Sing to Speech Episode 3: Oral Motor Planning

Episode 3 of the Sing to Speech series focuses on oral motor planning for the vowel sounds “ah,” “ee,” and “ooh.” The song used is an original song that promotes repetition of the targeted vowel sounds both in isolation and within various words. Practicing the sound in isolation provides opportunities to repeat and address any challenges within the targeted sound itself, while practicing within words provides opportunities to relate the sound to everyday speech. In addition, practicing the targeted vowel sounds within words such as animal sounds or topics that children are familiar with provide a motivation to sing the words.

The targeted vowel sounds are also accompanied by hand gestures for cuing. These cues are commonly used within speech interventions and have been developed specifically for oral motor planning by speech pathologists.

This intervention can be expanded by creating additional verses with the “ee” and “ooh” sounds. This presents a learning opportunity for children to seek out rhyming words with those sounds. By prompting the child to write their own verse, this expansion can promote a sense of control over an activity that may be challenging, as well as a an opportunity for creativity.