What is articulation? What is phonology?

Before children begin talking, they are learning to produce speech sounds. We hear this sound in practice when a child is babbling and cooing. As the child begins to talk, the sounds they produce take on more meaning. Articulation is how the child produces the speech sounds. Speech sounds are grouped into categories depending on where and how they are produced in the mouth. For example, the following sounds are called fricatives: /sh, s, zh/ because they are produced with continuing air flow through the mouth. Plosive sounds /p. b, t, d, k, g/ are produced by building up air flow and then letting it "explode." The development of speech sounds tends to follow a pattern which corresponds to oral motor skills. The first sounds to develop are vowel sounds and bilabials (sounds produced by bringing the lips together /p, b, m, w/). As a baby's oral motor skills develop, they learn to produce more sophisticated sounds (/ v, s, sh, ch/ and consonant blends /sn, dr, tr, etc./). Some children may have difficulty producing /l/ or /r/, yet the rest of their speech sounds are accurate. Speech therapy is warranted if they are having these articulation errors beyond the appropriate developmental age. The following norms are listed at the earliest age that most children achieve accurate production. These are a general guideline combined from different sources (Templin, 1957; Kresheck , Tattersall, 1989).

By age 3: p, b, m, n, h, w, t, d, k, g, f, ng

By age 4: l, v, s, z, sh, ch, j

By age 5: th (as in them), r

By age 6: th (as in thin), consonant blends: sn, st, sp, dr, tr, br, fr, kr, gl, kl, etc.

By age 7: zh (as in measure), sm, str, skr

Some children have a phonological disorder. This is different from an articulation disorder. Phonological disorders are characterized by a pattern of substitutions or sound errors. Entire groups of sounds are either omitted or substituted with another entire group. This indicates that a child has learned a faulty pattern of producing a particular sound group or a lack of understanding. Another example would be a child who produces all friction sounds /f, s, sh, ch, th, z/ by substituting a "quick" sound /p, b, t, k, g/. This phonological process is called "fronting." The child is making all sounds produced in the back of the mouth at the incorrect spot in the front of the mouth. These phonological patterns are consistent throughout a child's speech. Phonological problems require intervention. The child will continue to practice the incorrect pattern of the sound productions. Speech therapy is necessary to teach the child the appropriate patterns. Children are not likely to "grow out of" phonological problems.