Tongue exercise

It has been about 10 days now since we started "tongue exercise" with the lil' one. To make it fun, RE joins in too.

So what do we do?

Tongue Stimulating & tongue strenghtening
i) Use a tongue depressor (supposedly those wood tongue depressor that the doctor used) which in our case is the milk powder scoop - the handle part, then gently rub the tip of the tongue a couple of times.
ii) Rub the top of the tongue: back to front, side to side
iii) rub the each side of the tongue: back to front.
iv) Smear jam on his lips and ask him to lick up the jam using his tongue.
v) Smear jam on his lips and ask him to smack his lips to clean it.
vi) Put little dab of jam on the side (left and right) or top and bottom, each spot one at a time and ask him to stick out his tongue to try and lick it.
vii) We play monkey face game, but moving the tongue left and right, top and bottom.
viii) Make "cluck" cluck sound using the tongue.
ix) Smear jam on the tongue depressor and ask him to lick it like an ice-cream or lollipop.

Sounds and movements imitation
Using various finger and body movement, we try to make sounds such as:
i) the vowels, "a", "e", "i", "o", "u".
ii) combining consonants with vowels: ma, mo,and etc.

Strengthening oral muscle
Blow water bubble using straw
Blow whistle.

There is a long way to go for JE. Over the past 10 days, I can see some slight improvements in his tongue movements. He has better control of it and is able to signal it to move the way he wants it. However, he still has a problem making the tongue tilt upwards or downwards. In terms of the sounds imitation, he can only say the "a", "i" and "o" sounds which he could before this. Same goes with the "ma" and "mo" sound. It is just reinforcement. He is weak in blowing as he does not close his mouth (purse his lips fully) when blowing. So wind escape and his blowing lacks power in making loud whistle sound and big bubbles.

Last night, I added mirror into our play and I found it very useful as he can see for himself how to control his muscle besides trying to imitate me.

I am also doing some oral exercise with RE who has problem pronouncing"f" which he pronounces it as "p". This is difficult and I am beginning to wonder if it is because of his jaw structure. If you notice, most of us when we close our mouth, our upper row of teeth clasped on top of our bottom row of teeth but for RE it is reverse. So it is quite a challenge for his to say the "f" sound. Anyone with experience and ideas to help?

I spoke to a colleague of mine who studies on special education. She told me that I have to be very "rajin" (hardworking) and must do all the various oral motor exercise with JE everyday. She also gave me some ideas.

Hcp is coming home tonight, so the tongue exercise will be more fun ;) .