Articulation Disorders

(Speech Sound Disorder)

Articulation is the term for how you produce sound.  An articulation disorder is when you have difficulties producing sound correctly.   The exact causes are unknown, but they can be related to certain oral-motor misalignments, neurological disorders, hearing issues, and/or frequent ear infections.  Examples of an articulation disorder are:

• Replacing S with TH like you see in a lisp, (i.e. Tham for Sam)
• Unable to make certain sounds, (i.e. Wadio for Radio)             
• Leaving out certain sounds, (i.e. Nana for Banana)                   

Most speech should be able to be understood by age 5 and by age 8, you should be able to make all of the speech sounds without replacing and/or leaving sounds off.  If you have a concern, talk to a medical doctor to rule out a health issue.  Your hearing may need to be checked to make sure you are hearing sounds correctly.  Finally, talk to a speech-language pathologist to determine what needs you have.