Speech Buddies are a series of

speech therapy Speech is a human vocal communication using language. Each language uses phonetic combinations of vowel and consonant sounds that form the sound of its words (that is, all English words sound different from all French words, even if they are th ...

tools to remediate articulation and speech sound disorders using the teaching method of

tactile feedback In physiology, the somatosensory system is the network of neural structures in the brain and body that produce the perception of touch (haptic perception), as well as temperature (thermoception), body position (proprioception), and pain. It i ...

. Speech Buddies were created by Articulate Technologies, Inc., in

San Francisco, California San Francisco (; Spanish for " Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the fourth most populous in California and 17th ...

. Speech Buddies and Speech Buddy are

trademark A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...

s of Articulate Technologies, Inc. They are

FDA The United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA or US FDA) is a federal agency of the Department of Health and Human Services. The FDA is responsible for protecting and promoting public health through the control and supervision of food s ...

-listed

medical device A medical device is any device intended to be used for medical purposes. Significant potential for hazards are inherent when using a device for medical purposes and thus medical devices must be proved safe and effective with reasonable assura ...

s. There are five different Speech Buddies, each one addressing an individual sound: R, S, L, CH or SH. These tools try to teach the correct

tongue The tongue is a muscular organ (anatomy), organ in the mouth of a typical tetrapod. It manipulates food for mastication and swallowing as part of the digestive system, digestive process, and is the primary organ of taste. The tongue's upper surfa ...

placement when trying to produce the sounds. Preliminary research results from a single-blind

randomized controlled trial A randomized controlled trial (or randomized control trial; RCT) is a form of scientific experiment used to control factors not under direct experimental control. Examples of RCTs are clinical trials that compare the effects of drugs, surgical te ...

suggest that they may increase the speed at which a child can learn to correct his speech sound disorder.https://www.speech-buddies.com/assets/files/White%20Paper%20SB%20Clincal%20Trial-8-20-2010.pdf

References

External links

* {{Official website, www.speechbuddy.com Speech and language pathology Special education