ARK's Blog

For the K, G, and Y sounds, the back of the tongue elevates to the palate.  One of my favorite "tricks" to assist back of tongue elevation is to use the Z-Vibe with the Hard Spoon Tip. . . Place the bowl of the Spoon Tip on the tip of the tongue, and then have the child say the sound (as demonstrated in the video below).  By holding down the tip of the tongue with a tactile …

Incorporating yummy treats into your oral motor therapy sessions is a great way to spark interest and increase attention.  As long as there are no food allergies, the following goodies will sweeten your efforts to improve tongue elevation, tongue lateralization, oral awareness, lip closure, tongue strength, and much more. . LOLLIPOPS Most brands will do, but Dum Dums are my favo …

Tongue pops are my faaaavorite oral motor exercise.  They're a fun and easy way to work on tongue placement, oral tone, tongue tip elevation and control, plus tongue and jaw dissociation (skills that are necessary for proper speech, feeding, and oral motor development). . . The ability to orally manage food requires a lot more skill than most people realize.  Try tak …

What is oral motor therapy? Oral motor therapy works on the oral skills necessary for proper speech and feeding development.  For example, try saying "la la la" right now, paying attention to what your tongue is doing.  In order to produce the /l/ sound, the tongue tip must elevate to the alveolar ridge (just behind the upper front teeth).  It must also be able to function independe …