Is it a lisp, and if should what (and should I?) do about it?

[ShortsAndWellies]

DS is 6, in Year 2. He talks fine in most ways except when he says the letter 'S', he uses his tongue at the front of his mouth, poking out between his teeth, so it sounds like a 'th' sound. Is this a lisp?

If so, can it be corrected, or is that just the way he is? Do you think he will get teased about it as he gets older if it doesn't change ?

I have tried to get him to say the sound without using his tongue - he says he can't. He aalso sucks his thumb

Yeth
I have one too. It was much worse when I was younger and I really struggled with words like 'station' and 'listless' that s/th sound is hard - it is much better now, but some words I have to conciously think about how to say before I say them.
I think lisps can be corrected/helped with speech therapy.
I still trip up with a few words - my RL surname is one I find particuarly difficult to say clearly.

So, it can be sorted then? Do you reckon you can be trained out of it, or does it need professional advice do you think?

Musth be frusthtrating having the thound in your thurname...

I'm no expert (other than having a bit of lisp) but I think there are techniques that can help, depending on the severity of it perhaps.
When I have to make an 's' sounds I do have to deliberately pull my tongue back and grit my teeth together to make the sound properly but even then I think my 's' is less crisp and clear than most people can say.
I tend to have to spell my surname and even that doesn't work sometimes if I don't get the 's' for 'sugar' right - people look at me slightly confused and say 'thugar?'

I had a lisp as a child and was teased a bit, especially as my first name has an S in it. I trained myself out of it by pulling my tongue back in my mouth as Beamur said. It was an effort at first but after a while it became second nature. Now I pronounce Ss like anyone else. At least I think I do!

My DD is 5 and has a lisp - her tongue also comes out between her teeth for an S sound. I have just referred her for SALT for this but also a general lack of clarity in her speech. It sounds cute at the moment but agree that it might be a bit of a hindrance later in life! We've had to wait a while for an appointment so might be worth getting a referral if you are concerned about your DS?

The waiting time for SALT appointments in my area are currently anything between 16-20 weeks. DS' appointment has just come through for the same thing you describe OP (hurrah!)

My DS2 has a lisp, he's 3, and to be honest it does sound very cute. He also has a problem with Rs, so Crocs are Cwocth in this house!
I just tell myself it never did Jamie Oliver any harm! I'm expecting it'll improve as he gets older. Maybe having adult teeth will make a difference!

I had a lisp as a child. When I was about 8 I started doing speech and drama lessons at school and within a year or so the lisp was gone. I didn't give it much thought at the time (drama sounded like fun), but my Mum signed me up specifically to help work on the lisp - and it worked, so voice coaching and language exercises do help.

My DD1 is 7. She also had a lisp (my best friend from school was always smiling and saying it almost made her cry as DD1 sounded just like I did when we first became friends and it brought back so many memories). DD1's lisp has recently resolved on its own - just as I was beginning to think that maybe I should do something about it. DD2 was unable to pronounce loads of consonants. Now at 5 she can do most (but not all) of them. We'll see how it goes.

So... sometimes they resolve on their own, sometimes they need help. By 6 ish I'd say it might be worth looking into either through the SALT route or private drama / voice coach lessons

Hmm, thanks all.
Can't afford private coach/drama, but am anxious about giving DS a complex by seeking formal help for it, as at the moment, he isn't aware of it really, and is quite a sensitive soul .
Maybe I will see if youtube has some good exercises, and if not, speak to GP? Whaddaya think?

That sounds sensible - I wouldn't want to draw his attention to it too much either and from the posts, it looks like my experience of more or less growing out of it is not uncommon. Some advice from your GP would be a good place to start.

I have a lisp, I have always had one, because I have a very long tongue. I'm not entirely sure that speech therapy would have been able to help.

Can you ask the school if they can recommend any avenues to explore?

Having said that, while I occasionally feel a little bothered by it - like beamur I have a surname which includes an S (so spelling it is particularly challenging - I can't believe how many people can't understand "my name is spelt X - X - X - X - S for 'sugar'"!!) - it isn't something that I feel strongly or about or feel that it has held me back in any way. I have a job which involves a lot of teaching and presenting. The best advice I had was to make a brief, jokey comment about it near the beginning of the day to deflect anyone getting distracted by it (the same advice works if you wake up on the day of a presentation with a massive spot!)