Are you a speech therapist working on the SM consonant sounds? Or in need of s blends to practice your student’s speech sounds? If so, then this blog post is just what you need! It has over 63 target words that will help strengthen your child or student’s sm consonant blends. Be sure to use our flashcards of sm words for speech therapy practice below!
SM Words Speech Therapy
Making easy-to-use resources for speech-language pathologists is my passion! Below I’ve outlined target words, phrases, and sentences for practice as well as interactive flashcards and a free one-page printable with real-life photos. Be sure to save this post so you can refer back to it often and easily use it for your therapy room lesson planning!
Phonological Processes
A phonological disorder is when a child’s speech makes multiple similar sound errors.
Be sure to consult with a certified Speech-Language Pathologist if your child is experiencing a phonological speech disorder.
Consonant Clusters
For example, consonant cluster reduction, a type of phonological process, is when a child or student reduces a cluster, two or three consonants together also known as consonant clusters down to just one consonant, such as the “sm” blend down to simply the s sound.
For example, the word “smell” would become “sell”.
Minimal Pairs
Using minimal pairs is a great idea when trying to work on phonological speech disorders such as in the example above of working on cluster reduction using s-blend words.
For example, when using minimal pairs for cluster reduction with s-blends you could use the minimal pairs of “smoke” and “soak”.
While showing the child or student pictures of smoke vs. a soak and have them listen to hear the different sounds at the beginning of each word.
You could lay out the two pictures for the words smoke and soak and then ask the child to point to the picture of smoke or the picture of soak.
You could then move on to having the child be the teacher and tell you to pick up the correct words either the picture of the word “smoke” or “soak”. If you pick up the incorrect picture due to their sound errors you could point out the sound they are producing is for the other picture.
The English language can be confusing and using visual picture cards and minimal pair words can help to identify the right sound.
Target Words
Here’s a list of sm blend sounds for you to use in therapy or at home practice to work on your student or child’s new skill.
- For Example: smart, smile, smack, smash, smell, smirk, smooth, smoke, Smith, small
See full list of words, phrases, and sentences below.
Be sure to grab my free speech articulation worksheets of sm-blends below for your articulation therapy. Simply scroll to the bottom of this post and grab your free copy!
Correct Production
The /s/ initial sounds in the English language are made by lightly placing the tip of your tongue on the ridge right behind your upper front teeth called the alveolar ridge.
Be sure to place the sides of the tongue against the upper side of your teeth to allow for the passage of air to go down the center of the tongue.
Then while smiling blow a skinny stream of air over the center of your tongue (you do not want the air to come out the sides of the tongue).
Practice in Flash Card Mode Right Here from Your Computer!
SM-Blend Words
Word Level: SM Words Speech Therapy
Initial Blends of the SM Sound
The initial position of the sm sound is at the beginning of a word followed by vowel sounds. For example, “smelly” or “smoking”.
SM Words Speech Therapy: Word List
Articulation Practice at the Word Level
Some ways to get extra practice include having your child or student say each initial sm-blend one by one as they go through a list.
Also, some young children might find it fun to use a dot marker and place a dot under each initial s blend they practice.
In addition, I’ve compiled an easy-to-download one-page overview of the initial s sounds below. Simply scroll down to the bottom of this post and download your free copy.
- 1 Syllable: smart, smile, smack, smash, smell, smirk, smooth, smoke, smith, small, smear, smudge, smug, smooch, smog, smore, smurf, smarts
- 2 Syllable: smelly, smoking, smoothie, smiley, smarty, smaller, smashing, smuggler, smother, smacking, smoker, smallest, smiler, smitten, smudging, smarting, smuggler, smirking, smacker, smithy, smelling, smoothness, smirker, smugness, smallness, smelting, smooching, smallpox, smartie, smokey
- 3 Syllable: Smothering, smoldering, smattering, smithereens, smokestack, smelliness, smogginess, smokiness, smorgasbord, smotherer, Smartwater
- 4 Syllable: smokejumper, smokechaser
Initial SM Words Speech Therapy
1 Syllable | 2 Syllable | 3 Syllable |
---|---|---|
smart | smelly | smothering |
smile | smoking | smoldering |
smack | smoothie | smattering |
smash | smiley | smithereens |
smell | smarty | smokestack |
smirk | smaller | smelliness |
smooth | smashing | smogginess |
smoke | smuggler | smokiness |
smith | smother | smorgasbord |
small | smacking | smotherer |
smear | smoker | smartwater |
smudge | smallest | |
smug | smiler | |
smooch | smitten | |
smog | smudging | |
smore | smarting | |
smurf | smuggler | |
smarts | smirking | |
smacker | ||
smithy | ||
smelling | ||
smoothness | ||
smirker | ||
smugness | ||
smallness | ||
smelting | ||
smooching | ||
smallpox | ||
smartie | ||
smokey |
4 Syllable |
---|
smokejumper |
smokechaser |
SEE ALSO: 21 Best Reinforcement Games for Speech Therapy
SM Blend Words at the Phrase Level
When working on s blend sound productions, it’s important to work on short phrases once your child or student has mastered the initial s blend sound at the word level at or near 80% or higher accuracy.
