Targeting /s/ Clusters for Children who are Exhibiting /s/ Cluster Reduction
As speech language pathologists, we see many children in speech therapy with specific predictable patterns of errors or phonological processing disorders, with cluster reduction being a frequent challenge, and one that I love to work on because of the quick increase in intelligibility!
“Cluster reduction” involves the systematic omission or simplification of consonant sounds in clusters, significantly impacting speech intelligibility. Specifically, our focus lies on the complexity of producing /s/ blends – combinations of consonants like ST, SN, SM, SP, SW, SK, SL, where the initial consonant is an /s/.
As speech language pathologists, we see many children in speech therapy with specific predictable patterns of errors or phonological processing disorders, with /s/cluster reduction being a frequent challenge, and one that I love to work on because of the quick increase in intelligibility!
“Cluster reduction” involves the systematic omission or simplification of consonant sounds in clusters, significantly impacting speech intelligibility. Specifically, our focus lies on the complexity of producing /s/ blends – combinations of consonants like ST, SN, SM, SP, SW, SK, SL, where the initial consonant is an /s/. You might hear a phrase like “Let’s go play in the no” instead of “Let’s play in the snow”, “Top the car” instead of “stop the car” and “I pilled my juice” instead of “I spilled my juice”.
Cluster reduction featuring /s/ should ideally be eliminated by the age of five, but there are considerable individual differences among children. The American Speech Language and Hearing Association (ASHA) reports that the average developmental age of elimination for cluster reduction with /s/ is 5 years old and Shriberg and Kwiatkowski (1980) reported that 4-year-olds correctly produced 90% of consonant clusters in spontaneous speech. Understanding these age-appropriate expectations is important so we can get an idea when children should be producing the correct /s/ cluster, however, if a child can correctly produce both the sounds that are in the cluster separately, it is a good indication that they can produce the cluster with help.
I have found that addressing /s/ cluster reduction with children is often dependent on their receptive language skills; how well they can understand the hand cues, picture cues and movement from one sound to the next.
The Traditional Method involves working on one sound at a time, progressing gradually from isolation to conversation.
The Cycles Approach targets each different phonological process that the child is using for a specific amount of time and “cycles” through other phonological processes. This works well for children exhibiting many phonological processes. Hodson and Paden (1983, 1991).
Minimal pairs Approach, where words differ in only one phonological element, prove effective in honing in on the target sound with the meaning of the words being different. Think of the words “snow and no”, they only differ by the /s/ sound but they mean completely different things. I found that children really love the silliness of using the minimal pairs approach (i.e. “you want a nap?” oh you need to snap!”). When they can assign meaning to the words, they work to say the correct words.
How to help with /s/ cluster production:
Within the minimal pairs approach for /s/ cluster reduction I use speech sound picture cues to name the sounds, children have a visual cue for production paired with a hand cue. We call the /s/ sound the “snake sound” and use our hand and arm moving outward like a snake as a hand cue.
When the child is elongating the /s/or the “snake sound” and using their hand during the vocalization, they land on the next sound in the cluster (it will sound like “sssssssssst or ssssssssnnnnn”).
Movement is the key for the child to understand the elongation of the /s/ moving into the next sound. I often use a wipe board and draw a line from a snake while the child is vocalizing the /s/ then move the marker to the rest of the word- and I draw a picture of the minimal pair word (ie. ssssss–Knees for “sneeze”). Breaking down the /s/ blend into smaller parts, such as 'sss” 'm is the key. If you are looking for minimal pair words for /s/ clusters I have a Don’t Break the Ice for /s/ Cluster Reduction printable activity that the kids have been asking for over and over!
10 Games and Activities for /s/ Clusters
Any game with a spinner is great where kids have to say “my turn to “ssssspin” for each turn working on the /sp/ cluster.
“Spot it” Games where you have to find 2 of the same pictures on 2 cards. Encourage kids to day “I spot___” to work on /sp/ cluster.
“I spy” games and “Where’s Waldo” books work for working on /sp/ in the word “spy:
“Stop/Start” Motor Activity where children “stop and start” when the caller says the words,then the child becomes the caller.
Try Don’t Break the Ice /s/ cluster Minimal Pair Game with pictures of all those /s/ clusters and their errored pair.
Board games can target the /sp/ cluster (like Candy Land)- “Move one space”
Stepping Stones are fun to incorporate movement into the session while also working on the word “step”.
Digital activities like Phonological Processes Play Scenes and Brush Your Teeth for Articulation are no prep quick activities
Play open ended activities and incorporate a target /s/ cluster into play (ie. pirate play: skull, stick, scrape, swim) (ie. Vet play with stuffies: sleep, scale, skin, snout, swab, stray) (play house: school, sleep, snuggle, spoon, stairs).
10) Read books with /s/ clusters embedded in the story (ie. The Snowy Day, Sneezy the Snowman, Space,
The Very Busy Spider, That’s Not a Stick).
Teaching Production of the /k/ and /g/ Sounds in Speech Therapy
As young children are developing their speech sound skills when they begin talking, they make predictable error patterns (called phonological processes). As kids develop, these processes are expected to extinguish naturally. When children continue to exhibit fronting after age 3 ½, speech therapy may be required.
