What cue helps with /f/?

“Bunny teeth”: top teeth on the bottom lip, then blow. A mirror lets the student see the placement, and a hand in front of the mouth lets them feel the steady stream of air.

My student says /p/ for /f/. What is that?

That is stopping: a sound that should flow is replaced by a short stop. Practice holding the sound (“ffff”) before adding the vowel, and use the stopping minimal pairs so the student hears the difference.

How is /f/ different from /v/?

The placement is the same; /v/ adds the voice. A student who has /f/ can use the same placement with a voicing cue, a hand on the throat, to start on /v/.

Free /f/ articulation activities and games

6 free activities · no sign-up

/f/ is made with the top teeth resting lightly on the lower lip while air flows out, with no voice. A child who stops longer sounds may say /p/ for /f/ (“pish” for “fish”), and the stopping minimal pairs (“fig” or “pig”) show why that matters to a listener.

The word-position flashcards are the core drill, and the mixed sentences carry /f/ into longer utterances. The auditory bombardment list is for listening before speaking, and the drag-and-drop board turns initial and final /f/ words into a game.

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Play free/f/ Auditory Bombardment ListOpen full activity →

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All 6 activities

Word level 3

Sentence level 1

/f/ Mixed SentencesShort sentences loaded with /f/ across positions for sentence-level practice.FlashcardsGrades 1–48 cards

Games, stories and more 2

Questions

What cue helps with /f/?: “Bunny teeth”: top teeth on the bottom lip, then blow. A mirror lets the student see the placement, and a hand in front of the mouth lets them feel the steady stream of air.
My student says /p/ for /f/. What is that?: That is stopping: a sound that should flow is replaced by a short stop. Practice holding the sound (“ffff”) before adding the vowel, and use the stopping minimal pairs so the student hears the difference.
How is /f/ different from /v/?: The placement is the same; /v/ adds the voice. A student who has /f/ can use the same placement with a voicing cue, a hand on the throat, to start on /v/.

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