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1. 

   Comment by Holly on 13 July 2008:

   Thanks for the link Laura. I had never heard of that website and I’m going to try some of her ideas for helping my son. Never know right, something new just might do the trick. As always thanks for keeping us imformed

2. Comment by Eleanor Grabach on 19 July 2008:

   My daughter turned 2 in May. She is coming along fine with communicating her needs & interacting with others. However, she is beginning to repeat ending consonant sounds. IE: Milk-k-k-k, sleep-p-p-p. It is not necessarily with the same word or the same sound all the time. There is no stutter at the beginning of sentences or words, just the extra stress at the end of some words, some of the times. Is this technically a stutter, or just her way of learning sounds?
   Thanks,
   Eleanor Grabach
3. 

   Comment by Laura on 19 July 2008:

   Eleanor - It’s not totally unheard of for toddlers who are learning to include final sounds in words to add “extra” repetitions for emphasis as they are learning. I have had several children on my caseload do this over the years. And you’re right; it’s just the way she’s learning, not a stutter at all. Be sure that you (or any of her significant “others”) aren’t imitating her words this way since it will reinforce this, or modeling them for her this way to be sure she “learns” to include final consonants.

   That’s how it happened to my last little client who did this. His mother over-corrected his speech to the point that he began to imitate all of her corrections, and then he over-generalized it to many words with final consonants! For my little guy, I asked his mother to completely STOP asking him to imitate her and STOP correcting him when he left off the final consonant sound in a word. It was a hard pattern for him to let go, but I hope it won’t be for you daughter. It should go away on its own in a few weeks when she’s finally mastered how she organizes her own speech-language patterns. In the meantime, you may want to watch how much you “correct” her. Just concentrate on modeling words in a “matter of fact” way. When she’s says, milk-k-k-k, say, “Oh - do you want milk?” and then move on. Certainly give no negative attention to the way she produces the word. It will likely make it worse for her to fix.

   Thanks for the great question! I love to hear from our readers!!! Laura
4. 

   Comment by Annette on 24 January 2009:

   Hi Laura! Jake’s language is coming along so nicely,(he’s 3 now) even without his SLP. (long story) He is asking questions like “Where you going?”, “Mom! where are you?” -then when he finds me “There you are!” My new favorite is “uh-oh, What a gonna do?” and “What you doing?” plus so much more.

   He has made remarkable progress in such a short period of time and a lot of what he says is pretty understandable even by daddy. My 5 yr old daughter still interprets on occasion, haha. But he has so many things that are just so clear and some things make you wonder if he knows how to talk at all. It’s baffling.

   I have noticed, Jake sometimes leaves the end sound of some words off, or replaces a letter for another letter and he often uses an “H” sound as a placeholder for syllables in most words that are fairly new to him.

   For example, if he were to say the word ‘butterfly’, he says it like “buh-her-high” and even though he says “thank you” all the time, it comes out “hayn hyuh”! The other day, he was asking for a cookie. He said, “wan coohey pwease” I had to do some prodding, it started out as just pointing to the cookie jar and saying “coohey”. So, I put my hand in the jar and asked “you want a cookie?” with emphasis on the /k/ sound. He tried to say it with me, and it came out the same, coohey each time (3 or 4 attempts). The next morning, he came to my room and the first word out of his mouth was “cookie!” clear as a bell! He said it about 50 times throughout that day as well. He ate a lot of cookies that day! (he also says OREO really well) :o)

   My concern is, I don’t want to pressure him with too much “correcting” and I try to just model the words. It seems like he wants to correct it himself because he will repeat with me, and he knows it’s still not right. I don’t think I push too far, but how do I know when I’m crossing that line?

   As far as the consonant deletion and substitution, is that a concern for a child that is catching up so quickly? He has some difficulty with the /m/ sound and calls me ‘bobby’ instead of mommy, but he will call out Mom!! plain as day! Sometimes he calls our dog Bya, and sometimes it comes out Maya clear as it should be, but yet, he says “mih” for milk with the good /M/ sound but leaves off the end. What gives? Are we being sloppy in our pronunciations or is he not hearing us clearly every time?

   Do you think there is sinus pressure involved here? I know nothing about the adenoids, only that some kids need them removed to help with ears and sinus issues. My pedi is a bit of a slacker, and I don’t think his hearing test at his 3 yr check up was conclusive, but there is no mention of fluid in the ears. Should I seek an ENT eval?

