S Sounds: Stopping and Lisping

Did you know there are multiple error patterns that can impact the /s/ sound? For example, a child could have an interdental lisp, a lateral lisp, or exhibit stopping. Below, we discuss each of these patterns in detail.

-Interdental Lisp: If your child presents with an interdental lisp, he is protruding his tongue forward between the teeth, making a /th/ sound instead of /s/ sounds. Many children who present with an interdental lisp are also candidates for myofunctional therapy.

-Lateral Lisp: This often sounds slushy even though the tongue is behind the teeth. Children with a lateral lisp allow air to escape over the sides of the tongue.

-Stopping: Known as a phonological process, stopping involves replacing a more complex sound with an easier to produce sound. While this is age-appropriate for younger children, by age 4, the phonological process of stopping should be outgrown. With /s/ sounds, a child who is stopping might say, “toap” and use a /t/ sound instead of an /s/ for the word, “soap.”

If you suspect any of these errors, reach out to a speech-language pathologist today for a comprehensive evaluation.

Readers: Do your children have trouble with /s/ sounds?

About the Author: Melissa Goff, M.S, CCC-SLP, is the owner of Sunflower Speech & Myo Therapy, PLLC, in Charlotte, NC.