As Mandarin has gradually become the main way for mainland people to communicate daily, many of the wrong pronunciation habits that often appear in dialects account for less and less among young people. From the former husband and wife who were both in the same region, to today's combination of north and south, the importance of Mandarin for communication has become more and more prominent.
However, some problems have not gradually disappeared with such changes, but have become more and more intense, which makes us as language correction practitioners very strange. In the case of dysfunction, which occurs at an unusually high rate, it always seems to appear in some children, but it refuses to leave easily.
Functional dysarthria (FAD) is commonly known as the big tongue, yes, the big tongue we often call it. It is entirely caused by developmental factors, that is, the acquired growth environment determines whether it will appear or not. There are few epidemiological data on the large tongue, which is also related to its particular triggers.
All kinds of incentives are related to family
We know that judging a disease is done by examining the physiological condition of an individual. For example, sneezing when you have a cold, runny nose, an increase in the number of white blood cells, even psychological problems sometimes need to be treated with drugs. But this is not the case with the big tongue, and its solution cannot be completed by drugs and physical therapy.
Why is that? Let's first take a look at what may cause functional dysarthria in children, and after reading it, you can understand why the big tongue is so difficult:
Language background
The types and duration of dialects used in families of children with large tongues are significantly higher than those of ordinary families, which is supported by research data. Pronunciation in dialects is not a pronunciation error, but more of a conventional pronunciation habit, as long as communication is not affected in a specific region.
However, the coexistence of multiple dialects will lead to confusion in children's language learning, after all, there are cases where customs change, and two towns separated by dozens of kilometers cannot understand each other's words.
Diet
It is very important to wean in time and add complementary foods in time. Although children who are weaned late will be more physically strong, insufficient chewing ability will affect the development of the arthratorium organs. Oral function is related to children's eating style and food substance, and poor eating habits will only cause oral motor skills and tongue motor coordination disorders, resulting in functional dysarthria disorders.
Conditions for dependents
Whether a child will develop a large tongue is highly negatively correlated with the parents' educational attainment, and the higher the parents' education, the lower the chance of a child having a large tongue. This may be because parents with a high level of education will actively participate in their children's activities, and it is easy to find language problems in their children.
In addition, although genetic factors have not been recognized, many data have shown a close connection between the elders and the younger generations. In addition, the gender composition also deserves our attention. Boys are more likely to develop functional dysarthria than girls, which is related to differences in gender development.
Why is it better to correct the age earlier?
One might ask: Why not discuss the need for language correction? Xiaobian will not answer here first, after reading the analysis below, you will understand. First of all, functional dysarthria must be corrected, even if the doctor recommends self-correction at home, and if the parents are confident enough, the child will have to intervene artificially without going to class at the language institution, and the sooner the better.
According to data analysis from a top three hospital in Hangzhou, children with large tongues after the age of 6 have speech intelligibility that can not fully reach normal levels until at least 30 years old. In other words, if you do not accept language correction and let it develop, the problems of unclear speech and inaccurate pronunciation will take more than 20 years to disappear.
But in contrast, if a child undergoes language correction before the age of 5, the recovery of speech intelligibility only takes 1-5 years. Of course, severe cases may still take years, but they recover much more quickly than children who do not accept or receive correction later.
Moreover, the older a child is, the more secondary negative social feedback a large tongue brings. After entering school age, children with big tongues are sometimes ridiculed by their peers, dare not speak in class, and it is difficult to keep up with other children in academic performance, and the stories in Miracle Boy rarely happen in reality. Therefore, functional dysarthria must be corrected by language, and the sooner the better.
Finally, Xiaobian teaches you a few small ways to train your child's oral motor ability, which can effectively exercise the flexibility and strength of your child's tongue.
1. Extend your tongue and lick your lips
Have your child stick their tongue out of the mouth as much as possible and lick their lips up, down, left, and right. If your child doesn't want to do it, you can apply some jam or peanut butter to your child's lips.
2. Blow bubbles
Let your child bite into a straw, immerse the other end of the straw in the water, and repeatedly blow bubbles to gradually extend the time of breath.
3. Teeth twitching
Open your mouth as much as possible, place your index finger in the center of your chin, and press your jaw down hard, trying to close your mouth, mimicking the feeling of your teeth trembling.