2.7yo can't pronounce certain letters

[EarnestDullard]

DD (2.7yo) has a really good vocabulary, but has trouble pronouncing certain letters. For example, F and S become D (so she'll say 'dish' for 'fish', and 'dun' instead of 'sun'). It only seems to be letters at the beginning of words that cause a problem; word with an S or S sound in the middle (like dance) are fine.

Is this normal for her age? Any advice appreciated.

It is really common for 2.7 year olds not to be able to say their f and s (so I have been told!). We saw the speech therapist for DS1 a lot and when DS2 could not say his f and s she was not concerned until he was still doing this at pre school age. At that point he went for an assessment and some group sessions (he was 4 yrs old at that point) He is still not consistent in using f and s and we are going for a review in November when he will be 4 1/2 yrs.

When he was little she just suggested lots of appropriate modelling. (He said 'dish' and I would say 'yes a fish' - emphasising the 'f' sound). You could also do some fun activities blowing bubbles, sucking through straws, sticking your tongue out whilst looking in the mirror, etc

Thanks, that's good to know.

It's normal. I was told that it only becomes a concern when a child is 6 or 7 years old and still unable to make certain common sounds.

My DS Is 4 and half now and when he went into nursery aged 3, they had trouble understanding what he was trying to say. They asked me if I was happy to see a speech therapist I said yes and they set it all up, he had a few weeks of playing games
To do with F S and SP, the tips I can give you are

1. When the child says 'dish' instead of s

Sorry silly phone sent it when I wasn't ready.... Continuing from my post,
When she says 'dish' instead of FISH, ask her did she mean dish or F F F FISH

1. For F SOUND, put front teeth on bottom lip like a bunny and say FFFFFFFFF
2. Make a sound ladder for two letters e.g SP,

On one step u have a S And the next P (obviously sound it out) do this a few times and then have SP and the top of the ladder so your saying. S P S P S P... SP

Don't worry at this age - my son used to start all words with a "d" or an "n" - tricky to understand if you didn't know him! he grew out of it before he went to school.

My DGD is 3 and says "tuggle" instead of cuddle - it's gorgeous and I will miss it when she can say it properly!

The only thing I would add to this excellent advice is that make sure hearing is ok if you're worried. A friend's child had similar speech and needed grommits. He went from garbled to excellent speech in a matter of weeks after he'd had them.

Thanks for the replies. Sounds like it's not anything to worry about at the moment, but I'll keep an eye on it as she gets older.