that genetics DO play a part in tongue rolling. Genetics and environment are the two factors that determine the ability to roll the tongue. The “back of the throat” rolled “r” is not that same as a rolled “r”. The rule of thumb is that if you can vertically fold your tongue (or fold it), you can roll your “r”s. But if you can’t fold your tongue, you will never be able to.Also on Wiki are a few “Methods” for learning, including
“Butter/Ladder” Method
dR Method
Tiger Method
“Vision dream” Method
RASPBERRY METHOD
READ MORE HERE:http://www.wikihow.com/Roll-Your-%22R%22s
Team Merrill - Living Abroad in Italy 
May 10, 2012 at 12:48 am
Hi! I have gone through all the Pimsleurs, and while it’s not bad, I learned more in one month in an immersion program in Italy than in all the months of listening to Pimsleur – just one suggestion.
May 15, 2012 at 1:42 am
Thanks for the input. Where did you take the immersion program?
May 15, 2012 at 1:49 am
I did mine at Madrelingua in Bologna, but am going to do another when we get to Florence. Most of the schools will let you sit in for a day so you can se what you think.