In my practice I see a lot of kids with low speech intelligibility. What is my go to technique to help these kids form a sound? A quick hand sign or tactile cue. I have found in my practice that when kids are having a very difficult time producing a sound these kinds of cues really help...so I thought I would share!
A visual hand sign is a little reminder that you can give your child to help them remember what to do with their mouth. Something like this:
A visual hand sign is a little reminder that you can give your child to help them remember what to do with their mouth. Something like this:
Tactile cues are a little different from visual cues because they involve lightly touching your child's jaw/lips/nose etc. to remind them where and how to shape a sound.
Some examples of tactile cues can be found in this awesome link created by Wendy Ryback, MA, CCC-SLP.
Research has found that tactile cueing is particularly effective for kids with Childhood Apraxia of Speech (see ASHA's Apraxia of Speech Portal).
I don't strictly use these approaches. My cues change based on things like the age of the child or the severity of their speech delay, or the types of errors a specific child is making. BUT the above resources are a great way to try giving your kid some more specific help with sounds you are concerned with. As always if you have additional questions or concerns talk with your pediatrician or local school district SLP!
Some examples of tactile cues can be found in this awesome link created by Wendy Ryback, MA, CCC-SLP.
Research has found that tactile cueing is particularly effective for kids with Childhood Apraxia of Speech (see ASHA's Apraxia of Speech Portal).
I don't strictly use these approaches. My cues change based on things like the age of the child or the severity of their speech delay, or the types of errors a specific child is making. BUT the above resources are a great way to try giving your kid some more specific help with sounds you are concerned with. As always if you have additional questions or concerns talk with your pediatrician or local school district SLP!
RSS Feed
