Auditory bombardment: a simple strategy to improve pronunciation (part 1: what, why, when and for how long)

What is auditory bombardment?

Auditory bombardment consists of making a child hear a specific sound very often to help them better notice it, recognize it... and eventually better pronounce it.

The goal is not for the child to repeat immediately. Rather, it's about helping their brain better hear and recognize the sound before working on pronunciation. In a way, it's quietly preparing the ground before the "real exercises."

Why do we use auditory bombardment?

Before producing a sound correctly, a child must first be able to hear it well and differentiate it from other similar sounds.

For example, some children replace the /sh/ sound with the /s/ sound. They say "sa" instead of "cha." However, for an adult, these two sounds seem very different. So why this confusion? Because, from the child's perspective, the /sh/ and /s/ sounds are very similar:

·      these are two sounds that can be stretched for a long time

·      they are produced without vocal cord vibration

·      the mouth and tongue adopt a relatively similar position

In short, to a young child's ears, it's a bit like two brothers who look alike and wear almost the same coat.

When the mental representation of a sound is still imprecise, the child can therefore mix two sounds and choose the one that is easier to produce to replace the other.

If we want to help a child stop replacing /ch/ with /s/, we must first ensure that they understand that these are two different sounds. We cannot ask a child to correct an error they do not hear. That would be like asking a colorblind person to sort objects by color...

This is where auditory bombardment becomes useful. Even before working on pronunciation, we help the child build a clearer model of the sound.

An important point:

As a sound varies slightly depending on the words, hearing it in different contexts helps the child to better recognize it and produce it more easily.

Remember: before being able to say a sound correctly, a child must first learn to hear it correctly.

When to use auditory bombardment?

Auditory bombardment can be useful at different times:

·      before working on sound production

·      during learning

·      when the sound is almost acquired, to consolidate progress

Before production, it mainly serves as preparation.

For example, if a child transforms /ch/ into /s/, it may be beneficial to start with a period of auditory bombardment before doing pronunciation exercises. At this stage, auditory bombardment acts a bit like a warm-up for the brain.

During learning, it acts more as a reminder.

If your child is working on a sound in speech therapy, increasing the frequency of this sound in their daily life allows them to:

·      hear good models more often

·      keep the goal active in their mind

·      more easily notice the sound in words

Essentially, the brain quietly tells itself:

"Oh yes! THIS is the sound we're working on!"

When the sound is almost acquired, auditory bombardment can also serve as a guide.

For example, if the child is making the mistake of replacing "ch" with "s" less and less often, but it still comes back occasionally, continuing to increase the frequency of the sound can help them better anticipate its presence in words and maintain their good productions.

How long should auditory bombardment be done?

Good news: auditory bombardment does not need to be very long to be effective.

What matters most is not the total duration of the activity, but rather:

• the frequency with which the sound is heard

• the number of occurrences of the sound within a short period of time

• and regularity in daily life

In other words, a few well-targeted minutes are often more useful than a long activity where the sound appears infrequently.

In several phonological approaches used in speech therapy, such as Hodson and Paden's Cycles Approach, auditory bombardment often lasts about 1 to 2 minutes at a time, with a list of about 10 to 15 words containing the targeted sound.

The main goal is to have the child hear the sound often and regularly in different words.

For example:

• a few minutes during bath time

• a short reading before bedtime

• a few repeated phrases during play

... can already offer a lot of exposure to the sound.

Remember: 2 minutes of auditory bombardment done often is better than a long session done once in a while.

In the second part of this article, coming next month, we will explain concretely how to apply this strategy in daily life and suggest tools to achieve it. Stay tuned!