How to Teach the R Sound in Speech Therapy: 6 Steps to Mastery
The Dreaded R Sound: A Way to Teach the R Sound That Actually Works
You know that one sound that makes even the most seasoned SLPs question their entire career path?
Yeah. R.
I mostly work with younger guys, so I could sort of sidestep the R problem for a while. But lately, a few older students—first, second, and fourth graders—have landed on my caseload with one very specific need: that pesky R sound.
I won’t pretend to be an R expert (does such a thing even exist?), but I have put together a method that’s been surprisingly effective. And if it’s helping my students, I figured it might help yours, too.
Step 1: Lay the Groundwork for the R Sound
Before I even touch the R sound, I focus on oral awareness and control. Huge shoutout to Char Boshart here—this part of the process is all about building foundational skills like tongue placement, stability, and jaw control. It’s a “get to know your mouth” kind of vibe, and trust me, it matters.
So, some may say NSOMES?!?! But I see these as stepping stones to overall awareness of what the tongue can do and conscious CONTROL - which is critical for any speech sound. Can't make a sound if you can't get placement, amiright?
A lot of this is from Char Boshart and Pam Marshalla.
Some oral awareness and capacity building tasks we do:
“Fat vs. skinny” tongue: We need a wide flat tongue to get the sides braced on the lateral molars.
Tongue bowls: We need to get the sides of the tongue up. We don’t do a full taco tongue - although I WILL use the taco as a step to the bowl if I have to.
Tongue retraction: The child needs to understand what it means just to pull the tongue back - and flat, not curled - into the mouth.
Tongue suction to the roof of mouth: We do the suction then drag it slightly backwards in the mouth. I then have the child work on gently releasing the suction but not letting the tongue drop completely. If they can do this, this usually leads to nice lateral margin bracing with medial depression (a bowel), and retraction. It’s like almost all of the major components for the R! I also feel like it helps them grasp that idea of tension.
Now, I want to mention that this is not the BULK of my treatment. It is a starting point. And crucial IMO. The child needs to have conscious control of their tongue and awareness of the anatomy in order to get the placement for the R sound!
At this point, we also discuss the anatomy of the mouth so the child and I have a common vocabulary about where the articulators need to go. We also discuss what specifically the tongue needs to do for the R sound: sides up, back down, pull back in the mouth, tip up. We will use pictures or a giant mouth model. Whatever works.
Step 2: Elicit a Solid “ER”
Next, I zone in on just one target: a clean, strong “ER” (like in “her”). Don’t worry about any other R variation. I promise. Just focus on the “ER” sound. Every other R variation can be built around it!
To get the “ER”, I pull out every cue, visual, and trick in the book. There is no one magic cue either, sorry. The right cues are the ones that work for the child in front of you!
And, we stay here as long as it takes. Sometimes, the child is so close, but not quite getting it. I’ve even said, “Just move the tongue around a little bit. Play around with where it goes and see how that changes the sound.” Since the child is familiar with what the tongue CAN and SHOULD do, sometimes that’s all it takes to push us over the hill.
If I hear one good “ER” we freeze! And then immediately try to replicate it. Sometimes I have the child hold out a long “ER” and close their eyes to feel what the mouth is doing. But, once that “ER” clicks, everything else starts falling into place.
Step 3: Drill the Heck Out of It
Once “ER” is solid, we drill it—hard. We’re not jumping to words or sentences yet. Just “ER” in isolation, again and again and again. Think hundreds of reps per session (thanks, SATPAC, for the inspiration). I want “ER” to be second nature before we move on. It needs to be automatic and effortless to just “hit that er.”
Step 4: Add Initial Consonants
When “ER” is automatic, I introduce initial consonants. We build out combos like “per,” “ter,” “ker,”. I basically just go through all possible initial sounds in the English language. I’m really intentional here about transitions and smooth blending—another tweak I borrowed from SATPAC. If one beginning sound is more difficult than others, we will focus in on it and drill it even more. So, let’s say L + ER is harder to produce. Then I pull that out and we work on getting it smooth and effortless.
Step 5: Conquer the Other Vocalic Rs
Here’s where things get fun. Using a “vowel + ER” approach, we build out all those tricky vocalic R sounds: “air,” “ear,” “ire,” and so on. For example, for “air,” we start with a clean “ay” and slide into “ER.” Once you’ve got a dependable “ER,” this part feels like magic. I spend as much time here as needed - just getting the vocalic R variations. But then, we will do simple words. Check out this freebie I made for all vocalic R sounds in various positions of words.
Step 6: Tackle Initial R and Clusters
Honestly? Once “ER” is automatic, initial R and R-blends become so much easier. They’re basically just “ER” in disguise. With enough practice, these placements feel like no big deal.
And That’s It! Now You Can Teach the R Sound in Speech Therapy!
It’s not flashy, but it’s systematic—and most importantly, it’s working. Start with some oral awareness, get a solid ER, and I feel like the rest will be downhill!
I’ve got a rising third grader coming in this summer to work on R, and I’ll keep you posted on how this method holds up with him!
Some R Speech Therapy Resources for You:
Before you go, I want to share a few materials I’ve created specifically for the R sound. Once my students have the basics down, these tools help with carryover, generalization, and randomization of practice to keep things fresh and challenging.
