Articulation

What is it?
The act or manner of producing speech sounds.

Did You Know?

• There are 40 sounds in Standard American English – 24 consonants and 16 vowels.
• Typically speech sounds are acquired in a developmental order. For example you hear a baby babble /ba,ba,ba/ and not /ra,ra,ra/ because the /b/ is easier to say than an /r/.
• The most frequently mispronounced sounds are /s,r,l/.
• Males are more likely to have speech problems than females.
• By age 3, the average child should be 80% intelligible.
• By 6-7 years old, the average child should be saying all sounds correctly.
• Articulation errors occur in both children and adults.

Who Needs Articulation Therapy?

• If the incorrect production of a sound detracts from what you are saying.
• If the incorrect production of a sound is cosmetically distracting.
• If incorrect productions make it difficult to understand you

Then you need us! It's never too late to correct an articulation problem.

Tongue Thrust Therapy

Did you know?

• The tongue is one of the strongest muscles in the human body for its size.
• It can exert 6 pounds of pressure when pushing against the teeth.
• People average 2000 swallows a day.
• This constant pressure can move the upper front teeth outward or create an open bite.

What is Tongue Thrust?

• Tongue thrust is a reverse swallow pattern or infantile swallow pattern.
• The tongue pushes forward against the upper front teeth or protrudes between the teeth during swallowing.
• Very often tongue thrust is associated with a frontal lisp on /s/ and /z/ sounds.

Who needs Tongue Thrust Therapy?

Tongue thrust therapy is often recommended by dentists or orthodontists when the swallow pattern effects the position of the teeth. Therapy can be done before, during or after the orthodontist puts on braces. If the tongue thrust behavior is not corrected, orthodontic treatment may take longer and a person may experience a set-back when orthodontic treatment has ended and their braces are removed.

Who provides Tongue Thrust Therapy?

Look for licensed speech pathologists or dental hygienists who have been certified or trained in orofacial myology.

The staff at Elocution Solution has had exceptional results in correcting tongue thrust and have been trained in orofacial myology.

What is involved in Tongue Thrust Therapy?

Tongue thrust therapy includes exercises for the lips, tongue and jaw that are designed to change an incorrect or immature swallow to an adult pattern that is beneficial to the positioning of teeth and to correct articulation of speech sounds.

This can usually be accomplished in 12 weekly, half hour sessions with daily practice at home.

The exercises are easy and fun. They include such activities as blowing party horns and holding a weighted tongue depressor between the lips.

Accent Reduction

• Do people have trouble understanding you?
• Do people focus on your speech rather than what you are saying?
• Are you embarrassed to get up and speak in front of a group?
• Have you been overlooked in your profession because of the way you speak?
• Are you tired of being asked to repeat what you've said?

Then you need US for:

• More effective speech
• Greater understanding from listeners
• Career growth opportunities
• Increased self confidence

What is an accent?

An accent occurs when sounds, intonation patterns and stress patterns differ from standard American English. This can be a foreign or regional dialect.

How is an accent changed?

Accent Reduction is a systematic method for changing speech patterns, including pronunciation, voice production, intonation, and rhythm. You will become familiar with the basic sounds of spoken English and identify those that are challenging for you. You will learn how rate, melody, rhythm and placement are as important for clear speech as properly formed vowels and consonants. In general, you'll begin to hear and feel how to modify your speech to communicate more clearly.

Why Come to Us?

We are licensed and certified Speech-Language Pathologists. As speech pathologists we have unique training in identifying and evaluating differences in speech sound production and the stress, prosody and rhythm of language. Our training also includes specialized techniques in helping you make the sounds correctly.

How long will this take?

• We begin with a free consultation to determine which accent reduction techniques would best address your specific needs.
• Individual sessions are once a week for 1 hour. We recommend at least 12 sessions.
• Group sessions of up to 4 people are once a week for 2 hours. We recommend a minimum of 12 hours.
• Time and frequency can be tailored to meet your specific needs.

Voice and Speech Improvement

Do you need a voice and speech improvement?

• Does your voice get tired after speaking?
• Do you lose your listener's interest?
• Do people often ask you to repeat what you said?
• Do you mumble?
• Do you speak too fast?
• Is your voice too soft or too loud?
  

We have helped:
Teachers, students, salespeople, corporate executives, actors, doctors, lawyers, nurses – in short, anyone whose lifestyle requires good communication skills.

How does it work?

We begin with a free 30 minute consultation so we can design a program that meets your needs.
Our program covers:

• Relaxation and breathing
• Resonance and voice placement
• Consonant and vowel precision
• Variety in the melody of speech
• Nonverbal communication (eye contact, body language, gestures)

Voice, Diction and Accents for Actors

Voice and Diction
A strong dependable voice and clear diction is essential to the actor.

We offer individual or group sessions emphasizing

• Breath support/diaphragmatic breathing
• Relaxation exercises
• Exercises for strength and flexibility of the vocal mechanism
• Pitch
• Projection
• Resonance
• Care of the voice
• Correct production of speech sounds

At Elocution Solution we have worked with many actors and understand their unique needs. With both theater backgrounds and certification as speech pathologists we have developed extensive techniques to train the vocal apparatus to help you gain your maximum potential.

Reducing or Acquiring an Accent

As an actor you may have an accent or dialect that is limiting your ability to be cast in roles requiring standard American English or you might have a role that requires a specific accent or dialect, foreign or regional. You might also have a role that requires speech patterns of a person with a specific disability such as developmentally disabled, stroke, stuttering, cleft palate, deaf/hard of hearing, or cerebral palsy to name a few. The speech pathologists at Elocution Solution have extensive background working in these areas.