   I know, it’s a lot of questions, I’m sorry. I seem to always have to do things in clusters and can never just focus on one thing. hee hee

   Thanks so much for your expertise!
   Annette & Jake
5. 

   Comment by Laura on 25 January 2009:

   Annette - Great questions once again! I hope I can answer them all.

   First of all, keep doing the modeling - no pressure approach to address his articulation errors. MAINLY because this is the best approach to use with a relatively new talker with a history of language delays AND secondly, with his history of shutting down, you don’t want to cause this to resurface.

   If he doesn’t continue to respond as beautifully as you’ve described, you may have to revisit the whole yucky insurance mess to get him back into speech therapy to correct those articulation errors. Was his last SLP concerned about these? Did she ever give you a speech diagnosis too- say phonological disorder, apraxia, etc.. - or were you just focused on language? If she did, then I’ll be able to give you more specific directions for how to work on these at home. There are some different techniques based on why she believes the errors are present. BUT even if you don’t know the official diagnosis, keep doing the no pressure modeling thing.

   Now about the sinus stuff. I would pursue a repeat hearing eval ONLY IF you’ve never been told his hearing is within normal limits. If he’s had frequent ear infections, he likely needs tubes, so you would need to see an ENT. If he has tubes and is still sick often, then keep pursuing this medically to find answers so that he can feel better. Kids who are constantly sick are going to demonstrate developmental lags, especially with speech sound production, if they can’t consistently hear.

   BUT I will tell you that this is usually not the only reason for articulation errors, and you’re such a diligent mom, I can’t imagine that if this were a major medical problem for Jake, his doctor would have overlooked it.

   Articulation errors can occur because of fluctuating hearing ability with fluid in the middle ear, but most often speech sound errors occur due to:

   1. Developmental errors - (It’s normal for all kids to make some errors, but then kids mature and then learn to say “harder” consonant sounds correctly.)

   2. Muscle tone differences (either high or low tone resulting in the official speech diagnosis of “dysarthria”)

   3. Motor speech difficulty (look up apraxia here on the website for more info)

   4. Phonological disorders (also look up info here) but basically means a difference in how he processes and organizes the sounds he hears, but not a true hearing deficit. My favorite resource for phonological info is Caroline Bowen, so search for her site. It’s mostly clinical info, but you can read more theory there than I have time to write about.

   You can rest assured that the articulation errors you’re describing are NOT due to sloppy pronunciations on your part, so take that guilt monkey off your back right now! You don’t say “bobby” for mommy, even when you’re talking a thousand miles a minute and trying to do 5 things at once.

   I will also say that if I EVER get to finish the new DVD that I’m working on right now, you’ll get more specific ideas for working on articulation/intelligibility at home.

   Until then, keep reading the ideas in the articulation and apraxia sections for info for home!

   Laura
6. 

   Comment by Annette on 25 January 2009:

   Thanks so much Laura for the info! I am looking at Caroline Bowen’s site now, and it is quite technical, but it is making sense. I am going to pay closer attention, and see if there is a more consistent pattern. As of right now, it seems somewhat random since he is so clear on more difficult sounds.

   Did I tell you he says “train track” and “red” and “we’re home!” perfectly!? He has some of the more advanced sounds down pat. It is mind boggling.

   * The insurance issues aren’t ours alone, UHC has not paid any of their client’s therapies since October. My speech therapy facility has stopped all UHC patients until they are paid. (uncomplimentary things about the SLP go here) We have not received an official diagnosis of anything. We are just working on speech. I am thinking of HeadStart, and if he qualifies, they have speech therapy available. (by his wonderful, previous SLP)

   *The pedi thinks he is on target and catching up. I agree with the catching up part. He tested above his age for development as far as gross motor skills and fine motor skills.

   *I don’t think he has motor planning issues and he seems fairly consistent with his substitutions. He is hitting all syllables, but not using the proper consonant on each one. I am wondering if it’s his way of “sing-song”! I do that! (speak to him in sing-song when trying to get him to imitate a complex word!) I think after he practices it a few times, he gets it.

   *Hearing him talk in full and partial sentences is still new to me, but so wonderful! If I can stop giggling with excitement, I’ll have to do more observing and try to pinpoint the commonalities with his errors.

