Spaghetti and meatballs S blends!

Updated 2/2022

I often work on teaching s blends and reducing the cluster reduction process of prevocalic and postvocalic s blends with younger (pre-k to k) children. From a phonological standpoint, we teach the child how to mark both sounds in the s blend to reduce the pattern of cluster reduction. I also find that working on s blends often jump-starts progress with the class of strident sounds! Yippee! You get more bang for your intervention buck!

Teaching S blends can be a challenge when working with younger children. Start by having students to mark both sounds in these blends! Many children need us to appeal to more than just their auditory senses.

Here’s a few tips that I have learned along the way:

Teaching S Blends: Use a Visual

I use “spaghetti and meatballs” as my visual and there are many ways to make it into a tactile experience. I have the child trace the noodle while they prolong a forward air stream for the /s/ sound and then quickly touch the meatball while they say the second sound. These movements mimic the air stream that is used for the “longer” sssss sound and the shorter plosive (p,t etc) the accompanies it in the blend. As we get deeper into the therapy process, I will remind my students, “don’t forget the spaghetti” or “don’t forget the meatball” depending upon which sound they are omitting. Here’s a sample from Spaghetti and meatballs: Prevocalic S Blends packet. I use it to teach the concept of marking both sounds in the blend:

There are other ways of using this concept. If you use an I pad, check out the Doodle Buddy app. At the time of this writing, it is free. You can use it to draw the noodle and the meatball with your finger on the screen as the child produces the accompanying sounds and then traces it. You might also use play doh to make the noodle and meatball or I have also used yarn for the noodle and dot paints for the meatball.

Some students respond to the concepts that the “s” and the accompanying sound are “buddy” sounds, as in “that’s a buddy sound word.” Teach the child that the “s” and the “t” in “stop” are buddy sounds. One feels lost or sad if we forget the other! I have used any toys that link together to show that the child has to produce both sounds.

Teaching S Blends Auditory Bombardment

Yes, the auditory piece is important, even in a post about appealing to the sense of touch. I use amplification and have the child watch me and listen to me while I slowly make the “sssss” while extending my finger from my mouth to mimic the forward air stream. I pause after the “s” and then LOUDLY produce the second sound in the blend while my hand (fingers closed together in a fist pointing away from my mouth) opens with the “pop” of air. Then, I say the rest of the word.

Children learn speech from listening so this is a critical piece. When they hear adults produce /s/ blend words in their everyday speech, we typically don’t pause between the sounds and children don‘t always understand these are two separate sounds!

Let’s not forget about working on postvocalic s blends too! The ts, ks, and ps are often forgotten and can have a significant impact on intelligibility and make it difficult for children to mark the plural s in “ships, ducks, bats.” This Spaghetti and meatballs: postvocalic s blends packet might be of interest to you if you are looking for materials for the postvocalic blends.

Digital Materials for S Blends

Check out my video preview of the digital portions of the new Spaghetti and Meatballs S Blends, print and no print! It includes activities for teaching AND practicing S blends and progress monitoring tools!

This packet is both print and digital!