Some teachers may feel like they've tried every trick in the book to maintain control in the classroom – too often to no avail. Unfortunately, teachers may be overlooking one of their most powerful – and available – resources for taking charge.

"The secret to maintaining control in the classroom is right under the teacher's nose," says Renee Grant-Williams, author of Voice Power: Using Your Voice To Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention. "It's the teacher's voice."

Speaking skills can help to establish a teacher's authority in the classroom, according to Grant-Williams, who is also an acclaimed coach to professional speakers, business leaders, politicians and some of the recording industry's biggest names. She has developed voice guidelines for educators designed to get the students' attention, maintain control and keep things interesting.

Establishing authority begins the first day of class. You are the one in charge," says Grant-Williams. "But, students need to hear that in your voice. When you give instruction you must make what you say a command, not a request."

A convincing command requires using a voice that is full, clear, confident and in control. This means breathing and speaking from deep within the speaker's body. By contrast, a voice that comes from the throat is whispery, thin, pinched and whiny. This kind of voice practically begs to be ignored, and won't be taken seriously by the class.

In addition to establishing control, an educator can use their voice to maintain students' interest in the subject being discussed. One effective way to grab attention is to make good use of consonants by going early to the beginning consonants of important words in order to stretch them out. It's a heads up to the students that an important point is about to be made and they need to pay attention.

"Like waiting for the other shoe to drop, stretching out the beginning consonant and delaying the rest of the word totally arrests the listener and mmm-akes them listen," says Grant-Williams.

Another way to keep students interested is to pause before and after a crucial thought. A pause before the thought gets the class's attention and prepares them for an unexpected idea. A pause after the thought gives the idea time to sink in. For instance, droll actress Mae West made brilliant use of a pause: "I used to be Snow White (long pause) but I drifted."

Grant-Williams says effective teachers know that silence can be just as powerful, if not more powerful, than words. "Streams of run-on words become monotonous and can lull a class to sleep," says Grant-Williams. "But a sprinkling of well-placed power pauses produces the opposite effect, keeping students on the edge of their seats and eager for more."

Voice coach Renee Grant-Williams presents communication skills programs and coaches business executives, sales professionals and celebrity singers including Miley Cyrus (Hannah Montana), Keith Urban, Christina Aguilera, Randy Travis, Faith Hill, the Dixie Chicks, Tim McGraw, Linda Ronstadt, Bob Weir (Grateful Dead), Martina McBride, and Huey Lewis. A professional speaker and NSA member, she is the author of "Voice Power: Using Your Voice to Captivate, Persuade, and Command Attention" (AMACOM, NY), which has been endorsed by Paul Harvey, was selected for the "Soundview Executive Book Summaries" program, and has been translated into Italian, Japanese, and Arabic. She created and taught a course in public speaking for the Barnes & Noble Online University.

Grant-Williams has written for or been quoted by: United Press Int'l, Associated Press, Business Week, Cosmopolitan, Elle, Esquire, New York Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, New York Post and San Francisco Chronicle. Broadcast appearances include ABC, CBS, NBC, Fox, Bravo, Bloomberg, MTV, CMT, GAC, USA, BBC, PBS and NPR. Grant-Williams is a former voice instructor at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music as well as the former director of the Division of Vocal Music at the University of California, Berkeley.

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For more information or to schedule an interview with Renee Grant-Williams, call 615-259-4900 or visit www.MyVoiceCoach.com/Media.html.