Setting the correct sound "L" for a child

One of the latest sounds that a child begins to make is "L". Sometimes its pronunciation is obtained only by the age of 6. There are a number of exercises that can help you with this. It is important to know the correct technique for performing them so as not to worsen the situation with articulation. It can take a long time to produce the L sound, so it is important to take your time and do your workouts consistently.

The incorrect pronunciation of "L" and "L" has its own name - lambdacism. This term describes not only improper sound reproduction, but also its complete skipping. Lambdacism is of several types:

• two-lipped: instead of the correct sound, you hear "u" ("uapata" instead of "shovel");
• nasal (the root part of the tongue falls on the soft palate, due to which the air flow rushes into the nose, the sound "l" changes to "ng" - instead of the word moon, "nguna" can be heard).
• interdental (in the process of speech, the tip of the tongue is placed in the interdental space);
• Sometimes the sound is not pronounced at all (instead of the word onion, the child says "uk").

Another speech therapy term describes a condition when a child replaces the correct "l" sound with others - paralambdacism. More often in practice, the following substitutions "l" occur:

• on G - "stack" instead of "table", instead of "floor" "pogy";
• on B - instead of "ski", "survive";
• on Е - instead of the word "spoon", "hedgehog" is pronounced:
• on D - the word "horse" is pronounced as "doshad";
• to the soft sound L - "dividing instead of" deed ".

With the proper exercise of the necessary exercises, this can be corrected.

What are the reasons for the incorrect pronunciation of "L"

There are only 3 reasons why a child may not learn to pronounce "L" correctly right away. Among them:

1. in the process of conversation "L" is not perceived by the child phonemically;
2. anatomically short sublingual ligament;
3. weakness of the muscle tissues of the tongue.

Sometimes the baby's age is also referred to the reasons - if the child is very small (2-3 years), his mistakes in the pronunciation of "L" can be considered the norm, since the sound is formed later - by 4-6 years.

How to position the tongue and lips in order to pronounce "L" correctly

Pronunciation "L", especially if the sound is not yet obtained, requires the correct positioning of the organs of articulation. You need to pay attention to the following rules:

• teeth from the upper and lower rows should not close together - it is better if they are located at a short distance from each other;
• in order not to disrupt breathing, it is important to monitor the lateral parts of the tongue - they should not adjoin the distant teeth of the upper row;
• the tip of the tongue should be strained, it should rest against the upper teeth or against the gums above them;
• it is important to raise the root of the tongue;
• so that the passage into the nasal cavity is closed, the upper palate must be raised;
• in the area of ​​the vocal cords, you need to create vibration.

The position of the lips can be different when pronouncing "L" - it all depends on the letters that follow in the word after.

What mistakes can be when trying to pronounce "L"

There are several common mistakes that occur when trying to pronounce "L". In this case, all methods of sound production become ineffective. Many of the errors are caused by improper lip and tongue placement and are easy to fix.

The "L" sound may not be produced due to the fact that:

• the tongue is pulled into the inside of the mouth, which is why it turns out to pronounce "Y" (instead of the word "lom" it turns out "yom");
• the lips are positioned incorrectly, which is why the wrong sounds are heard - for example, the combination "uva" (instead of "shovel" "uvapata");
• a sharp breath is made at the time of pronunciation - L changes to F if the cheeks are involved, and to H if the air flow passes through the nose.

Sometimes children replace the sound "L" with "P" - this happens especially often if the last sound has already been worked out, but the first one has not. Then the child can pronounce "hands" instead of "bow".

Incorrect lip set

If double-lipped lambdacism is present, mistakes may be associated with improper positioning of the lips during pronunciation - for example, if the baby stretches them strongly, instead of the desired sound, it turns out "y" or "v".

The "Smile" exercise is especially useful here: the teeth must be clenched, and the lips must be strongly parted in a smile. This position should be maintained as long as possible, and it is better to perform the movement at the expense. Sometimes adults even have to hold their lips in such a smile by hand to avoid pulling them out.

So that the baby does not strain his lips when performing exercises on the "L", you can do the following tasks:

• "Fish": to relax your lips, and then pat them against each other, like an aquarium fish.
• "Fatigue": take a deep breath through the nose, and exhale through the mouth: the lips should be parted and relaxed.
• "Horse": you need to inhale through the nose, and exhale through the mouth. At the same time, the lips should be relaxed so that their vibration "prr" begins from the air flow.

Preparation for the exercises for setting "L"

There is articulatory gymnastics, which helps to deliver "L" and facilitates the process of sounding later. In general, exercise helps to increase the mobility of the lips and tongue:

• "Hammock" - the tip of the tongue rests against the front incisors of the upper row. It should be bent down so that it resembles a hammock sagging down in shape. It is not necessary to perform any movements here - it is enough just to hold the tongue in this position for a while. Better to do the counting exercise.
• "Tasty" - the tongue needs to be made wide, then lick the upper lip with it from top to bottom. It is important that the tongue works on its own - the lower lip should not move upwards, thus moving the tongue. It is easier to do the exercise this way, but it is wrong.
• "Turkey" - the position of the tongue, as well as the movements performed, coincide with the exercise "Tasty". In this case, you need to significantly accelerate the pace of movements and add to this the pronunciation of the sound "bl-bl-bl" or similar.
• "Horse" (helps if it is difficult to keep the tongue on weight, resting it on the front teeth): the tongue needs to be made wide, and then clicked across the palate near the upper front teeth. The lower jaw should not move in any way, and the mouth should be slightly opened.
• "Swing" - in a wide smile you need to open your mouth. The exercise is performed according to the count - on "one" you need to rest the tip of the tongue on the upper teeth from the inside, on "two" - on the lower ones. The exercise is performed alternately.
• "Fungus" (helps to fix the tongue on the palate, that is, in the position from above): the surface of the tongue from above must be pressed against the palate so that the tension of the lingual frenulum is felt. You do not need to perform any movements.

