The L sound!

Sometimes the L sound is a tricky one for kiddos! If your child has been working on the L sound in speech therapy or if you've noticed at home that your child has difficulty saying words with the L sound in them, here are a few quick tips/activities you could try.
*The most common substitution for /l/ (the LLLL sound) is /w/ ("Wuh") which results in producing "weaf" instead of "leaf." This is a phonological process/error pattern called "gliding."*

-Show your child how to make their tongue go "UP UP UP" in his/her mouth by pointing to your own tongue as you raise it UP to the roof of your mouth behind your top teeth.

-say "la la la" like you are "singing" (sometimes we refer to /l/ as the "singing sound")

-gently touch the roof of your child's mouth behind the top teeth (we call this the "alveolar ridge") to show them WHERE exactly to put their tongue (we call this a "tactile prompt" or a touch cue)

Below are some picture cards from a blog I found (Testy Yet Trying) that could help shape your home practice.

You could:
-practice all of the words one at a time by simply looking at them on your computer or phone screen,
-print out the pictures and practice them like flash cards,
-print out two copies of the pictures, cut them apart and play a memory/matching game with them
-print out two copies of the pictures, cut them apart and hide them around the house to play a hide and seek type game...then have your child say, "I found ____!" when they find each target picture.
-play a game with your child and have him/her say one of the target words prior to each turn
-produce one of the target words incorrectly (example - say "WAKE" instead of "LAKE" while pointing to the "lake" picture card) and have your child correct your error and show you/tell you how to say the word correctly

(click on the picture to make it larger)

For other sounds, check out THIS PAGE on Testy Yet Trying's blog! (click link!)

Remember - keep things fun and light-hearted while you practice with your littles. 

Happy talking!

~Mrs. Wells