Are you looking for strategies to help students who add, add, leave out, and reorganize words or sounds? If so, keep reading.

1. Using images of similar sounding words, say each word and have the learner point to an appropriate image (e.g., run and one, or bat and back).

2. Give the learner a word list including the target words. Get the learner to practice the words daily. As the learner masters the word list, add more words. (Using words from the learner’s everyday vocabulary, reading lists, spelling lists, etc., will enable transfer of correct pronunciation of the target word into everyday speech.)

3. Get the learner to write sentences using the target sound or words.

4. Get the learner to show thumbs-up every time the target sound is pronounced accurately when an image is tagged and thumbs-down if the target sound is pronounced inaccurately.

5. Include parents by asking them to rate their child’s speech for a specific duration of time (e.g., during dinner count “no errors,” “a few errors,” or “many errors”).

6. Organize a game such as Simon Says in which the learner tries to mimic the target sound or words when pronounced by the teacher or peers.

7. Assess the appropriateness of requiring the learner to accurately pronounce specific sounds (e.g., developmentally, specific sounds may not be pronounced accurately until the age of 8 or 9).

8. Throughout oral reading, underline targeted sounds or words and reinforce the learner for correct pronunciation.

9. Praise the learner for correct pronunciations of the target sound: (a) give the learner a concrete reward (e.g., privileges such as leading the line, handing out learning materials, 10 minutes of free time, etc.) or (b) give the learner an informal reward (e.g., praise, handshake, smile, etc.).

10. Create cards with the target sound and cards with vowels. Get the learner to combine a target sound card with a vowel card to make a syllable that they can pronounce (e.g., ra, re, ro, and ar, er, or).

11. Utilize a board game that requires the learner to tag images containing the target sound or words. The learner needs to pronounce the target sound or words correctly before they can move on the game board. (This learning experience can be simplified or expanded based on the level of expertise of the learner.)

12. Utilize a puppet to pronounce targeted words correctly and incorrectly. The learner earns a sticker for correctly distinguishing a set number of correct/incorrect pronunciations the puppet makes.

13. Get the learner to cut out images of things containing the target sound or words and display them where they can be practiced each day.

14. Get the learner to read simple passages and record them. Then have them listen to the recording and mark incorrect and/or correct pronunciation.

15. Get the learner to tally the number of correction pronunciations of the target sound when the teacher or a peer reads a list of words.

16. Get the learner to keep a notebook of complicated words encountered each day. These can be practiced by the learner with a teacher or peer assistant.

17. Give the learner a list of words including the target sound. (The learner will probably be able to pronounce the target sound more easily at the beginning or end of a word than in the middle.) Get the learner to practice the words daily. As the learner masters the word list, add more words. (Using words from the learner’s vocabulary, reading lists, spelling lists, etc., will enable transfer of correct pronunciation of the target sound into everyday speech.)

18. Get the learner to keep a list of all the words they can think of that contain sounds that are complicated for them to pronounce accurately.

19. Get the learner to read a list of words and rate their pronunciation of the target sound or target word after each pronunciation.

20. Show the learner with a list of topics. Get the learner to choose a topic and then give a spontaneous speech for a specific length of time. Count errors and suggest ways for them to improve.

21. Read The Edvocate’s Guide to K-12 Speech Therapy.

22. Consider using a language development app. Click here to view a list of apps that we recommend.

23. Consider using an assistive technology designed to support students with articulation disorder.