Articulation and phonology: understanding pronunciation disorders
Articulation and phonological disorders are among the most frequent reasons for speech therapy consultation. They manifest as speech that is difficult to understand, with distorted sounds or sounds replaced by others. This guide explains the difference between these disorders, their normal development and rehabilitation strategies.
Articulation vs Phonology: what's the difference?
| Articulation disorder | Phonological disorder |
|---|---|
| Motor difficulty producing a sound | Difficulty organizing sounds in words |
| The sound is always distorted the same way | The sound can be correct in isolation but not in words |
| Ex: lisp (s→th), lateral lisp | Ex: simplifications, variable substitutions |
| Usually affects 1-2 sounds | Can affect several sounds, systematic pattern |
| Work on organ placement | Work on phonological awareness |
Normal pronunciation development
Not all sounds are acquired at the same age. It is normal for a 3-year-old child not to pronounce all sounds perfectly:
| Age | Sounds generally acquired |
|---|---|
| 2-3 years | p, b, m, t, d, n, vowels |
| 3-4 years | k, g, f, v, l |
| 4-5 years | s, z, ch, j |
| 5-6 years | r, consonant clusters (tr, cr, pl...) |
Normal phonological processes
Young children naturally simplify words. These phonological processes are normal up to a certain age:
- Cluster reduction: "train" → "tain" (normal until 4-5 years)
- Fronting: "car" → "tar" (normal until 3-4 years)
- Backing: "tapis" → "kapis" (less frequent, monitor closely)
- Assimilation: "canard" → "nanard" (normal until 3 years)
- Syllable reduction: "éléphant" → "éfant" (normal until 3 years)
When to worry?
- Speech unintelligible to strangers after 3 years
- Speech unintelligible to parents after 2 years
- Phonological processes that persist beyond the expected age
- No spontaneous improvement over several months
- Frustration from the child who cannot make themselves understood
- Unusual sounds (throat noises, abnormally nasalized sounds)
Speech therapy intervention
For articulation disorders
- Praxis exercises: tongue, lip, cheek movements
- Phonetic placement: learning where and how to place the organs
- Progression: isolated sound → syllable → word → sentence → spontaneous
- Mirror and visual feedback
For phonological disorders
- Phonological awareness: mentally manipulating sounds
- Auditory discrimination: hearing differences between sounds
- Contrast approach: opposing confused sounds
- Contextual work: words, sentences, conversation
💡 At home: what helps
- Model the correct form without making them repeat: correctly restate what they say
- Don't correct systematically, it discourages
- Speak slowly and clearly
- Value efforts and progress
- Play with sounds: nursery rhymes, rhymes, songs
Our downloadable tools
👅 Oral-facial praxis exercises
Illustrated tongue, lip and cheek movements. Prepare organs for articulation. Fun format.
Download🔤 Sound/phoneme cards
Images to work on each sound in initial, medial and final positions. Multiple levels.
Download🎯 Phonological lotto games
Lotto games targeting specific sounds (S/CH, K/T, etc.). Works on discrimination and production.
Download👂 Auditory discrimination
Exercises to learn to differentiate similar sounds. "Same or different?"
DownloadFrequently asked questions
A lisp (interdental sigmatism: the tongue passes between the teeth for the S sound) is common in young children. It becomes concerning if it persists after 5-6 years. Speech therapy intervention can usually correct it fairly quickly.
Yes, this is completely normal! The R is one of the last sounds acquired, generally between 5 and 6 years. Before this age, children often replace it with an L or W ("voiture" → "voitule" or "voituwe"). No need to worry before age 5.
No, systematically making them repeat is counterproductive. It creates negative pressure and discourages the child from speaking. It's better to reformulate correctly what they say without asking them to repeat. The child hears the correct model and gradually integrates proper pronunciation.
🔤 Ready to work on articulation?
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