Here is a list of sm blends in phrases to practice:
SM Words Speech Therapy in Phrases
1 Syllable | 2 Syllable | 3 Syllable |
---|---|---|
smart girl | smelly trash | smothering me |
smile more | smoking briskets | smoldering look |
dramatic smack | berry smoothie | smattering across |
smash mat | smiley kid | blown up in smithereens |
smell bad | smarty pants | smokestack billowed |
cute smirk | smaller cup | smelliness was unbearable |
smooth water | smashing dress | thick smogginess |
smoke rose | caught the smuggler | made me cough |
smith shops | grandma will smother | smorgasbord of options |
small cat | smacking lips | aunt is a smotherer |
smear mud | new smoker | smartwater bottles |
fingerprints smudge | smallest flower | |
smug look | big smiler | |
Quick smooch | totally smitten | |
smog test | began smudging | |
love smores | eyes were smarting | |
blue smurf | smuggler was caught | |
it smarts | smirking face | |
hit a smacker | ||
smithy closed down | ||
dog was smelling | ||
smoothness of the blanket | ||
boy was a big smirker | ||
smugness rubbed off | ||
smallness of the dog | ||
smelting metal | ||
caught smooching | ||
smallpox virus | ||
smartie candy | ||
smokey mountains |
4 Syllable |
---|
smokejumper training |
word for smokechaser |
Sentence Level: SM Words Speech Therapy
The next step after working at the word and phrase levels are to work on the initial s blend sound at the sentence level.
For example, you could give your child or student a list of sentences to read aloud while they work on their s-blend sound.
Another idea would be to give your child or student pictures with their s blend sound in them and then have them create a sentence about those pictures.
Below is a list of sentences to use with your child or students.
SM Words for Speech Therapy in Sentences
1 Syllable |
---|
She is a smart girl. |
I will smile more. |
The soap opera character gave a dramatic smack. |
He played with a smash mat. |
The pickles smell bad. |
He has a cute smirk. |
The boat glide across the smooth water. |
The chimney smoke rose up into the skylines. |
The smith shop closed years ago. |
I want a small cat. |
He will smear mud on the wall. |
The fingerprints had a smudge and were unreadable. |
He gave a smug look. |
She gave her husband a quick smooch before work. |
My car needs a smog test. |
I love smores around the campfire. |
The blue smurf is cute. |
A splinter smarts to pull out. |
2 Syllable |
---|
Take the smelly trash out! |
My dad is smoking a brisket for this weekend. |
I love my berry smoothie. |
He is a smiley kid. |
Her dad calls her a smarty pants. |
She gave me the smaller cup. |
It was an absolutely smashing dress. |
The police caught the smuggler. |
My grandma will smother me in kisses when I visit. |
As he chewed, he was smacking his lips. |
The new smoker was just delivered. |
I picked the smallest flower. |
My aunt is a big smiler. |
She is totally smitten with her boyfriend. |
My mascara and eyeliner are smudging across my face. |
My eyes were smarting while I cut the onions. |
The smuggler was caught by the police. |
His smirking face was annoying to me. |
The baseball player hit a smacker across the field. |
The smithy closed down last year. |
The dog was smelling the tree. |
The smoothness of the blanket was comforting. |
The boy was a big smirker and had an attitude. |
The smugness rubbed off his face when he realized he was wrong. |
The smallness of the dog surprised me. |
The smelting metal poured into the mold. |
They were caught smooching under the mistletoe. |
The smallpox virus is contagious. |
The smartie candies are my favorite. |
I will hike in the smokey mountains. |
3 Syllable |
---|
It felt like he was smothering me with attention and I needed space. |
His smoldering look made me blush. |
I picked up a smattering of French during my semester abroad. |
It was blown up in smithereens. |
The smokestack billowed across the field. |
The smelliness was unbearable. |
The thick smogginess made seeing difficult. |
Allergies make me cough. |
The restaurant menu had a smorgasbord of options. |
My aunt is a smotherer when I visit. |
I prefer the smartwater bottles to others. |
4 Syllable |
---|
Smokejumper training is extremely dangerous. |
Another word for smokechaser is firefighter. |
SEE ALSO: 65+ SN Words for Speech Therapy + PDF
SM Words Speech Therapy Ideas for Specific Topics
Video Games
Are you looking to add some fun and engaging activities to your therapy sessions?
Video games are a great way to reinforce practice while working on your students’ sounds.
