/b/ Initial Flashcards
Conventional word-initial /b/ targets at the single-word level.
Session summary (SOAP)
Stays on this screen. Nothing is saved or sent.
Mark a card Correct, Correct with cue or Incorrect and the summary writes itself here.
How to run it
Start with the one-syllable words: bed, bag, bee, box. /b/ is made with the lips pressed together and the voice on, then released as a small pop, so a mirror does most of the cueing — the child can see whether the lips close. Take the long words last. Banana and button add syllables the child has to keep hold of, and it is useful to know whether the /b/ slips when the word gets longer. Six minutes covers the twelve with a second pass on the ones that wobbled.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentShow the card and wait 3 seconds for the student to say it.Log as correct
- Visual cuePoint to your mouth, or show the mouth picture for /b/, before the student tries again.Log as cued
- Verbal modelSay the word; the student says it right after you.Log as cued
- Placement cueLips pressed together, then pop them open with your voice on. Feel the buzz in your throat.Log as cued
Adjust it
Drop to syllables ('ba' and 'bee'), or use fewer cards.
Put each word in a short carrier phrase with no /b/ in it or mix in /b/ words from another position.
Matching IEP goal
Given picture cards, Student will produce /b/ in the word-initial position in single words in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a visual cue.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Twelve words starting with /b/: bed, book, bag, bee, boat, baby, bike, box, boy, bunny, banana, button. Most are one syllable, and the three longer ones — baby, bunny, banana — are there for when the short words are steady and you want to see whether the sound holds up in a longer word shape.
What to listen for
Listen for /p/ replacing it. Pag for bag or pee for bee means the lips are closing but the voice is coming in late, and a hand on the throat to feel the buzz is a quick check. If the lips are not closing at all — a /d/ or a vowel in place of the /b/ — go back to the mirror. Notice whether bunny and button come out as one clean /b/ or whether the child reduces the word to fit.
Carrying it home
Bed, book, bag and bath time give plenty of natural chances. Say the word back clearly — yes, your book — rather than asking for a repeat, and point to your own lips when you say it so the child sees them close.
What's in this activity
- bed
- book
- bag
- bee
- boat
- baby
- bike
- box
- boy
- bunny
- banana
- button
Questions
- What grades is this for?
- Pre-K through second grade, at the single-word level.
- Is it free?
- Yes. The board plays in the browser with no login; an account adds session data, goal scoring and assignment.
- My child says 'pee' for 'bee'. What do I cue?
- The voice. The lips are already doing their job; ask the child to feel their throat buzz on bee and not on pee, and to start the buzz before the lips open.
Use this board with your caseload
With a free account, every correct, cued and incorrect mark is saved to the student and scored against their IEP goal, with the data written up for you. Assign it as home practice through the parent portal.
Track progress freeFree for SLPs. No card, no trial clock.