Phonological Disorders: “Tan we do play a dame?”

According to the American Speech-Language and Hearing Association, “phonological disorders focus on predictable, ruled-based errors (e.g., fronting, stopping, and final consonant deletion) that affect more than one sound.” There are many different treatment approaches your speech pathologist may use with your child! A couple of examples are listed below:

Minimal Pairs Approach: Using pairs of words that differ by only one sound. This is used to establish contrasts not present in the child’s phonological system (e.g., “light” vs. “white,” “key” vs. “tea,” “spot” vs. “pot”)

Cycles Approach: This approach is designed for children with highly unintelligible speech who have extensive omissions, substitutions, and limiting the use of consonants. During each cycle, one or more phonological processes are targeted. After each cycle has been completed, another cycle begins, targeting a different phonological process. Recycling of these phonological patterns continues until the targeted patterns are present in conversational speaking.

Not all approaches work for every child and sometimes it is necessary to change approaches. Your speech pathologist not only considers the evidence-based research but strives to match the right intervention to fit your child’s individual needs! Talk to your speech pathologist today and see what approach they are using! Have concerns about your child’s phonological processing? Call Coastal Therapy to schedule an evaluation at (904) 372-4070. (Information was taken and adapted from: ASHA, Speech Sound Disorders – Articulation & Phonology, 2019)

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