3 Things You Can Do To Help Your Child Say Their R Sounds Correctly

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Many preschool aged children have a hard time saying their R sounds correctly. It is normal for the child to have problems with language all the way up until they are in their early elementary school years. Yet, that doesn't mean that you have to wait until they are in elementary school to start combating the problem. Instead, you can start helping your child say their R sounds correctly now. Here are a couple tips.

1. Don't Let Them Use Their Lips To Say The R Sound

One of the biggest problems that young children have is that they use their lips to form the R sound. This is incorrect. In doing this, the child will always mispronounce the sound. Instead, it needs to be taught that the tongue, not the lips are responsible for forming the R sound. In order to help your child with this step encourage them to smile when they say words with the letter R. For instance, as the child is saying the word "car," have them open their mouth into a smile-like way and say "car." Although the sound will still be incorrect, helping them to avoid using their lips is the first step.

2. Curl The Tongue

The next thing you need to teach the child is how to curl their tongue at the top of their mouth. Practice putting the tongue on the top of the mouth and holding it there. This will get the child used to the feeling of getting the tongue in the correct position for saying the R sound. Once the child has mastered putting their tongue on the top of the mouth, you can add it with the smiling position. These two together should help the child get the hang of what the sound should feel like.

3. Blend Words Together

Some children may be able to say words that end in R but not words that start with R. This is why it is best if you can practice blending the words together. For example, have the child say "car," and as they are holding their tongue on the top of their mouth, and sitting in the smiling position, then blend the word "car" into "road." As the child learns what it feels like to start with the letter R, you can take away the blending.

By doing these simple exercises with your child you can help them to properly say the R sound. 


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