Put the Title of the Lesson Here

Articulation Therapy 101

A Webquest for Parents and Teachers

Brooke A. Aldrich M.A.CCC-SLP
east_ban@ACCESS-K12.org

Introduction

Is your child unable to speak properly? Do others struggle to understand what he/she is saying? Do they have problems spelling because of their articulation deficit? Does your child avoid speaking situations? This webquest is designed to transform those “yes” answers to “no” answers. I will explain how to do some exercises that can be used at home for parents who have children with articulation deficits who are or are not already receiving speech therapy. Your non-verbal child could turn into a child who talks a mile a minute after just learning a few therapy tricks. The key is: PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE!!!!

The Task

A parent/teacher will be able to recognize the speech sound milestones
A parent/teacher will learn the function/role of the speech articulators.
A parent/teacher will learn how to “fix” articulation errors.
A parent/teacher can utilize articulation worksheets to improve error sounds.

Speech Sounds Milestone Chart

3 YEARS	4 YEARS	6 YEARS	7 YEARS	8 YEARS
/p,m,h,n,w,b/	/k,g,d,t,ng/	/l/	/ch,sh,j, th (“thumb”)/	/s, z, v, th (“this”), zh (“measure”)
	/f,y/		/r/ 7 ¼ YEARS

Where to put those “articulators”

“P and B”

~Put your lips together and pop them apart. Parents can demonstrate this sound. It’s very visual.

“H”

~Take a deep breath and breathe out. Demonstration is also the best method in “fixing” the “h” sound.

“N, D, and T”

~Put tip of tongue behind the front teeth. This usually does the trick. The only difference between the three sounds is the voicing and nasality.

“W”

~Put the lips in the position that is done to whistle.

“K and G”

~Back part of the tongue must be touching the back of the roof of the mouth.

“F and V”

~Put the front teeth on the surface of the bottom lip and blow air out. “F” has more airflow than “V”.

“Y”

~Back part of the tongue must be touching the back part of the roof of the mouth.

“R”

~Roll the tongue back, spread it, and have the sides of the tongue come as close as possible to the inner side of the teeth. Smiling helps to spread the tongue.

“L”

~Put tip of tongue behind the two front teeth. Tongue must be elevated.

“S and Z”

~Put tongue (part of tongue behind the tip) right behind front teeth, but don’t touch the teeth. A nice smile also helps this sound. Airflow will be more forceful for “Z”.

“Ch, Sh, and J”

~All three of these sounds are made in the same location. Put tongue (part right behind the tip) about ¼ back on the roof of your mouth. For “Ch”, make sure to make your aiflow short for this sound. For “Sh”, make sure to release the airflow for a longer period of time. “J” and “Ch” are almost identical. The voicing is the only difference. For all three of the sounds your lips should be pursed into “fish lips”. More so for “Sh” and “Ch” rather than “J”.