Eliciting Challenging Sounds in Isolation

Sound: /l/___

Most typical error: A student makes a /w/ for an /l/

Some specific features of articulator placement/position, manner, and voicing component:

Articulator placements/positions

*lower jaw is down moderately

*lips apart with no rounding

*lips do not move during the production of this sound

*tongue tip is up against the alveolar ridge (let’s talk about tongue tip versus front part of

tongue)

There is no movement of the articulators during this sound

Manner of airflow-there is no constriction of air

Voiced component is on

Some typical changes in articulator placement/position, manner, and/or voicing that students make which cause errors in this sound:

*a student’s tongue may be weak and he/she can not produce a rounded “tongue tip” formation

*a student’s tongue may be weak and he/she can not adequately elevate the front part of the tongue up (weak mobility)

*a student may be able to put tongue tip up to alveolar ridge, but can not keep up longer than one or two seconds

*a student might want to thrust tongue tip forward after the production of the /l/ when he/she is combining vowels with the sound

*a student wants to round the lips during the isolation production or when you go on to the syllable step where he/she is combining the /l/ with a vowel

*Other observations:

Ideas for eliciting this sound in isolation:

*Work on non-speech articulator placement/positioning first—

Tongue tip formation when sticking out the tongue

Tongue tip placement against alveolar ridge—holding for 5, 10, 15 seconds

(Use of manipulators—be cautious)

Make sure lower jaw is down moderately—if not down enough, tongue positioning is

affected

*When combining /l/ with vowels—make sure that there is no rounding/movement of

of the lips. Work on vowel combinations first that have /l/ combined with vowels where

there is no lip rounding [/l/ + /a/ (hot)] is a really good one to start—no changes in anything

but tongue

*If student wants to thrust tongue tip frontward after making the /l/ when you are

combining vowel—then put a very small pause after the /l/ and before the vowel

*Pauses or breaks between individual sounds help the student to work on the motor patterns of each sound before these sounds are combined—it is more difficult to produce hard sounds in the environment of other sounds—