   *I think Jake has had one or two ear infections in his whole life and they were caught early. He has been dealing with sinus issues for a couple of months, as well as my daughter and myself. I swear she has gone deaf in the last month as well. Their ears must be plugged up, but there is no visible fluid. My ears even feel plugged and hum lately. The doc says it’s allergies until a fever is involved. I will look into this further.

   *The pediatrician did not give me a definitive response on the hearing screening and I felt some hesitation on her part. I still question the way it was done and would love to have it done by someone better qualified, not the front desk clerk.

   I see progress everyday, sometimes small, sometimes huge but it’s usually something. I am also one to jump the gun when I see something may be going in the wrong direction. I’m just so darn excited, I want to do this right. I am kind of on my own right now without an SLP net.

   * Do I need to worry about these errors becoming embedded and irreversible? Or do most phonological errors of late talkers eventually correct themselves with practice and maturity? Is it common, normal, or plausible to have more than one area of difficulty without a full blown ‘disorder’ being involved?

   Since this is still a new phase of language for us, I am going to continue modeling (because it works so well) and continue enjoying his progress. I am making articulation games for him to practice repeating his most difficult letter sounds. I hope it helps. We have hit a rhythm and I want to continue the flow without pushing too hard. (I discovered he shuts down when he is mad, he has recently refused to talk to daddy because daddy had been so busy all week).

   Thanks so much for your insight! You always have my mind learning more every time I visit your site! I refer to it as being like Disney World - you just can’t see it all in one day!

   Congrats on outgrowing it too by the way! That is awesome! (and I hope my long comments aren’t exceeding your bandwith! haha)

   Hugs! Annette & Jake
   PS: woohoo! Another DVD! I hope production on this one is smooth sailing for you!
7. 

   Comment by Laura on 26 January 2009:

   Annette - It’s often difficult for SLPs to sort out exactly what’s going on with a child’s articulation errors, so it’s understandable that it would be very confusing for a mom. Just keep modeling and waiting since that is helping him correct some specific sounds in specific words. Don’t overdo it though, you over-achiever, or I’ll bet he’ll balk again!
   Let us know how he continues to do. Laura

8. Comment by michele on 10 February 2009:

   Annette- I just wanted to add that if your son has had any ear infections I’d suggest getting him a good hearing test. My son who has never had an infection in his life with just diagnosed with a mild hearing loss from fluid in his ears and has some definite articulation and speech delays that we are working on so you can never be too careful.

9. Comment by michele on 10 February 2009:

   Laura-
   i have a question about the “l” sound. My 23 month old does does a funny lalalala kind of tongue flicking sound for his so “little dude” is lililiiloood. and “I love you” is ilalalaooo and bulldozer is bulalala. It is only with his l sounds. it’s not even a true lalala sound bc he produces it by flicking his tongue in and out. We used to think it was cute bc it’s sweet the way he uses it and he’s just a sweet kid, but i’m trying not to teach him bad habits and am wondering how to help him learn to control the l sound better because i notice he does it with all l sounds no matter where they fall in the worrds.
10. 

    Comment by Laura on 10 February 2009:

    It sounds to me like he’s working hard on figuring out how to do this himself! Just keep modeling the correct version of the word when he adds his extra sounds. Control will come with maturation. I wouldn’t overly focus on “correcting” his sounds just yet since he’s awfully young and trying so hard! Lots of kids don’t get an /l/ sound until closer to 4, so he’s doing great! Laura
11. 

    Comment by Aisha on 22 January 2010:

    Hi,

    Thanks for the links above. I am wondering if you can provide sound cues to teach the /p b m/ sounds for toddlers. Or can you point me in some direction to get tips to teach these sounds at home?

    thanks so much!
12. 

    Comment by Laura on 22 January 2010:

    Aisha - I have written an article with these cues and have just discovered that it’s not on the website. I’m not using the computer it’s saved on, so I’ll have to re-post it later. Check back over the weekend. Thanks for the question!
    If you need to SEE those cues or any other treatment strategies recommended to target specific sounds, check out my latest DVD Teach Me To Talk with Apraxia and Phonological Disorders.
13. 

    Comment by Aisha on 25 January 2010:

    Thanks Laura! Where should I look on the website for the article?
14. 

