- my iParenting
- quick clicks
- babies today articles
- babies today q&a
- toddlers today articles
- toddlers today q&a
- breastfeed.com articles
- breastfeed.com q&a
- community & groups
- research baby names
- prepare a birth plan
- content channels
- ip channel rss feeds
- read birth stories
- read parenting stories
- recommended books
- e-newsletters
- safety recalls
- ip diaries
- ip store
- mom of the month
- dad of the month
- editor's letter
- letters to the editor
From Our Sponsors
- e-newsletters
- Sign up to receive our free weekly e-newsletters
- award-winning products
The iParenting Media Awards program helps parents find the best products for their families.
Expert Q&A
 |  |  |
| By Mindy Hudon Speech and Language Pathologist | ||
 |
What is a lisp?
A lisp is a distorted or mispronunciation of the speech sounds. There are two basic types of lisps:
Frontal lisp: A frontal lisp is produced when the tongue pushes out between the front teeth when saying "s" and "z" and sounds like a "th." For example, "thoap" for "soap" or "houth" for "house."
Lateral lisp: A lateral lisp is produced when the tongue lays flat and protrudes between the teeth, causing air to escape into the cheeks rather than straight out of the mouth when producing "s," "z," "sh," "ch" and "j". The result is speech that is distorted, wet and "bubbly" sounding.
A lisp can occur with other sound substitutions or alone. When children exhibit a lisp alone, it usually does not affect their speech intelligibility – that is, how well you understand their speech. Nevertheless, a lisp sounds and looks different. School-aged children can feel embarrassed and become self-conscious about talking. They may not participate in classroom conversations. Dr. Caroline Bowen, a speech-language pathologist says, "While there is usually little impact on intelligibility, the impact of a lisp on a child's 'image' can be quite powerful."
Television and movies often cast children who lisp because they "sound cute." A well-intentioned parent may disregard their child's lisp for the same reason. As the child grows, parents realize that this type of speech is no longer cute, especially if it starts to impact their written language. Some school-aged children have trouble spelling, because they may sound out words as they write and misinterpret the distorted "s" or "z" sound for a "th."
Related Expert Q&A
- A friend of mine told me I need to add words to my child's sentences. Why, and how do you do this?
- What are the speech milestones for 24- to 36-month-olds?
- How can I model language for my toddler using "parallel talk"?
- How can I model language for my toddler using "self-talk"?
- At what level should my 2-year-old be at in regards to speech and language skills?
More Answers by this Expert
- My 10-month-old's babbles are starting to sound more like actual letters now. What letter sounds are generally a baby's first?
- My 1-year-old has started to say two-syllable words such as "ma ma," "da da," "ba ba" and "boo boo." What are some techniques to increase his vocabulary?
- Where is a good place to find videotapes, CDs, etc., for teaching my child different languages?
- Is it true that learning a foreign language at the preschool and toddler age is easier than for a middle school child?
- My 7-year-old still talks with a slight lisp. Should I consider speech therapy?