Articulation and Phonological Disorders

Speech Avenue - Pediatric Speech Pathology Clinic in Tustin, CA

Understanding Speech Sound Challenges in Young Children

Some children have trouble speaking clearly—not because they don’t know what they want to say, but because they’re still learning how to correctly produce the sounds of speech. These challenges are common in early development and typically fall into two categories:

What are Articulation and Phonological Disorders

What Is an Articulation Disorder?

An articulation disorder involves difficulty physically producing specific speech sounds. A child may substitute, distort, or leave out sounds, making it harder for others to understand them.

Common types of articulation errors:

Substitutions – saying “wabbit” instead of “rabbit”
Omissions – saying “at” instead of “bat”
Distortions – saying “thun” instead of “sun” (a lisp)
Additions – saying “puh-lay” instead of “play”

Articulation issues are often linked to:

Hearing loss or frequent ear infections
Structural differences (e.g., cleft palate or dental alignment)
Oral motor coordination difficulties
Neurological or developmental conditions
Or, in some cases, the cause may be unknown

What Is a Phonological Disorder?

A phonological disorder affects how a child organizes and uses sounds. These children may be able to make individual sounds, but use them incorrectly in words, following patterns that are no longer age-appropriate.

Common phonological processes include:

Final consonant deletion – saying “ca” for “cat”
Fronting – saying “doe” instead of “go”
Gliding – saying “wabbit” instead of “rabbit”
Stopping – saying “fit” instead of “fish”
Consonant blend reduction – saying “tar” instead of “star”
Weak syllable deletion – saying “nana” for “banana”

Children with phonological disorders often have multiple, patterned sound errors, making their speech harder to understand. These patterns can also impact early reading, spelling, and literacy skills—so early intervention matters.

Our Focus

Dedicated Approach to Early Support

Personalized Attention

Engaging Methods

Therapy Tools

How We Identify Speech Sound Disorders

Our process begins with a comprehensive speech and language evaluation, which includes:

Listening to your child’s speech in play and conversation
Noting sound patterns, clarity, and consistency
Talking with you about what you’ve observed at home

We may also recommend a hearing screening or evaluation, especially if there’s a history of frequent ear infections or suspected hearing loss. Children learn sounds by hearing them first—so clear hearing is essential for clear speech.

How Speech Therapy Helps

Our therapy sessions are engaging, structured, and tailored to your child’s unique needs. Whether your child has an articulation or phonological disorder (or both), we guide them step by step—celebrating small wins along the way.

Traditional Articulation Therapy

We usually focus on one sound at a time, building from:

Sound in isolation (e.g., “sss”)
To syllables (e.g., “sah,” “see,” “so”)
To words (e.g., “sun”)
Then into short phrases and sentences (e.g., “The sun is up”)

We use visual cues, auditory models, and tactile feedback to help your child learn how to make each sound clearly and confidently.

Phonological Therapy

When your child is using sound patterns that interfere with clarity (like saying “tup” for “cup”), we target those patterns across different words. Therapy helps your child learn the rules of sounds in language and adjust how they use them in everyday talking.

👧 Parent Involvement and Home Practice

You’re a key part of your child’s progress.

We’ll guide you in practicing at home through:

Sound-focused games and fun worksheets
Books and songs that emphasize target sounds
Everyday conversations and play

These moments reinforce what your child is learning and help build carryover into real-life talking.

Using Technology in Therapy

We may also use child-friendly speech apps to make practice feel more like play. These tools offer immediate feedback and keep kids motivated while building repetition—an essential part of speech sound learning.

👩‍⚕️ Why Early Support Matters

Speech sound disorders are most responsive to treatment when addressed early. Many children benefit from support during their toddler or preschool years—but progress is possible at any age.

You may want to seek support if your child:

Has fewer than 10 words or is still delayed in babbling by 18 months
Is not combining words by age 2
Is hard to understand most of the time after age 3
Becomes frustrated or avoids talking