Embedded Files
/S/
Tongue tip UP on alveolar ridge (bumps behind upper front teeth)
Sides of tongue touch upper teeth (like when you're saying "EEEEE")
Air through small groove in center of tongue tip
"S" is quiet (voice off)
/N/
Tongue against alveolar ridge & sides of front teeth
Air through nose
Voice on
There are 5 pairs of words below for you to practice.
Submit your homework here.
Only move to Step 4 if they are accurate with Step 3.
More ideas for Steps 3 & 4 at bottom of page.
Step 1: Remind them of the rule.
Ex: "Some words have sound buddies that go together. We can't forget their buddies!"
/SN/ snow
/N/ no
Step 2: Teach/remind them what each word means
Ex: "Snow is a kind of weather, snow is cold, white, and wet. This person is saying no, he does not want something. Snow and no."
Step 3: Make sure they can hear the difference
Ex: "Point to the word I say. Snow. No. Snow. Snow. No." etc.
Step 4: Say the words
Ex: "You say snow or no and I'll point to the one you say."
/SN/ snail
/N/ nail
Step 2: Teach/remind them what each word means
Ex: "This bug with a shell is called a snail. This sharp spike is a nail. Snail an nail.
Step 3: Make sure they can hear the difference
Ex: "Point to the word I say. Snail. Nail. Snail. Snail. Nail." etc.
Step 4: Say the words
Ex: "You say snail or nail and I'll point to the one you say."
/SN/ sneeze
/N/ knees
Step 2: Teach/remind them what each word means
Ex: "This person's nose just tickle so they sneezed. Sneeze. These arrows are pointing to knees, the part of our leg that bends. Sneeze and knees.
Step 3: Make sure they can hear the difference
Ex: "Point to the word I say. Sneeze. Knees. Sneeze. Sneeze. Knees." etc.
Step 4: Say the words
Ex: "You say sneeze or knees and I'll point to the one you say."
/SN/ snap
/N/ nap
Step 2: Teach/remind them what each word means
Ex: "This person is making a noise with their fingers: snap! This person is sleeping for just awhile, they're taking a nap. Snap and nap."
Step 3: Make sure they can hear the difference
Ex: "Point to the word I say. Snap. Nap. Snap. Nap. " etc.
Step 4: Say the words
Ex: "You say snap or nap and I'll point to the one you say."
/SN/ snooze
/N/ news
Step 2: Teach/remind them what each word means
Ex: "Another way to say sleep is snooze. This paper tells about things that are happening, that's called the news. Snooze and news."
Step 3: Make sure they can hear the difference
Ex: "Point to the word I say. Snooze. News. Snooze. Snooze. News." etc.
Step 4: Say the words
Ex: "You say snooze or news and I'll point to the one you say."
Tips for Step 3 (discriminating between words)
If they can do Step 3 accurately, praise them, "Great! You heard my sound buddies in snow. You could tell there was only one sound at the beginning of no."
If they cannot do Step 4, praise their effort, and keep practicing Step 3 instead of going to Step 4. Ex: "Listen, I'm going to say ski with my sound buddies. See how I have two sounds? S-n-ow. Point to snow. Great, now I'm going to say no with only one sound: no. Point here, to no."
Ideas to make Step 4 (saying the words) more fun:
Draw one pair of words on 2 papers (one picture on each page). Put a tally point on each page as your child says each word. Tell your student they win the game if they get more points on the page that has their target (the word that has a blend). It's okay if there are NO points on the other page!
Make three playdough people or animals; put two of them together and one alone. Every time your child says the word containing a blend, point to the pair (the buddies). When they say a word with a singleton, point to the lone creation.
Write down the sound buddies from this page and point to each sound as it is said (e.g. point to "S" then point to "N"), or use the mouth pictures at the top of this page.
Tap your finger on the table or wall as you say each of the initial consonant(s) in the words (tap once for singletons like N-o, twice for blends like S-N-ow).
Use gestures. When you/your child say a word with a blend, hold up two fingers touching each other. When you/your child say a word with one sound put your hands together.
Have your child draw a picture of each of the ten words above. Then, have them sort the pictures into a "sound buddy" pile and a "single sound" pile.
Use the sound buddy visual below to cue your child as they produce the words.
General Tips:
Remember to keep the words in pairs (instead of just going through snow, snail, sneeze, etc.). This therapy approach is meant to build your child's understanding that changing a sound can change the meaning of a word.
It's fine to have your child say the contrast word (on this page, the words containing one consonant sound at the beginning pace and pot), but you want to focus most time and effort on them saying the target pattern (on this page, the words containing /sp/).
Build up your child's tolerance/ability to do more and more productions over time. Can they do 10? 20? 60?
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