Does my son have a speech problem?

Question

My son is 5, he is very smart, he is uses a very large vocabulary but he has issues with his F sound. It sounds like S sometimes. Like four sounds like sore. Not all his F's come out that way, he says Friend not Sriend for example. Does he have a speech issue or is it a normal thing at his age to do this? I have gotten conflicting info on this from family on this one. I asked his doctor and he blew it off but that was when he was 4 and he still hasn't gotten too much better with it. I have found some great help on the internet on things we can do to help with speech, songs to sing, things to practice saying etc, but was curious if anyone else's kids did this.

I should also add when I talked to my daughters speech therapist (she sees her because she has cerebral palsy and a trachestomy) the speech therapist told me it can be age specific and nothing to worry about. I guess another "wait and see answers"

Answer 1

Your child is still VERY young. At this point I would say don't worry about it. If this still persists by 2nd or 3rd grade it MIGHT be a concern, but certainly not at age 5... especially if there's only the one sound he has difficulty with. If he has a good vocabulary and is able to communicate effectively, difficulty with one initial consonant sound isn't a big deal at this age. It's entirely "normal" for a child to have trouble with one or a few sounds, especially initial consonants & blends, right up through 2nd or 3rd grade. Usually this will correct itself naturally as the child grows and becomes more confident with spoken language. However if a child is made to feel self-conscious or is punished for it, the speech impairment often becomes worse.

At all costs, avoid pressuring him about this or making him feel you're disappointed with him. With the best of intentions, these days we put so much pressure on kids to perform and to conform to often-unrealistic standards... we need to remember that a child is a child, and the developmental process is a very individual thing! Sorry for the soapbox (& please don't take any of it personally) but I see this happening so much and it's very sad!

With all that said, IF you feel you can do this without pressuring your little one, you might try making little games that involve using the initial /f/ sound. Practice some of the words that give him trouble yourself, in front of a mirror so you can see the correct way to shape the sound with lips, teeth, tongue, etc. Then you can model this for him. Make up little rhyming and/or alliterative songs, chants, or raps that use initial /f/. Again, only do this if you can manage it without making it stressful for both of you! It's OK to reward him for pronouncing the sound correctly, but don't chastise him for doing it incorrectly

Answer 2

When I was around the age of 5 I had issues with the R sound. My parents took me to a hearing and speach doctor and ran all kinds of test...and said nothing was wrong. I went to the dentist and I had a cross bite..the dentist put a thing in the roof of my mouth to correct the problem. I did take speech also and I have no problem with R sound now. Maybe you should try speech first and if that doesn't work try something else.

Answer 3

My 6 [now 7] year old does this. People have suggested it might be a speech problem -- usually those people opening their mouths don't have kids!!

She speaks almost with an accent. We've come to the conclusion [and our awesome doctor agrees!] that there are two reasons for it.
1 - She has so many thoughts in her head racing so fast she spits them out without thinking about what she is saying
2 - She has an older sister who used to translate her baby talk into grownup talk for her.

For both these reasons she has got into the habit of saying things like gurl instead of girl, and a few of has letters are pronounced kind of funny. BUT if I get her to follow my sounds she can make them [fs and is]. So if it was a true speech inpediment she wouldn't be able to make the sounds. Its just a habit... and everyone can understand her!

Speech therapy is a last step. I was in it when I was in grade 3-4 and all it did for me was make me self conscious and miss some of my classes. If you want her in it, put her on the waiting list now [there is a long waiting list at most schools for it]. I couldn't say my Rs so I got speech therapy....

Answer 4

Well some of that MAY be normal speech for a child of that age. But as a mother who has had two boys and I myself was in speech therapy I would ask the school to do a check up on him. Speech therapy is very helpful and it's pretty fun. If you're not sure have the school check it out. But I'm warning you that you may have to have a few meetings and really stay on the school about it because the school really dropped the ball on my second son until I kept bothering them! Good luck to you.

Answer 5

well, i had a bigger pronounciation problem until i was 9 or 10. when i spoke my L words, I the L sound got dropped against my will. For instance, Love sounded like ove. My z's sonnded like d's and my w sounded like r's. I also got my V's wrong (came out W) and my Th sucked. did I have a speech problem? nope. that issue naturally resolved itself as i got into junior high although i still have the L problem in a few rare instances. i'm sure your son is normal and his "speech problem" will correct itself in a few years.

Answer 6

As far as I know, all children at that age have problems with one or two of their letters. This is perfectly normal. Children hear the sound but aren't able to always pronounce it the same way. Just continue to work with him using phonics. He will eventually grow out of it. If he is 9 years old and is still having the same problem, then there is a speech issue there. My nephew says his v's like b's. Never becomes Neber. His teacher informed his mother that there might be a speech problem there but informed her to continue working with him. He can pronounce the word if you sound it out for him. Your son sounds like he is just going through the transition of getting older. Good luck and GOD bless.

Answer 7

He has a minor impediment that will take some work but nothing to worry about. They probably will identify this in school and he will have to go through some speech therapy to correct.

Is he picking this up from a family member, tv show or friend?

Nothing to worry about as I believe close to 1/3 of all children his age recieve on form of speech therapy or another.

Answer 8

My son had a list similar. He would say Th for S sounds. He is 10 now and grew out of it by like 7. If he is in school they should have a speech theripist on staff that may be able to evaluate him but personally I think that he will grow out of it.

Answer 9

all children develop at different stages. can try different ways to develop the sounds of the letter with your son. reading to your son or pick F and S words and have him repeat it back to you. but his young yet and he may just need some time. can also ask around in the school about a speech pathalogist(not sure if thats what their called) i have a little jar and fill it with pennies when my son says the word right. once he gets to 50 pennies in a jar then he can pick a prize. such has a gum, a dollor toy, book, etc. this gives them a bit more encouragement. and it teaches them to work for what they want.

Answer 10

Normal