Use sound cards, mouth guides and phrase models
JoSS Kids Lab · Tool-use documentation · Updated October 29, 2026. Editorial and clinical review scope
Start with a sound and practice task selected with your speech-language pathologist. This walkthrough explains the word-card controls for any sound in the collection. The sound-specific R guide is available when you want a worked example involving R/W listening or R blends.
Choose a sound and check the word bank
Open the sound collection and choose a deck that fits your selected task. Check the word bank below the activity before starting. A general sound page may include beginning, middle and end positions, while a narrower deck may offer only one. A blend deck uses a particular combination of sounds. These organizational labels help you find words; they do not decide a clinical target or an appropriate treatment sequence.
Explore a schematic mouth cue
Shape & say shows a simplified side view, with step controls and an optional movement animation. The illustration does not show the learner’s mouth or every part of tongue contact. Some decks let you choose which sound to visualize. For a connected blend, the diagram explores one sound at a time while the spoken word model supplies the combination. Use the cue chosen with your professional when the picture does not fit.
Change the model without changing the goal
Use One word, A little phrase or A whole sentence to change the text and audio model. For example, the K page includes Key. Hear that word and inspect the phrase and sentence shown by the next controls. Longer language is an option for a selected task, not a test that must be passed. You can switch back to a word or choose another familiar picture whenever useful.
Choose a listening or participation turn
Sound detective asks for a picture choice after a model; Garden trail offers a visible route through participation turns. Neither mode measures whether a spoken sound was correct. I gave it a try records participation. The optional short recorder allows local listening back and does not provide pronunciation scoring. Share activity carries the selected setup rather than a microphone recording.
A short checklist
- Choose a deck for the sound and task selected with your SLP.
- Check the actual word bank and available positions.
- Hear a word and explore the mouth cue if useful.
- Use phrase, sentence, listening or participation controls for the task you want.
When something does not fit
The mouth picture does not match the shape my SLP uses. What now?
Use the cue selected with your professional. The illustration shows possible placements and cannot establish an individual placement. You can listen to the word model without following the diagram.
The Beginning, Middle or End button is disabled.
That position has no words in the selected deck. Use All positions, or return to the sound collection to choose another word list.
The voice sounds different from our accent.
The default models are generated US English speech. Use them as disclosed models, discuss appropriate targets with your SLP, and use the optional local recorder for a short familiar model if useful.
Try these activities
Explore the full speech sound games & animated mouth guides collection →
Sources and scope
This walkthrough explains the website’s controls and example tasks. It does not prescribe treatment or establish clinical effectiveness. Primary guidance is linked for background; its publishers do not endorse these tools.