Using Play to Target Articulation in Speech Therapy

Targeting articulation during play is great for: younger kids or kids that cognitively won't benefit or be able to attend to drill activities or kids that are beginning to generalize their articulation and phonological productions at the sentence level and beyond! At the end of the day, almost every kid can benefit from articulation being targeted in play, as long as they have awareness of their oral structures, ability to produce the sound, and education/therapy in how to produce the sound. 

 

Make sure that the targets you use are commonly said during the play activity, such as frequently used words and CV combinations they can use. Also make sure you aren't trying to target TOO many words. I like to pick around 5 and use them often. If you're having a hard time thinking of targets, take a peek at Articulation Lists, which can help develop your ideas about the play and targets you can reasonably use! 

 

Think of it: if your client was out playing with another child and made a error that made a word indistinguishable, what would happen? The play partner would naturally question it and probably ask for clarification. Do this in play as well. For example, “I'm not sure what word you're saying. Let's say it again with our lips placed together to make your sound!”

 

Play gives us a natural way to provide feedback in a common setting and to see how well a child's progress is generalizing to their everyday. Play is also highly motivating and FUN! For our younger kids, it can give us opportunities to draw awareness to articulation concepts in a low-pressure, unstructured setting. While it can be daunting at first, give it a try and see how well it works for you!