Hello teachers, here are some tips to help your students that are having trouble carrying over good articulation skills into the classroom. Often students that receive direct speech and language services or even RTI services for communication can showcase very good articulation within the speech therapy room or setting they are engaged in direct practice; but when they return to the classroom they often forget to use these good skills.
Model clear speech sound production: The more the student hears a sound correctly, the more likely they’ll say it correctly. Seek opportunities to model target sounds, especially during small group activities such as guided reading groups. When modeling for a student, say the sound clearly and with a bit more volume.
Emphasize to the student the sound a letter makes rather than the letter itself. For example, remind a student to say the “shh” sound, rather the “s” “h” sound.
Be specific when giving feedback: Give students’ specific feedback for saying sounds correctly. For example, “Wow! I heard TWO sounds when you said the word “stamp!” I heard “ssssss” and “tuh”!
Ask for repetition: Asking a student to repeat teaches them that speaking clearly is important without putting them on the spot to say a specific sound correctly. For example: “I didn’t understand, can you say that again?” “What you have to say is important, can you repeat that?” If you still can’t understand the student, encourage them to use a communication strategy like saying the word in a sentence to give context or writing it down.
Highlight target sounds: Underline or highlight the target sound in advance for read aloud or homework activities to reinforce the student’s awareness of the sound in context. This is also a great carryover activity for older students to complete independently.