    Comment by Laura on 27 January 2010:

    Aisha - We had website problems this weekend, so it’s still not been added yet. Sorry!!
15. 

    Comment by Jan on 30 January 2010:

    My 21 month old daughter tries to talk all of the time but some of what she says is very difficult to understand. We often repeat back to her so she can hear it correctly and she tries but just can’t do it. She can say the sounds in isolation but when she tries to put it together it gets all jumbled and ends up sounding like “bup” a lot of the time. She says “bup” for “up” and “cup” “belp” for “help” and “yaaat” for “cat” and for “hat.” She can say some words really clearly like mommy, daddy, papa, more, happy, etc. What can we do to help her without frustrating her? Should we get an evaluation? Now that she is trying to combine two or three words together it is more difficult because words she can say in isolation are getting jumbled as she tries to put them together. Thanks for your help!
16. 

    Comment by Laura on 31 January 2010:

    Jan - She’s very young, and many children are very difficult to understand at her age. I’d give her more time before you become overly concerned or have her evaluated by a speech-language pathologist.

    Things you can do to help are to model what she intended to say correctly, but don’t overcorrect her at this point so that she doesn’t get frustrated. It helps some children to watch your mouth, but at this age, she may not have the attention span or understand just how do that yet.

    IF she’s still having this much difficulty being understood by you and Dad after she’s 2 1/2 to 3, then you should pursue an assessment. Most SLP’s don’t “treat” speech intelligibility problems in toddlers at a younger age than this unless NOTHING they say is understood. Language, including developing her vocabulary and using phrases, are much more important milestones at this age, and based on what you’ve said, she’s doing both of those, so she’s very much within the normal range.

    Laura
17. 

    Comment by Aisha on 16 February 2010:

    Hi Laura,

    Just wondering if you were able to get the article posted for teaching the /p/ sound. If not, would you be able to email it to me please? thanks for ALL you do!!
18. 

    Comment by Leslie on 23 March 2010:

    I listened to an earlier podcast about a checklist re: what you use to cue speech sounds (popper…etc) Do you have that list somewhere? Thanks. Leslie
19. 

    Comment by Laura on 25 March 2010:

    Leslie - That article disappeared from the site when we did our upgrade at the end of the year. I have it archived on another system, and HOPE to be able to find it and get it re-posted soon. Thanks for asking!!
20. 

    Comment by Sharon on 27 July 2010:

    My 22 month old speaks very well for her age but lately she has been saying the consonants before almost all of her B words. Like B-ball, B-bug, B-bottle, etc. or she says Me-mommy. Is this normal? Thanks, Sharon
21. 

    Comment by Laura on 30 July 2010:

    Sharon - That’s not a normal pattern, but let me ask you a question. Do you mean she’s saying the /b/ sound like “buh - ball,” or is she saying the letter name like
    “bee - ball” since that could provide an answer to why she’s doing this. Has someone modeled words for her in this way to emphasize the first sound of the word? If that’s the case, she’s imitating this, so stop! It could be she’s entering a period of dysfluency which many children go through during typical language development, BUT it’s still a little early for this since that usually doesn’t happen until between 2 and 4 or so.

    I also have had one family who was so excited about their child’s interest in letters and learning academic language that they encouraged their child to say the letter name of words. If this is what someone has been doing with her, lay off that as well too since it’s causing her to sound odd and she’s way to young to focus on that yet.

    If none of those seem to fit the situation, give me more info, and I’ll try to help you pinpoint what’s going on. Laura
22. 

    Comment by Sharon on 8 August 2010:

    Laura thank you for your response. She says bee-ball, bee-bug, mee-mommy, dee-daddy, or bee-bottle. But other words are just fine. As far as I know no one is modeling the words this way to her or teaching her letter names or sounds. For a 22 month old I think she speaks very well otherwise. She will say things like I want cereal, I need help, What doing?, Where are you?, I driving. She says please, thank you, welcome, or excuse me when appropriate. Tries to sing songs, and counts to 4 on her own, etc.
    Most of the time she can tell us what she wants or doesn’t want. I have just never heard another child say the other words like she does. If we ask her to say those words above she will copy us correctly but when she says them on her own they come out with the bees, mees, and dees. Mostly with the B words though. Sometimes for mommy and daddy she says it without the mee & dee.

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