About a year and a half ago, I made an appointment with our Health Unit to have Sophie's speech assessed. At the time she had picked up a bit of a stammer. The therapist assured us that it was something that she would grow out of (and she did).
Lately we have noticed that her s/z sounds come out as a lisp. They really seem to encourage parents to get their children's speech assessed if they have any concerns, so I called the number again for an appointment. I told Sophie we were going to the Health Unit to have a chat with one of the ladies there who also has some great toys (which she does).
Christina was very laid back. She just watched Sophie and I play together and talk. Fortunately there are a lot of "s" sounds right now...Christmas, Santa, sleep, etc so it was easy to get Sophie to talk.
She assured us that Sophie's speech development is good - she went through a chart with me about all of the milestones she has hit. As far as her "s" are concerned, she will likely outgrow it (the lisping can go for as long as 8 years old), but one way to help her tongue make the right sounds is for her to use a straw as often as possible. Something about how sucking from a straw works to retract the tongue and make speech more clear. Drinking everything from milk to thick smoothies (the thicker the better as takes more effort).
Needless to say, straws are a pretty easy sell with her. So, we are off to the dollar store tomorrow to find a supply of straws.
