6 yr old still says "w" instead of "r"

[LauraN]

This is one of those things that I'm not exactly worried about, but has been on the back of my mind for about a year now. Then I just saw this link in another thread and it got me to worrying: http://lb077.k12.sd.us/Frame%20UBD%20Articulation.htm.

It says that by age 6, children should be able to pronounce the "r" sound. My son still says "wabbit." He's about to turn 7 (in Feb.) Should I be worried? And if so, what should I be worried about? Is it a sign of some sort of deeper developmental issue?

He's otherwise very bright, reads 3 grades above his level and is quite physically capable. He pronounces all the other letters on the chart the right way. Since we homeschool, there's no teacher or school that might let me know if they think it's a problem.

Still, my instinct tells me not to worry, but I thought I'd throw it out there and see what MDC mamas think.

Should I be worried? And if so, what should I be worried about?

[A&A]

You shouldn't be worried, but proactive.

My ds (also age 6) is in speech therapy and it has made a WORLD of difference in his ability to say "r" (as well as "th" and "l") . And no, it doesn't necessarily indicate a deeper issue. Some kids just need help with speech.

You can either seek out a private speech therapist or talk to your local school district about getting your son into speech therapy through them.

[Adele_Mommy]

No need to worry. I didn't click on your link, but my dd has been in speech therapy since first grade to work on many sounds starting with "L". She is in third grade now and they just started working on "R" the end of last year and working on it seriously this year. Her speech therapist said they do not work on R until close to 8 because problems with that sound are considered "normal" (not requiring intervention) until that age. Sure, some kids can say R clearly earlier, but if your dc doesn't have any other speech issues, I suspect he will grow out of the R problem in the next year or so and if he doesn't, you can always look into speech therapy then.

ETA: I forgot to say the main concern is if other people have difficulty understanding your child or it affects his self-confidence or willingness to speak. It is not the sign of a deeper developmental problem by itself.

[A&A]

Originally Posted by Adele_Mommy

No need to worry. I didn't click on your link, but my dd has been in speech therapy since first grade to work on many sounds starting with "L". She is in third grade now and they just started working on "R" the end of last year and working on it seriously this year. Her speech therapist said they do not work on R until close to 8 because problems with that sound are considered "normal" (not requiring intervention) until that age.

That's not what my speech therapist said. He said that the "R" sound should be conquered by age 6 and therefore he is working with my 6 yo. on that sound. (And my ds has made considerable progress on that sound in just a few months.)

[Keria]

I would also check with your dentist for tongue tie my niece got hers clipped and within a week she could pronounced the R perfectlly

[4evermom]

My 7 1/2 yo ds still has problems with R, L, and TH. I'm not worried, though. It's pretty common in our family. I remember learning how to pronounce things better when I learned to read well and ds just started reading. So he is just a little older than I was. And he has always spoken more clearly than some of my brothers did as children.

[A&A]

Originally Posted by *Louise*

I would also check with your dentist for tongue tie my niece got hers clipped and within a week she could pronounced the R perfectlly

Oh please don't do this. First of all, the correct technical term is "short frenulum," not "tongue tie." The tongue is not "tied." The frenulum is just short. However, a good speech therapist can give your child exercises to lengthen the frenulum and therefore they won't have to go through getting mouth tissue cut! Ouch!!! My son does have a short frenulum but our speech therapist said it can be overcome with speech therapy (and indeed, as I have said, my ds is making good progress.)

[OakBerry]

My ds is 6 and still says W in place of R and L.

I think he may have a short frenulum, he had issues with latch when nursing, but we got past it.

Maybe I should start thinking about an evaluation.

[Keria]

Originally Posted by A&A

Oh please don't do this. First of all, the correct technical term is "short frenulum," not "tongue tie." The tongue is not "tied." The frenulum is just short. However, a good speech therapist can give your child exercises to lengthen the frenulum and therefore they won't have to go through getting mouth tissue cut! Ouch!!! My son does have a short frenulum but our speech therapist said it can be overcome with speech therapy (and indeed, as I have said, my ds is making good progress.)

Sorry I didn't know the correct term, English is not my native language, i had no idea what it was called so i did a search and thats what came up, btw my niece did 8 months of speech therapy prior to that an0d she still could not pronounce the R it was more noticeable because in spanish ( what we speak we roll our Rs and you need to have the tip of your tongue on the palate to make the sound she couldn't do it. One day she came crying because some kids were making fun of her so her mom made the decision to do it, its done with local anesthesia and in less than 5 minutes. She is quite proud of herself now. Maybe you can have same results with speech therapy but for niece it wasn't working.

