Supporting My Child's Speech

This does not have to be a correction; think of it as an opportunity for their brain to compare the sound they made with the accurate production. Example:

Child "I saw a wabbit!"

Parent: "A rabbit? Where did you see the rabbit?"

You can do this before or after you read the words. Example:

"'Then the rabbit did math with his friend.' Wow! That sentence had four "TH" sounds in it, look! Then, the, math, with."

or

"Wow! This page has lots of our 'tongue sound': then, the, math, with (pointing to each word). Let's read it. 'Then the rabbit did math with his friend.'"

This takes some of the pressure off of your child AND helps them realize that they are not the only ones who make mistakes when speaking (none of us speak perfectly!). You can do this:

• Playfully, in a joking way. ("Let's DOE to the store! Haha! You're right, I mean let's GO! You noticed!")

• Naturally, slipped into conversation ("Let's go bat...I mean back...to the front of the store.")

• While reading out loud ("When I read this book, I'm going to say "W" for all of the "L" sounds. See if you can catch me and I'll fix the words! 'The ninja was WOST.' You're right! I mean 'The ninja was Lost.

In other words, you need a speaker AND a listener! Communication is more than just the way they are saying words. When you cannot understand them (or they are making a mistake on a sound you know they can say), you can say something like, "I need help. Please help me understand...." This helps you play a supportive rather than corrective role.