How to Respond to Articulation Errors

Children working on articulation skills can benefit greatly from feedback from those around them. Feedback from parents, caregivers and others can significantly improve articulation errors and intelligibility. Below are some tips on how to respond to articulation errors. If you’re working with a speech-language pathologist, he/she can help train you on how best to give feedback.

1.    Visual Cues

Give consistent visual cues for the target sound, such has rounding your lips for ‘sh’ or putting a thumb under the chin for ‘k’ and ‘g’.

2.    Describe Features

Describe features about the misarticulated sound.  For example, “The ‘k’ is made when we keep our tongue down.”

3.    Repeat the Misarticulated Word

Repeat the misarticulated word with a slight emphasis on the target word. For example, if your child says, “The van is keeping me cool,” you can respond, “The fan is keeping me cool too.”

 4.    Positive Reinforcement

Use positive reinforcement and emphasize when you hear correct production of your child’s articulation targets.  For example, “Wow! I just heard you make a fantastic “k.” I am so proud of your hard work.”

5.    Give Feedback

Give your child feedback on what your heard.  You can say, “I heard you say van, did you mean to say van or fan?”

It is important to provide feedback on speech sound productions and acknowledge your child’s attempts at communication.  If speech sound errors persist or if the child starts to become frustrated with his/her speech, speak with your pediatrician or speech-language pathologist for advice.  Additionally, feel free to contact In Home Speech Solutions if you have questions or concerns or if there’s anything we can help with.

Jennifer Price M.S., CCC-SLP Lead Speech-Language Pathologist & Owner