What to With Problems Pronouncing 'Sh' and 'Ch'?
Q.
My 5 year old grandson doesn't seem to be able to pronounce 'sh' or 'ch' although he can say 's' and every other sound.
Will this come with time? Is there anything we can do to help him?
A.
By age five children are usually able to pronounce the sounds “sh” and “ch” so the fact that your grandson is not able to pronounce these two sounds does indicate a slight speech problem. However, all children develop at different rates so it may be that these are simply the last sounds your grandson ultimately masters.
If your grandson’s pronunciation problems are frustrating his oral communication, making it difficult for others to understand him or cause others to be amused by him (or make fun of him) then it may be that he would benefit from speech therapy. Taking him to see his GP and getting a referral to an experienced speech and language therapist would be the first step in getting him professional speech help. It may be that he could be referred by his school as well. Once referred, a therapist would be able to observe him, test him and ultimately diagnose any speech impediment or disorder. If a diagnosis is made then the therapist would also be able to devise a treatment plan for him.
Before enlisting professional help, however, there is much that can be done to help your grandson practice these sounds on a daily basis. Relatives, carers and teachers can all gently correct your grandson when he mispronounces these sounds and help him to make the correct sounds. This should not be done in a mocking or degrading way, nor should others laugh at his pronunciations or write them off as a cute childhood affliction. If others ignore the problem then it can not be addressed, and if others seem to encourage it with what might seem like positive responses then your grandson may even think he should continue with his original pronunciations.
Sometimes children benefit from daily practice of a particular sound in addition to having their pronunciation corrected in their everyday speech. It may be that your grandson would benefit from some time dedicated to these sounds. Daily practice of these sounds through reciting nursery rhymes, singing silly songs or otherwise having fun and playing games with language may be all it takes for your grandson to work past his slight speech problem.
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