Lateralised 's' and 'z' pronunciation (sounds like a 'lisp') for 9½ year old

This boy was referred as his mother felt he was concerned by his speech pronunciation and that he was motivated to change it. He commented that his speech "sometimes worried" him and he felt he "sounded different."

There was no teasing but he was aware that some of his friends sometimes said that he "couldn’t pronounce 's' properly". At assessment his speech was not always clear and at times he could be difficult to understand.

He attended 5 weekly sessions for therapy to focus on speech articulation and I particularly used his interests in anatomy and the mechanics of speech to motivate him. We focussed on home and school 'challenges' and used poems, tongue twisters, rhymes and public speaking to consolidate any new speech patterns and to encourage improved self monitoring of his speech.

This child made excellent progress and only needed one phone review for follow-up therapy 4 months after the weekly sessions. He was then discharged with clear speech.