What is the PROMPT method?
PROMPT stands for Prompts for Restructuring Oral Muscular Phonetic Targets.
PROMPT is a successful, evidence-based treatment method for children with motor speech disorders such as apraxia, dysarthria or phonological disorders.
The PROMPT method focuses on the physical aspects of speech production (i.e., movements of the lips, jaw, tongue, and larynx). A PROMPT trained speech language pathologist uses tactile cues, such as gentle pressure on the face and neck, to guide children to the correct movements for producing speech sounds.
PROMPT is a multidimensional and holistic approach that combines physical and cognitive techniques to improve speech and language skills. Children learn to to use their new speech movements in context. The therapist will work on building vocabulary, grammar, and sentence structure, as well as conversation and social skills.
In a typical PROMPT therapy session, a speech-language pathologist will manually guide the child’s jaw, lips, vocal folds, and tongue by targeting certain words, phrases, or sentences. They use touch cues to shape and support movements. In doing so, the therapist helps the child produce phonemes (the smallest units of sound that distinguish one word from another).
Together, the therapist and child progress through the hierarchy of sounds at a steady pace, moving to more sounds only when the child is ready. Children learn (through assistance and repetition) to plan, organize, and create increasingly more advanced speech sounds.
PROMPT is literally a hands-on method of improving speech. At the beginning, the therapist relies heavily on touch cues to guide patients. As speech skills improve, the touch cues like training wheels are gradually removed.
To be certified in the PROMPT method, a speech-language pathologist attends PROMPT training courses and meets a number of certification requirements established by the PROMPT Institute. Many TherapyWorks therapists are PROMPT certified.
How to help a child with apraxia or other motor speech disorders
If you have a child with motor-speech difficulties, you may already know that conventional articulation therapy can be frustrating and may not always produce the best results for your child. The PROMPT method provides children with mass practice and repeated tactile, aural, and visual cues. They will see how a sound is made, hear what it should sound like, and feel exactly how to produce it.
If you think your child may benefit from a PROMPT-based treatment approach, please do not hesitate to reach out to us. We’d be happy to match your child to one of our PROMPT-certified speech-language pathologists.
Click the Get Started button on our homepage. Simply answer a few questions about your child and their specific needs, and the TherapyWorks team will follow up with scheduling and PROMPT trained therapist options.
