Resonant Voice Practice
Move the voice forward, from hum to phrase to conversation.
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
Do not skip a step. The sequence goes hum, hum-to-vowel, word, phrase, counting, sentence, conversation, and each one is a small extension of the last — a student who jumps to conversation loses the placement and has nothing to return to. The compare-how-they-feel card is where the student becomes convinced, and conviction is what makes them use it outside the room. Twenty minutes covers the sequence.
Cueing ladder
Start at the top. Add support one step at a time.
- IndependentThe student uses resonant voice on their own. Listen without reminding.Log as correct
- Visual reminderTouch your own lips and nose to show where the buzz should be felt.Log as cued
- Verbal reminderSay a short reminder, such as 'Easy, forward buzz.'Log as cued
- ModelSay it yourself using the technique; the student copies, then tries the card again.Log as cued
Voice work belongs after an ENT examination. If hoarseness lasts or gets worse, stop and refer back to the physician.
Adjust it
Go back to hums or single words, and shorten each turn.
Move to longer turns, then conversation, then a noisier room.
Matching IEP goal
Student will use resonant voice in sentences in 8 of 10 opportunities across 3 consecutive sessions, given no more than a visual reminder.
Send it home through the parent portal →About this activity
Eight steps from a hum to conversation: hum and find the buzz on your lips and the front of your face; hum, then open into mmm-ah keeping the same buzz; say many men make money with the buzz forward; count one to ten keeping the front-of-face vibration; read two sentences with resonance and two without and compare how they feel; carry the resonance into a thirty-second conversation.
What to listen for
Listen for the transition from hum to vowel, which is where the placement is usually lost. Mmm-ah should keep the same forward buzz, and a student whose ah drops back into the throat has not carried it. Notice the name card — say your own name resonantly then conversationally — since the difference in effort on a word said a hundred times a day is what makes the technique worth the trouble. Resonant voice is a well-established technique and it is still not a first step. A student whose voice has been rough for more than about four weeks should be examined by an ENT before this work begins.
Carrying it home
Humming for a few seconds before a demanding speaking situation is a portable version of the whole sequence. It costs nothing and does not look like an exercise.
What's in this activity
- Hum and find the buzz on your lips and the front of your face.
- Hum, then open into 'mmm-ah' keeping the same buzz.
- Say 'many men make money' with the buzz forward.
- Move from a hum straight into 'my mom made me a smoothie.'
- Count one to ten keeping the front-of-face vibration.
- Say your own name resonantly, then conversationally. Which is easier on your throat?
- Read two sentences with resonance and two without. Compare how they feel.
- Carry the resonance into a thirty-second conversation.
Questions
- What ages is this for?
- Ninth through twelfth grade, for voice therapy with older students.
- Do I need an account?
- No, all eight steps are free to use here.
- What does resonant voice actually change?
- It moves the vibration forward, which lets the voice be produced with less pressure at the vocal folds. The point is a voice that costs less effort for the same loudness.
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.