Speech Sound Disorders

Speech Sound Disorder is an umbrella term used to describe difficulties with perceiving, producing, or using speech sounds correctly. These challenges may include articulation errors (how sounds are physically produced) and phonological errors (patterns of sound use that affect how speech is understood).

Speech-language pathologists are trained to assess and treat speech sound disorders for both children and adults. Therapy focuses on improving speech clarity, sound production and strengthening oral motor coordination to improve communication clarity.

3 Types of Speech Sound Disorders

These challenges can affect how clearly someone is understood, but with the right support, individuals of all ages can build clearer speech, stronger communication skills, and greater confidence.

Articulation Disorders:

Articulation errors stem from a breakdown in the movement of oral articulators such as the tongue, teeth, jaw, lips, etc. which can lead to difficulty pronouncing specific sounds correctly. Therapy typically focuses on accurate placement of oral structures and articulators paired with sound and production awareness. Examples may include a lisp, sound distortions such as with /r/, or sound omissions such as “ca” for “cat”.

Motor Speech Disorders

Motor speech sound disorders encompass difficulties in producing speech sounds due to problems with the motor planning, programming, or execution of speech movements, and can include conditions like apraxia and dysarthria. These children are typically highly unintelligible, may have been late to begin talking and present with inconsistent errors.

Phonological Disorders

Phonological errors stem from difficulties understanding and organizing the sound system of language in contrast to the physical production of speech sounds. This often results in consistent error patterns that can impact an individual’s communication. Therapy typically focuses on helping individuals raise awareness towards recognizing and learning sound patterns. Examples may include replacing sounds such as using /k/ consistently for /d/ (“dey” for “key” or omitting a sound such as saying “pider” for “spider”.

In Children – If your child is having consistent or inconsistent difficulties producing sounds beyond the expected age as highlighted in the speech sound development chart below, we are here to help. We offer speech therapy for children of all ages focusing on improving sound production, clarity, educating and building confidence in communication. Early intervention can make a significant difference, and our team is here to support every step of the way!

Contact Us

In Adults – Speech therapy can be beneficial for individuals across the lifespan into adulthood. Speech sound disorders can stem from neurological conditions, traumatic brain injuries, strokes or life-long articulation challenges.

We work with adults to improve speech clarity through targeted exercises, muscle strengthening, and strategies for effective communication. Whether the issue is longstanding or newly developed, speech therapy can help adults speak more clearly and confidently in daily interactions.

This includes elective accent expansion services for speakers who use English as a second language and wish to add different speech sounds, intonations, and word stress patterns to their repertoire, while also respecting linguistic and cultural identity.

Contact Us

Research: Speech Sound Development

This chart represents updated research by Crowe and McLeod (2020).

Earliest acquired speech sounds can be seen at the top of the chart, with later developing sounds at the bottom. In this study, 90% of all children acquired these different sounds by the ages reported. The vertical axis reflects average age of acquisition, while the horizontal axis reflects an age range of acquisition.