Such exercises are effective for all types of lambdacism. Before the start of training directly "L", these exercises must be performed for at least 14 days (sometimes such training is continued for a whole month). After that, you can start doing speech therapy exercises for the sound you need.

On our website you can find out in more detail.

Training sound "L" by imitation

If the child does not make a sound in any way, it will be easier to put it, because replacing the correct sound with the wrong one creates a habit, and it can be much more difficult to correct it.

You can learn to say a hard and soft "L" by imitating the correct sound. In this case, you need to show the child how to correctly position the articulatory organs in order to be able to pronounce "L". They do this in front of a mirror - a speech therapist or a parent sits down with him with the child and, by his example, shows the correct location of the lips and tongue when pronouncing "L".

In words, this can be explained as follows: the tongue should be expanded as much as possible, and the tip should be pressed against the base of the upper front teeth. The middle part of the tongue must be bent down, like a hammock, and the root, on the contrary, must be raised. It is important not to lift the lateral parts of the tongue up, since otherwise the air flow will not rush in the right direction - to the cheeks (they vibrate if you touch them while pronouncing the sound).

This formulation of the sound "L" from demonstrating your example is effective, but children, due to their small age, cannot always understand and repeat it. Then you can pick up simpler tasks - for example, tell the child fairy tales that train the necessary sounds (in them you usually need to stretch these sounds, for example, if a fairy tale about steamers, you can imitate the sounds they make "LLL").

The child may not immediately learn how to pronounce "L" correctly, but after several workouts, the desired sound should be obtained. For the sound "L", articulatory gymnastics is carried out both through exercises for the language and through the pronunciation of syllables and words.

When you manage to train "L", you can try to combine it with vowels and pronounce the syllables already - Lo, La, Le and others. If the baby has difficulties with such combinations, you can start with the opposite - Ol, Al, Ul.

How to make correct pronunciation automatic

Staging at home can be very challenging. This is a long process, so it is better not to overload the child - it is enough to practice for a few minutes 2 times a day (no longer than half an hour). It is better to carry out training in a playful way.

Soft "L"

Even if the child has learned to speak the sound "L" itself, as well as syllables with his participation, he can still miss it in words. Then it is better to start by training the soft sound "L". Here, too, you should start training with syllables - La, Liu, Li and others similar. When the syllables begin to work out, you can try to go to the words:

• Le: light;
• A: fields;
• Le: laziness;
• Liu: buttercup;
• Lee: fox.

The setting of the sound "L" in individual words can be fixed with pure phrases:

1. La-la-la is a cold land.
2. Liu-lu-li - I'll light the stove.
3. Li-li-li - we found the mushrooms.

Tongue twisters come in handy too. For example, for setting the sound "L" you can use the following:

• Lala ate halva under a blanket.
• Tolya weaves bast shoes near a warm stove.
• Lyuba loves buttercups, and Fields loves cartoons.
• Lena barely ate, she did not want to eat out of laziness.
• Valins boots are small for the giant.

If in syllables of the direct type the articulation of the sound "l" of a soft beginning is obtained, you can go to the opposite. The syllables are pronounced as follows: Al, El, Ol, Yal, Ul, etc. After setting them, you can go to the corresponding words - for example, tulle, poplar, moth, tulip, chair.

The sound combinations can be complicated by adding additional consonants - K, P, F, G, S (Slyu, Slya, Sli, etc.). It is not difficult to find words for setting such sounds - plum, cranberry, slush, glucose, flux, mica, plus and others).

The following exercises for setting L will help to consolidate the skill:

• FIR-FIR-FIR: drops in the yard.
• OL-OL-OL: a mole flew.
• EUL-EUL-EUL: the palm is more like soap.
• UL-UL-UL: We'll hang tulle.

You can play this game. Connect objects with squares depending on where the letter "l" occurs (at the beginning, at the end or in the middle). Speak each item several times.

At this stage, you still need to control the correct position of the tongue in the mouth.

Solid "L"

It is more difficult to learn to pronounce "L" solid. The technique here is similar to that used when the articulation of the "L" sound is set, but much more repetitions may be required.

Better to start with hard syllables - La, Lo, Lu, Ly, Le. When you manage to put them, you can go to the words:

• Lo: boat, elbow, forehead;
• La: lamp, bench, varnish;
• Ly: skis, floors, tables;
• Lou: moon, meadow, bow.

To consolidate the result, the following phrases and tongue twisters are suitable:

• La-la-la - she took away the trash,
• Lu-lu-lu - sweep the ashes
• Lo-lo-lo - the glass broke.

1. Volodka is in the boat.
2. Put coal in the corner.
3. Near London - the lair of the sorcerer.

When setting "L" hard and soft, it is better to avoid words or syllables with "P". The sounds "L" and "R" are especially difficult for the child, so it is better not to confuse them with each other. required later than "L".

The "L" sound is one of the most difficult sounds, which in some cases can be formed only by the age of 6. To deliver it as quickly and efficiently as possible, it is better to consult with a speech therapist. You can try to cope at home with exercise.