By Pam Marshalla
Q: I have been working with a child for a year and a half and R has been very resistant to improvement. I just stumbled upon a good R in STRI-words like “strike”, “stripe”. Yet he has problems doing what you call “lerring” [sliding back-and-forth between L and R]. Why do you think this is? R can be a grand mystery and you never know what pattern will cause it to sound right. Just go with whatever works. It could…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: I took your course on intelligibility and understand the importance of Long E in achieving the starting point for all vowels, but I cannot get my client to make a good E. It sounds flat. I would try this–– Have him say a big oral strong “Ah”. The tell him to “keep saying Ah” while he bites his back teeth together (or on a bitestick) Then tell him to “keep saying Ah” while he smiles broadly. Model this diphthong…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: Can a clipped frenulum grow back? I have a student with a hearted-shaped tongue and a restricted frenulum but his mom said it was clipped at 9 months of age. As far as I know, it won’t grow back — however a lot of scar tissue can develop, and some people might need to have the procedure done twice.
By Pam Marshalla
Q: I have a student with a frontal lisp and an anterior open bite. Can you suggest compensatory strategies to help him? If he is going to get his teeth fixed I might wait to do anything until after he teeth are fixed. If he is not going to get his teeth fixed, then the compensation simply involves getting him to produce the best sibilants he can given his dental structure. He needs to stabilize the tongue at the back-lateral…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: My client is 4;0 and has a combined frontal and lateral lisp. I have not taken any of your classes or read any of your books. Any suggestions as to how to proceed with treatment? I have written volumes on this topic and it is somewhat difficult to describe in a quick QA. But I will do my best. The short and sweet answer to this question as I see it is as follows (and if you have not…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: My client is 4;0 with a frontal lisp with a very small mandible (underbite) and chronic upper respiratory problems––congestion, nasal drip, mouth breathing, snoring, etc. He cannot breath through his nose. Do you think he is capable of learning to keep his tongue in for the sibilants given his underbite? Yours is a very common question for which we have no clear answers. In all likelihood both the under-bite and the upper respiratory problems are contributing to his speech…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: I have a client who has what you call an “Omni Lisp” meaning that there is no central groove at all and the air comes out the entire front of the mouth from L to R. It sounds lateral because some of the sound is. I have tried your “Long T Method” with this client but it doesn’t seem to be as effective. Have you listened to his T through the straw? I will bet it sounds flat and…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: My client lowers the jaw too much when he speaks, and he has a frontal lisp. He tends to clench the jaw when I tell him to hold the jaw up. I may have taught him this when using a bite stick to position the jaw. Not sure what to do now. As you have discovered, making a strong crushing bite on a firm object is not what he needs. The term “jaw stability” does not mean “jaw rigidity.”…
By Pam Marshalla
Q: Can you recommend any good references for feeding therapy? The absolute must-read best resource on feeding therapy is–– Morris, S. E., & Klein, M. D. (2000, 1987). Pre-Feeding Skills: A Comprehensive Resource for Mealtime Development. Austin: Pro-Ed. Also, Talk Tools International puts on good feeding seminars.
By Pam Marshalla
Q: I attended a workshop of yours and recall the recommendation to have the student brush the sides of the tongue to elicit the R sound. I can’t find the method in your handout. Where is it? It is SOOOOOOOO critically important to understand the PURPOSE of a method! One does not brush the sides of the tongue to elicit R and I would NEVER recommend that. Instead one brushes the sides of the tongue to AWAKEN the tactile system there. …