Some fan favorite articulation games to try can be found here: Free Articulation Games for Speech Therapy or check out our list of 21 Best Reinforcement Games for Speech Therapy / Teletherapy.
Want even more games? Check out our list of 41 Free Online Speech Therapy Activities for more than just articulation fun.
Have students who are obsessed with Boom Cards? Then you definitely will want to check out our list of over 917 Best Free Boom Cards for Speech Therapy.
Cluster Reduction Packet
If you have a student working on phonological awareness of cluster reduction here are a few resources that you might find helpful.
- Free Winter Speech Therapy Dot Art: Consonant Cluster Reduction (S Blends) by Ausome Speech is a set of printable sheets that target s blends cluster reduction. The sheets can be used for dot art, mini erasers, paint markers, homework, stickers, bingo markers, and coloring.
- SM Blends with Visuals by Lauren Laurelli are free worksheets of sm blends and visuals! Work on cluster reduction or minimal pair activities with these prepared sheets.
Articulation Activities
Here are a couple of fun and quick articulation activities to work on the sm-blend sound.
- Thanksgiving Friendly Sounds: Articulation Supports for Sm-, Sn-, Sk- Blends by Speech Sanity is a great resource to practice articulation. Both visual and tactile prompts are provided. This bundle includes 2 different sound picture scenes, 4 phoneme cards, and a data collection sheet.
- Beginning S Blends Digital Phonics Game FLASH FREEBIE by Made Whimsically is a fun, engaging game with 56 task cards for S blends.
- Articulation Bingo: sm- and sn- clusters by Artic this Out is a simple but fun game for younger students! Use this game with teletherapy or in-person to engage your students in good practice of sn blends.
Older Students
Do you have older speech students, such as a middle school student, high school student, or even an adult speech client on your caseload?
Then be sure to check out the following resources.
- Speech Artic – initial /sm/ and /sn/ consonant blends: Straight-6 Bingo Game by Jackie G is a fun, interactive game that prompts students to read sn or sm blends at word or sentence level as they play bingo! This is a fun, print and go activity for early ed grades.
- Minimal Pairs /SM/ vs. /F/ Cards by Speak n Learn is a helpful set of cards to assist in assimilating ‘sm’. Great to use with minimal pairs therapy with older kids!
Variety of Home Practice Sheets
If you’re in need of a friendly print worksheet to send home for practice here are a few worth checking out.
- Initial S Blend Drill Worksheet by The Speech Spot Creations is a simple, no-prep worksheet that can be used to practice articulation with ‘sm’ and other s blends in the initial position.
- S- Blends Coloring Sheet by Zamora Gissell is a no-prep sheet of coloring pages that are perfect for quick and engaging articulation practice of s blends!
Game Board
Are you looking to add some fun and engaging activities to your therapy sessions?
Board games are a great way to reinforce articulation therapy practice while working on your students’ sounds.
Some different types of board games to try are: Battleship, Connect Four, or Go Fish to name a few.
SEE ALSO: Free Articulation Games for Speech Therapy
Short Stories
Are you a speech pathologist looking for s sound blends to practice while reading a short story?
Here are a couple of short stories that include the articulation sound of sm-blends.
- Orton-Gillignham Story- S blends, st, sn, sm, sk by Orton-Gillingham Learning Support Teacher is a great story for teaching lessons on s blends!
SEE ALSO: 279+ Free Speech Therapy Digital Materials
No Prep Worksheets
Feeling like you don’t have enough time to do all the things? Here are a couple of little to no prep worksheets to help get you started today.
Articulation therapy can be as simple as 5 minutes of practice a day.
- Color by S Blends Free Phonics Worksheets by Terrific Teaching Tactics has 3 free coloring sheets for coloring by blend. Students color using the provided key and have many opportunities to practice the sm blend.
Boom Cards
Boom cards are another fun way to strengthen your child or student’s articulation skills.
Here are a few favorite boom cards to work on the sm-blend sounds:
- FREEBIE! BOOM CARDS™ S Blends Articulation: Chicken Theme (SM & SL) by SLP on the Charles is an interactive game where chickens escape from a farm and hide behind blends!
- Boom Cards ™: What’s Behind the Candy Corn Articulation SM Blends by 2BeachieSpeechies is a fun game for students to find and practice blends behind candy corn pieces.
- FREEBIE: BOOM CARDS™ S-Blends Articulation (SM & SN) by SLP on the Charles is an interactive hide and seek themed game for students to practice the sm blend!
In Conclusion: SM Words Speech Therapy
We hope you have found this article helpful for working on your child or student’s s blend sound.
Be sure to grab your freebie of 20 words if you don’t have much time as a simple way to start practicing 5 minutes a day! Good luck!
Want Even More S Words for Speech Therapy?
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