If a child is making errors on the /k/, /g/ and /sh/ sounds and producing sounds like /t/, /d/ and /s/ consistently instead, this is called fronting. Speech therapy can benefit children who are exhibiting the phonological process of fronting after age 3 ½. With children who are continuing to exhibit fronting, you might hear “o-tay” instead of “ok”, “I want the tea” instead of “I want the key”, “pet the dod” instead of “pet the dog” or “Let’s do” instead of “let’s go”.
As children are developing their speech sound skills when they begin talking, they make predictable errors patterns (called phonological processes). As kids develop, these processes are expected to extinguish naturally. When children continue to exhibit fronting after age 3 ½, intervention may be required (Bowen, Caroline, 2011. Elimination of Phonological Processes in Typical Development).
I love working on /k/ and /g/ because once children get these sounds, their intelligibility increases dramatically. That’s not to say working on these sounds isn’t tough at first, but the work is worth it!
HOW TO PRODUCE A /k/ sound:
The back of your tongue will touch your soft palate (velum), the tip of your tongue will stay down.( If your tongue tip goes up, you will end up saying the /t/). Then release a burst of air.
HOW TO PRODUCE A /g/ sound:
Same as the /k/ only you turn your voice on! (if your tongue tip goes up, you will end up saying the /d/)
I usually start with the /k/ sound and often, once kids get the /k/ sound, it gengeneralizes over to the /g/ sound and we don’t even have to work on it!
1) ELONGATE THE VELAR
Start with elongating the /k/ or /g/ sound (sounds a bit like you are clearing your throat). I call the /k/ sound the coughing sound and the /g/ sound is called the gulping sound in my speech sound cue cards resource. We are showing the child what a “back” or velar sound feels like as opposed to the sounds produced in the front of the mouth.
2) ADD A LOW VOWEL
Try to add a vowel to the /k/ or /g/ like the sound a crow makes “caw”. With the word “caw” the tongue doesn’t require much movement between /k/ and “aw” and the “aw” sound helps facilitate the child to keep their tongue tip down and mouth open.
If the /k/ or /g/ plus the vowel seems to be too difficult, try starting with the vowel and ending with the /k/ as in “aaak”. The positioning between the “aaaa” and the “k” is similar and again, both sounds require the tongue tip to be positioned down and the back of the tongue raised.
3) GET AS MANY REPETITIONS AS YOU CAN
Whichever combination of vowel-consonant (aaa-k) or consonant-vowel (k-aw) works with the child, try to get in as many repetitions as you can for that motor movement. Use activities with crows, and crafts to elicit “caw” as many times as the child will allow. There are many activities with food you can use and have the child say “aaak” for foods they think are yucky. Try my Velar Mini Books for practicing in speech therapy and at home!
4) ADD MORE VOWEL SOUNDS
After the child has these VC and CV combinations try using different vowel sounds in combination with the /k/ and /g/. The vowel sounds that work best for children who have difficulty with the velar sounds are “low front and back” vowel sounds (meaning the vowel is produced with the tongue at a level close to the bottom of the oral cavity and the jaw may also be lowered). This position of the tongue assists the facilitation of the /k/ sound that is paired with it. The vowels that I find work best are “aaa” (as in back), “aw”(as in bought) and “ai” (as in bike). After the child is able to use these vowels in combination with the /k/ sound, add different vowels like “uh” as in up and “E” was in “bet”.
5) USE REAL WORDS
When the child has some good /k/ sounds in combinations with vowels, try moving to real words using those “low” vowels again. Words like “bike”, “back”, “kite” and “caught”. These Velar Sound Mini Books work great for practicing real words including nouns and verbs!
6) USE MINIMAL PAIRS
I usually use a minimal pairs approach when working with children who are using front sounds /t/ and /d/ for back sounds /k/ and /g/. A minimal pairs approach takes two words that are similar but has a one sound (or phoneme) difference like “tape and cape”, “bite and bike”, “go and dough”, “bud and bug”. This technique helps children understand that speech sound errors they make change the meaning of the words they are trying to produce.
1) PROVIDE A TACTILE CUE:
Even with the above facilitating contexts, the child cannot produce the /k/ sound, we may need to assist them with keeping their tongue down. I use a spoon and have the child open their mouth and place the spoon on the front-middle of the tongue and ask them to say the /k/ sound. Sometimes the child really pushes up on their tongue trying to get that tongue tip up! I have also used a gloved finger, tongue depressor (but I myself am not a fan of the feel of a tongue depressor in my mouth), popsicles and lollipops to hold the tongue tip down which can work well for motivation. Visual Cues such as Speech Sound Cue cards work well for naming the sounds (the coughing sound or the gulping sound) and allow children to associate a hand cue and picture to the sound they are learning.
2) LET GRAVITY HELP
I have also had a child lie down flat on the floor face up and attempted production of the /k/ or /g/ sound. In this position, gravity will take the tongue to the back position, which can help in production.
3) KEEP THE TONGUE TIP DOWN
Can use cereal like Cheerios,or fruit loops and have the child hold the piece of cereal with their tongue tip against their front bottom teeth:
This will help kids keep their tongue tip down where it is supposed to be
Same thing with the /g/ just tell the student to turn on their voices
IF THE CHILD IS NOT READY
Sometimes I have put the production of velars on the back burner and worked on other sounds because the child was not ready for work on these back sounds.