Soft consonants. Spelling signs Ь - Ъ (soft and hard)

Presence of soft consonants is a feature of Russian phonetic system.At pronouncing soft consonants tongue moves ahead, the middle part of its back rises in the direction of the firm palate. Sounds become i-shaped.
Hard and soft consonants are indicated by the same letters.
On writing the softness of consonants is indicated by the following letters е, ё, ю, я, и, ь.
The letter ь («a soft sign») does not indicate any sound.
The letter ъ («a hard sign») indicates hardness of the previous consonant.