/r/

Vowel /r/ is a highly auditory sound. Because of this, it’s important that you start with /r/ at the beginning of words. Even though your child may articulate it correctly, it’ll give him/her the auditory base he/she needs before proceeding to /r/ paired with vowels. Have your child listen to you while you clearly pronounce words beginning with /r/. Tell him/her to listen to how the /r/ at the beginning of each word sounds. Have your child repeat them after you, reminding him/her to listen to how the /r/ sounds in each word.

Repeat this same process with /r/ blend words. Through several days of this your child will begin to listen for and hear the correct pronunciation of /r/.

Next, move to vowel /r/ at the end of words. Again, remind your child to listen to you carefully. This time, however, do one word at a time. You provide the correct model and give your child an opportunity to match your production. If your child's sounds distorted, remind him/her to listen to yours, hear the difference and try to match her pronunciation to yours. At this point, your child should begin to make his/her own adjustments to produce a vowel /r/ sound to match yours. It may take several attempts, sometimes several days, and possibly weeks. Again, remember you’re auditorily training your child to hear what it takes to produce the correct sound.

Begin /r/ in the middle position of words when you’ve achieved some success with /r/ at the end. Remember to provide a correct model at all times – your child matching her production to yours.

Keep your times short – keeping your child's frustration level and yours in perspective. Keep in mind that vowel /r/ is one of the most difficult sounds to correct. It really doesn’t have a visual base to go back to like most other sounds – it’s truly based on what the child hears and can reproduce.