Guided Practice Script

Let’s make the /θ/ sound. Look down at your hands, you have five fingers. The smallest one is the thumb. Can you say that with me? “thumb”. The /θ/ sound is in the beginning of that word. Let’s try it again, say thumb with me.

To make the /θ/, you put your tongue in between your teeth. Have your upper and lower teeth rest lightly on your tongue and blow air to produce sound without using your voice.

Pretend you just took a bite out of the most delicious pizza but it was too hot! What do you do to cool off your tongue? That’s correct! That is the position that you need to make the /θ/ sound. Can you make the /θ/ sound? Good job.

Target Techniques and Considerations

Elicitation Techniques in the Script

1. Modeling
2. Phonetic Placement
3. Verbal Instruction using a metaphor

Potential Sound Errors

• Reduction by producing /f/ instead of /θ/. This is a result of the fronting. The child may be utilizing a labiodental placement instead of interdental.

Dialectal Differences

• In Essex English, /θ/ becomes labiodental like /f/ or /v/. Words like “brother” becomes “bruver.”