Oral Placement Therapy (OPT) is a therapeutic approach that uses tactile stimulation and targeted oral-motor exercises to influence speech sound production. It involves employing specialized tools and techniques – for example, blowing horns, sipping through straws, using bite blocks or tongue depressors, and other assisted movements – to train the placement and movement of the jaw, tongue, lips, and soft palate. The rationale is that by improving the strength, coordination, and awareness of these oral structures, a child’s articulation of speech sounds may become clearer.
Some SLPs incorporate OPT as a supplement to conventional speech therapy for children with speech sound disorders or motor planning challenges, aiming to provide multisensory cues and “muscle memory” for correct articulatory placements; however, clinicians must critically evaluate the evidence, as the use of non-speech oral motor exercises (NSOME) and tools remains controversial in terms of efficacy, and any OPT techniques should be individualized and combined with proven speech practice methods.
Bahr, Diane, and Sara Rosenfeld-Johnson. “Treatment of Children With Speech Oral Placement Disorders (OPDs): A Paradigm Emerges.” Communication Disorders Quarterly 31, no. 3 (2010). Link
Lof, Gregory J. “Five Reasons Why Nonspeech Oral Motor Exercises (NSOME) Do Not Work.” Perspectives on School-Based Issues 11, no. 2 (2010). Link
