F is usually mastered by 5 years of age. If your child is 5 and saying F incorrectly, you are in the right place. Let's Begin!
To learn how to make the F sound we must know what each articulator (lips, tongue, teeth, breath, and voice) does.
Tongue: Nothing. It is relaxed in a neutral position.
Lips: Lips are slightly open.
Teeth: The top teeth rest lightly on the bottom lip.
Jaw: The jaw must be up and centered.
Breath: /F/ is a fricative sound which means breath is constant, no breaks or stops.
Voice: /F/ is a voiceless sound so the voice box is turned off. To know if your voice box is off, say /f/ while touching your throat. If you don't feel a "buzz," you are doing it right.
Say F in front of a mirror and look and feel what your muscles doing. Once you have a good handle on how to say F, you can teach your child!
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How to use this section:
I will introduce all cues that I find helpful. Please read and become familiar with each one. You will not use all of them. Instead, when you are ready to start practicing, you will try a few and figure out which ones are most helpful for your child. Most likely, you will use a combination of a few. Please refer back to this section as needed!
Speech therapists use a variety of cues during therapy including tactile (touch), verbal (words), and visual (visual models/mirrors) to elicit a correct sound production. Below are the most useful cues for F.
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Now that your know how to say F and what cues are helpful, head over to Teach F to start practicing with your child.