Spot Pal Original vs Speech Pal and The Effect on Speech

Spot Pal was designed to train the tongue into a proper resting position and to combat problems such as mouth breathing, snoring, poor sleep, and sucking habits! It does this through the use of the Spot Dot which provides a tactile cue for the tongue to rest on the roof of the mouth and Tongue Pokes which help the tongue stay off of the teeth. Did you know that all models of Spot Pal including the original can be customized to include Speech Pal “bumps” to aid with additional articulation goals?

Speech Pal “bumps” can be added to the back molars for individuals who struggle with specific speech sounds such as the “r” “sh” “ch” and “j” sounds. When making these sounds, the sides of the tongue should be in contact with the inside of the back molars. It can be difficult to explain this to children and to remember the placement of the tongue while also focusing on the other articulators like the lips. With the tactile cue of the bumps, the child can accurately find the proper tongue placement for the corresponding speech sound! Furthermore, this builds the awareness of how to move the tongue to make different speech sounds and can aid with the development of other sounds moving forward. This is especially helpful when practicing at home without the support of their speech therapist!

Additionally, the design of the Spot Pal can be used as a tactile cue for other speech sounds as well. Did you know that /t/, /d/, /l/, /n/, /s/, and /z/ are all made right on the Spot Dot? If you try out saying the different sounds, you should feel the tongue returning to the same spot on the roof of the mouth behind your top teeth.

Having the Spot Pal or Speech Pal can help children understand where their tongue should be contacting the palate for correct speech production. With the understanding of where to place the tongue, they can easily focus on the other articulators and progress through their speech goals quickly and accurately!