Thursday, April 25, 2013

Teach Your Child the /f/ and /v/ Sounds

 

F

Does your child have trouble pronouncing the /f/ or /v/ sound? The most common error for /f/ is substituting the /p/ sound for it (“pish” for “fish”).  A common error for /v/ is a /b/ substitution (“ban” for “van”).  /F/ should be mastered by the time a child is four years old. /V/ develops a little later and is often not mastered until age 5 or 6. Because they are very similar sounds, though, they are often taught together.

Here is an excerpt from my book, Super Star Speech, to use with your child.

F and V

F and V are produced by touching the upper teeth to the lower lip. F is produced by passing the breath between the teeth and lip. V is produced in the same way with the voice “turned on.”

Tips:

1. /f/ and /v/ are easy sounds to teach because the placement is so easy to see. Instruct the child to “bite his lip and blow” to produce /f/. After the /f/ is produced, instruct him to “turn his voice on” to produce the /v/. Use of a mirror may be helpful.

2. Work on auditory discrimination between the error sound and /f/ and /v/. (“Is this a pig or a fig?”)

3. If /v/ is not being vocalized, thereby sounding like an /f/, have the child feel the vibrations on his neck while saying the sound. Produce /v/ with a vowel (“Va, Vee, uh-V”).

I have some practice pages for the F and V sounds (and other speech tips) posted on my Super Star Speech Resource Page.

I’m Blogging Through the Alphabet with Ben and Me.

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