Practicing Speech Sounds at Home
One of the most important things you can do to help your child progress with their correct speech sound production is practice at home, outside of the therapy environment. I think you’ll be surprised how easy it can be! (And it won’t cost you a penny!)
To begin, repetition of the correct production is key. Your speech language pathologist (SLP) can tell you what level your child should practice at (words, phrases, sentences, etc.) Then, you’ll want your child to say the word as many times as possible per activity. Remember, keep these activities short, about 5-10 minutes. This will keep your child’s attention on correct production and keep it FUN!
Here are some simple ideas shared by Home-Speech-Home.com. There are even more on their website, but this is a great list to get you started!
* Find things in your home that include the target sound – i.e. “s” (all positions)
- Examples include: soap, sock, sink, soda, popsicle, bicycle, glasses, baseball, dresser, etc.
* Cut out pictures taken from online or provided by your SLP and hide around the room
* Read a story together and find the “S” words
* Go for a walk
*Find things that start with “S” outside
*Say a word for each sidewalk block, etc.
* While at a stop light, see how many times s/he can say a target word
* Look at a toy magazine and find the “S” words
* Stack blocks – each time s/he says a word, give him/her a block to stack
* Play hopscotch – jump in a square then say a word
* Play catch – say a target word then throw or catch the ball
* Do exercises/silly directions
* Say your word then clap 5 times
* Say your word then touch your nose
* Say your word then jump 2 times
* Have your child tell you a direction after they say a target word!
Practicing outside of your child’s speech therapy session is so important for carry-over of a skill. It can increase the chances of more consistent correct productions and decrease frustration for your child. I hope you enjoy doing some fun activities together!
For more ideas, visit HERE!
Shannon Greenlee, M.A. CCC-SLP
**If you have any concerns with your child’s speech, language, hearing and/or feeding development, please contact Sidekick Therapy Partners at (865) 693-5622. We have a team of experienced speech-language pathologists that would love to meet with you and discuss options for your child. **