[Adele_Mommy]

Originally Posted by A&A

That's not what my speech therapist said. He said that the "R" sound should be conquered by age 6 and therefore he is working with my 6 yo. on that sound. (And my ds has made considerable progress on that sound in just a few months.)

I'm glad your speech therapist is helping your ds and I would certainly stick with him if I were you (and assuming your ds likes him), but I believe he is not in the majority on this. I just did a quick google search and every page I found that gave an age included /r/ in the list of sounds that may not be mastered until 7 or 8. My dd is also making wonderful progress with her speech therapy, but she had lots of other sounds to work on when she was 6. Her /l/ sound was indistinguishable from a /y/ and now it is perfect in her everyday speech. Since the /r/ sound was the only concern for the OP and she is home-schooling so it is not the case that speech-therapy is immediately and readily available, I maintain that the wait-and-see approach makes by far the most sense for her.

[mommabear207]

you could work with him at home on it. i'm not sure what the norm is ds is way younger than 6 and i needed speech therapy when i was that age after years of ear infections and getting tubes in my ears, plus i talked really fast. i wouldn't worry it is a hard sound after all

[Arwyn]

No, not worried, but eventually you may want to look in to speach therapy. I had problems pronouncing Rs (oh that's fun when your name is "Arwyn". Subs would come in and ask me my name and I'd happily say "Ahwyn" "Ahwyn?" "No, Ahwyn, with an Ah!"), and did speach therapy once or twice a week at my elementary school for 2 years, and other than occasionally missing one ("whirled/world" is not my friend) do just fine now.

I was also advanced in math and reading; it's highly unlikely to be a sign of a deeper problem.

[ziggy]

I was in speach therapy for yeeeeaaaars. I can say my Rs now if I am thinking about it, but there are still words I can't say consistantly. "Our" still sounds like "owuh" about half the time. It hasn't been a huge detriment to my life. And I don't have a short frenulum, though my little brother does and the only thing he can't do is stick out his tongue.

[LauraN]

The short frenulum suggestion in interesting. We did have quite a tough time with nursing in the first couple of weeks, though we worked through it and he went on to nurse until he was 4! Nobody said anything about his frenulum during the nursing issues, though. I was working with my midwife and a lactation consultant throughout.

I think I'll take a wait and see approach. It sounds from what everyone is saying as if we still have some time before I need to think about speech therapy or other more drastic measures. And that's the only letter he has trouble with. Every other letter is pronounced correctly.

My daughter--who is only 4--also says "w" instead of "r," so maybe it just runs in our family.

Now that I think about it, I remember my mother telling me that I pronounce certain words incorrectly--certain words that have the "r" sound right in the middle (like motorcycle apparently sounds like "motowcycle" when I say it). But I know I say the "r" correctly in other instances, so who knows.

[HipGal]

When I taught first grade the school's speech therapist told me that age 6 was too early to qualify for the /r/ sound. (I had asked about one of my kids and she evaluated him). I think she said he should be evaluated again in second grade.

[Mizelenius]

DD was 5.5 going into KG, and still didn't say the "r" sound. I was worried she'd get teased. More importantly, I worried that it was going to become fossilized. So, I talked to her about the fact that in some parts of the country, people say "cah" and not "car," but that here in the Midwest, we do say the "r" sound. (I know on the East coast the "r" gets thrown in at other times, but I left that out of the discussion . . .).

Then we practiced. I am not a speech therapist but I remember telling her something about the "r" coming from the back of the mouth-- I think I told her to put her tongue in the back of her mouth to start off. The "w" is formed with your lips. (Disclaimer: This is what I told DD, but it is based only on my casual observation, so it may be entirely wrong.) We only practiced for about 5 minutes, but DD was motivated to learn, so she would start off on one word at a time . . .I remember her saying "world" in sentences very carefully, but other words with "r" she'd pronounce with a "w." I did not interfere or practice again with her unless she asked. Within less then 2 weeks she was saying every word with an "r" correctly, but she had to think about it. Within a few months, it seemed effortless.

Now DD (6) is working on the "r" sound with my 3 yo for fun. DD1 didn't give her any mouth lesson like I did-- but she had her pick one word ("rainbow") and DD2 says that correctly. I hear her walking around practicing that one word. I think she'll eventually transfer that to other "r" words . . .I'm not concerned since she is so young and can say that word correctly.

My point in all of this is that if it is just one sound, you may find a way to work on it at home w/o enlisting the help of a professional.