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Let’s Play with /k/ and /g/

In this article, we will discuss how to teach a kid to pronounce /k/ and /t/ sound.

 

Situation A

Kate : Mom, tate want to tate the blue tar
Mom: Oh, Kate wants to take the blue car
Ok, please wait for a while
Kate: Otey mom

Situation B

Kate: Granny, tate want to tate the blue tar
Granny: What? What do you want?

Have you ever experience any of the above situations?

Mum or dad who is always with their kids will usually able to understand their kid; even when the kid mispronounces some word. People who are not familiar with the kid may have difficulty to understand them.

The above example shows a sound that is affected or mispronounced. In the above situation, the kid change the /k/ sound to /t/ consistently. Can you imagine if more than a sound are mispronounced? The kid’s speech will be hard to understand then!

In this article, we will discuss how to teach a kid to pronounce /k/ and /t/ sound. Both of the sounds can occur in the initial, medial or final word position.

Words with phoneme /k/ and /g/

Phoneme

Initial word position

Medial word position

Final word position

/k/

knife

locker

look

/g/

goat

yoga

bag

Video how to pronounce /k/ and /g/ sound

  1. Pronounce /k/ sound
  2. Pronounce /g/ sound

How do you pronounce /k/ and /g/?

There are several part of mouth moved when we speak. For /k/ and /g/, the back of the tongue and back side of the soft palate plays important role and the following happens:

Phoneme

Lips and jaw

Tongue                                 

Voice box

/k/

The lips are slightly in an open position, and the jaw at a stable position

*The back of the tongue touch the back side of the soft palate
*The back of the tongue is released with downward movement

The voice box is not vibrated

/g/

The voice box is  vibrated

What are the common type of error with /k/ and /g/?

There are 2 types of errors that involve /k/ and /g sound/:


Source: http:// www.talkingtails.net

  1. The sound is not pronounced by the kid. It will be deleted, results in  incomplete pronunciation
  2. The sound is substituted. It is usually substituted to a sound with similar characteristic with /t/ and /d/. When this happens, the pronunciation of a word will differ, and the intended meaning of the word will changed.

The following show example of error that involves /t/ and /d sound:

Type of error

/k/

/g/

Deletion

/ knife / ? /_ nife /

/ goat / ? /_oat/

Substitution

/ knife / ? / tnife /

/ goat / ? /doat/

Each sound is acquired by stages. The /k/ and /g/sounds are acquired at 2-4 years old. The sound deletion error is considered normal for age 3, and sound substitution error is normal up to age 4 years old. If your kid is 2 years old and mispronounce the sounds, please don’t worry!

What are the strategy to teach /k/ and /g/?

There are various strategies that you can do to teach a kid to pronounce /k/ and /g/. These strategies are used during the initial stages of teaching the intended phoneme. Among the strategy that you can use are:

  1. Visual cue
    1. Use a huge mirror so that the kid can look his/her own mouth movement, while they are trying to pronounce the /k/ and /g/.
    2. Sit in front of the kid so that they can see our mouth movement while we are trying to pronounce the sounds.
  2. Tactile cue
    1. Touch the back of the tongue and the back side of the soft palate with tongue depressor.
    2. Put jam or honey to the back of the tongue and the back side of the soft palate
    3. Touch the upper part of the neck as a cue for the kid to elevate the back of the tongue while trying to pronounce /k/ and /g/.
  3. Instruction of placement
    1. Use a drawing or a model of a mouth to help kids to understand how to place their tongue appropriately.
    2. Ask the kid to put the back of the tongue to the back side of the soft palate and released it downward.
    3. Place your palm near your lips, to feel puff of air coming out from the mouth
    4. Say the sound together with the kid

How to start?

Speech Sounds are acquired in stages. For example, at age 2, a kid will be able to pronounce /p/ and /b/ and other sounds.

When we teach a kid to pronounce a new sound- we have to do it from the basic stage. You can move to the next stage if a kid show 80% correct responds in a stage. Refer to article let’s play with /t/ and /d/ for description.

What are activities to teach /k/ and /g/?

Refer to article let’s play with /t/ and /d/ for activities that you can do for teaching a kid to say the sounds correctly. Basic concepts for teaching are- the kid must be ready and enjoy the therapy session!

Words with /k/sound

Initial word position
Medial word position
Final word position
Kite
Monkey
Cake

Words with /g/ sound:

Initial word position
Medial word position
Final word position
Girl
Jogging
Bag

References

  1. Developmental Norms for speech and language. Diperoleh daripada http://www.asha.org/slp/schools/prof-consult/norms/, pada 3 September 2015.
  2. English pronounciation, lesson 22. Diperoleh daripada http://www.english247.net/english-pronunciation-lesson-22-consonant-k/ pada 7 September 2015.
  3. Table 3 – Elimination of Phonological Processes. Diperoleh daripada http://www.speech-language-therapy.com pada 3 September 2015.

 

Last Reviewed : 28 August 2020
Writer / Translator : Rahimah bt. Yunus
Accreditor / Reviewer : Nadwah bt. Onwi

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