Question
What are some clinical techniques and cues for treating children that cannot produce the /j/ phoneme? Also, how would you describe to the child the phonetic placing and shaping required for this phoneme?
Answer
The /j/ is one of two glides in the English language*the other is /w/. These two sounds are also classified as semivowels because of the relatively open oral tract during production. Pena-Brooks and Hegde (2000) describe the articulatory motion for glides as having two components. First there is a partial constriction along the palate then there is a transition (or onglide) to a even more open oral tract. Hopefully understanding the phonological properties will help with elicitation of the sounds. Therefore, to elicit a /j/ Secord (1981) suggests having the child produce a prolonged /i/ and then ending with an /a/ or /u/.
I am of the mind set that phonemic context can be the key to establishing the correct production of any phoneme in words. When trying to determine which would be the best way to treat a substitution of this phoneme, I would probe to see if the child is able to produce /j/ in any phonetic contexts. If so, I would then determine if the child is having difficulty producing /j/ when surrounded by certain classes of sounds such as liquids (e.g., yellow goes to lellow). As a result of this analysis, I would choose contexts that seem to facilitate or allow correct production to establish a consistent production /j/. If there is not a context in which the child can produce /j/, then I would create a phonetic context that is as dissimilar to the substitution as possible. For example, if the child substitutes a stop consonant for /j/, then initially, I would avoid words with stops in them. This technique can reduce assimilation processes.
References
Pena-Brooks A., & Hegde, M. N. (2000). Assessment and treatment of articulation and phonological disorders in children. Austin, TX: ProEd.
Secord, W. (1981). Eliciting sounds: Techniques for clinicians. Columbus, OH: Merrill Publishing Co.
Dee M. Lance is an Associate Professor at the University of Central Arkansas where she teaches and conducts research. She has had 16 years of clinical experience and has taught classes in both phonological development and articulation & phonological disorders. She can be reached at dlance@uca.edu