/b/ Initial Phrases
Two-to-four word phrases with word-initial /b/, the step between words and sentences.
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
Model each phrase once, then have the student say it back as one breath group rather than word by word. Cue placement as lips together, then pop them open with the voice on. Start with the single-target phrases, go to bed and eat the banana, before the loaded ones like a big bug and a button box, where the lips must close again and again. Five minutes covers the set with two or three repetitions each.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentShow the card and let the student say the whole phrase on their own.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 phrase with the /b/ word slightly stressed; the student repeats it.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
Go back to single words: the student says just the /b/ word from each card.
Move to sentences: the student puts the phrase into a sentence of their own.
Matching IEP goal
Given phrase cards, Student will produce /b/ in the word-initial position in phrases 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
Ten short phrases with word-initial /b/, built for the student who has /b/ in single words and loses it the moment a second word arrives: a big bug, go to bed, my book bag, the bee is back, bounce the ball, a baby bunny, a baseball bat. Several of them stack two or three /b/ words together, so each phrase gives more than one attempt, and the words around the target are short and easy.
What to listen for
Listen for the /b/ in the second and third words, not only the first. A student who says big clearly and then drifts on bug is showing you where the phrase level gets hard. Notice devoicing, where bounce the ball comes out closer to pounce, and whether the lips actually close on baseball bat or only approach each other. Eat the banana puts /b/ mid-phrase after a vowel, which is a useful check.
Carrying it home
Pick two phrases a day and use them in real routines: say go to bed at bedtime and bounce the ball outside. Have the child say the phrase before the action happens. A short, real phrase repeated in context carries over better than a long list read at a table.
What's in this activity
- a big bug
- go to bed
- my book bag
- the bee is back
- the boy's boat
- bounce the ball
- eat the banana
- a baby bunny
- a button box
- a baseball bat
Questions
- Who is this for?
- PreK through second grade students who produce /b/ in single words and are ready for two-to-four word phrases before moving to sentences.
- Is it free?
- Yes. The board plays free in the browser with no login. An account adds session data, goal scoring and assignment to a student.
- What if the student cannot hold /b/ across the phrase yet?
- Drop back to single words taken from the phrases, such as bug, bed and ball, then rebuild one phrase at a time, starting with the ones that carry a single /b/.
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.