Source: http://firstgradefuntastic.blogspot.com
Speech therapists must target a variety of phonology and articulation issues in therapy. Today we’ll talk about treating cluster reductions for the /s/ sound. The /s/ sound is found in a variety of combinations with other letters, called “blends.” Some /s/ words with a blend can include “spider” (the consonants blended together are s and p), “skate” (s and k) or “spoon” (s and p). When someone reduces the number of sounds in a blend, it is called cluster reduction. A child might have difficulty if you hear them saying “poon” for “spoon,” “sate” for “skate” or “pider” for “spider.” They might not be as tricky as teaching the /r/ sound, but clusters have their own treatment techniques in speech therapy.
