What can I do to help my sons speech?

Question

I have a 4 year old son who is having some speech problems but he has been evaluated for speech but does not need it. Are there any excersizes I can do or things I can show him to help? His biggest problems are with the "R" "L" "TH" He is also dropping off the second half of words and slurring words together.

Answer 1

sit with him to pronounce the word slowly,,,when reading a book,,

Answer 2

tell  him  picture  everyone  in  there  underwaere  it  will  make  him  ggill  but  he  wont  be  scaerd.

Answer 3

Don't put too much pressure on him or you might make it worse.  If he was evaluated and they said he doesn't need therapy then he is probably going to grow out of it.

My son had a problem with R L and TH caused by his tongue, speech therapy was not necessary and he did eventually grow out of it.  

You can do a few exercises if you are really worried, but make them fun and easy.

The tongue exercises, which involve sticking out the tongue, then pointing it in different directions and then back in the mouth.

First up to the nose, then down to the chin, then the left cheek, the right cheek, then to the back.  Make it an exercise you do every day for a few weeks and it will make a difference.  But all in all, he will grow out of it.

Answer 4

Since children are learning the most from what they see and hear - try to think where the problem is coming from. Some children do not pronounce the endings of the words they cannot hear properly. If it is the case - ask your son to talk slower and look at him while talking yourself. Reading with expression would be of great help, just be sure your son can hear you reading well,  reread the passages he doesn't understand, ask if he knows certain words. Good old tonge twisters are fun and kids are really good with them.

Consulting a good speech therapist or two outside your school is never bad. Children learn very fast and if there is any problem a professional may help, it will be great if you start now and get rid of the problem within weeks.

Greetings to your son and good luck to you;)

Answer 5

Those sounds are some of the last a child may master, this may not be until the age of 6. As you have said, there is nothing wrong according to the assessment.

Your best bet is to go back to the speech therapist and ask for a list of excercises. They have oodles, and they are correct.

But remember, if you make too much a fuss, you can give your child a confidence problem that will ultimately make things far worse. The excercises the speech therapist will give you are good because they are incorporated in every day things such as l*****g lips in front of mirrors and pulling faces (to excercise the movement ability of the tongue) so the child doesn't think he's got a problem which may result in him not wanting to speak readily.

About the slurring, simply ask your child to 'say that again more slowly please' as slurring is often a result of speaking too fast. Also ensure you model correct speech by looking at your child when you speak, and speaking in clearly phrased sentences. Dropping word endings: Pick out the occasional word, (one or two per day only) then clearly and slowly say it for your son and ask him to repeat it. Tell him sometimes it's hard to understand him if he 'mumbles' and soon he will improve. Remember to immediately praise him for his efforts, even if he doesn't quite get it. Never ask him to repeat the word more than twice in a row, this will make him uncomfortable and result in a complex.

Good luck, but remember speech will develop when your son is ready. At his age, there appears to be no problem.

Answer 6

I have worked with a lot of children with speech difficulties. At this stage the only sound I would be concerned about is L. R is a 5 year old sound, and TH is not expected of children until 8 years of age.

As a general guide, children start pronouncing L at around 4, so I would say this is why you were told he did not need spech therapy.

Sound omission (the second half of words) I would be a little concerned about. Listen to the words that he omits the end of.... Do those words have L, R or TH in the middle or at the end? If so, then that would make sense, as he struggles with these sounds.

Practice saying L yourself, and pay attention to where you place your tongue (on the roof of your mouth towards the upper teeth) Get your son to practice putting his tongue up there... L L L on its own.

There are simple steps for sound articulation.

1. Start with nonsense sounds.... la, li, lo, lu etc

2. Single words starting with L.... lamp, lion, log etc

3. two words together..... lion runs, look up, lips kiss etc

4. Short sentences with one or two L words.

It is not a quick and easy process, but takes time, patience and lots of positive reinforcement, and is important to stick to one step until he has mastered it, before moving onto the next.

Use little games to make it more interesting with the single words particularly. Look in magazines for picture that start with an L, (try to get two of each) and you can play snap, lotto or concentration, having your son name each picture.

Another possibility would be to perhaps see a different speech therapist and see what they say (if your gut reaction is that he does need help).

Answer 7

My suggestion would be to always repeat back what he has said to you...model, model, model - it is so effective.

Another suggestion was made to do tongue exercises...and a way to do this without letting your son know what you are up to is to get him a cup with a straw...be sure the tip of the straw that he can put into his mouth is less than a 1/2 inch long...that way he has to really use his mouth. Using a straw will strengthen the muscles in his mouth.

What others have said about those sounds being that hardest to pronounce is true...it is a developmental issue, and more than likely it will come with age.

You can do things such as enunciate those sounds clearly for him (in the context of a normal conversation) and point out where you need to put your tongue in order to make that sound...I've even had children put their finger behind their teeth (for L) and then told them that is where your tongue needs to be to make that sound...but again, the cautions given in other posts is true...if this is over done it can backfire on you.

Just remember to be patient, model correct speech, strengthen those oral muscles, and point out correct tongue placement.

Blessings to you and your son!

Answer 8

Talk with him, using the words respectfully(and its derivatives), thill, therewithal and all the words that contain the letters ''R'', ''L'', ''TH''. In addition you could go to a doctor for this problem. You might pay a lot but you will have a result worthy to your excpectations.

Answer 9

Even speech therapists will tell you he's a bit young for any exercises.  Are speech impediments inherent in his family?  If not, don't worry about it.  If so, think of a future plan.  

Just speak with him the way you want him to speak with you.  My son is 7 and still mispronounces words, makes up his own words and slurs them together.  All because he's trying to be Mr. Big-Stuff.  Not because he's impaired.  Don't worry.  He's FOUR not fourteen.

Answer 10

It seems to me that that is common at that age. I wouldn't worry. Just talk to him a lot, read him books and start teaching him his letters. Make it fun, not a chore. Songs, books, etc.

Answer 11

For some children, /r/, /l/, and /th/ develop after the age of 4. However, dropping off syllables, and blending syllables together, making his speech sound like 'slurring', is a sign of a hearing loss. Please take your son to an audiologist to get checked out.

Answer 12

Sorry, but I have to disagree with the folks who said to work on exercises and tongue placement yourself; you are not a speech pathologist! There are techniques that can really s***w things up if you don't have the appropriate training. I agree, though, that he needs to see an audiologist for a hearing assessment.

It is true that /l/ develops sooner than /r/ or /th/. Frequently, /l/ and /r/ difficulties go hand in hand- they are both characterized as "glides", which entail movement of the tongue throughout the utterance of the sound in question. They can be difficult for some kids to master. /th/ is a bit easier if he is using /sh/, /ch/, and /s/; however, it can develop a bit later (some don't master it until about 8 years of age.).

If he is still having problems at the end of kindergarten, have him evaluated again.