Oral Motor Exercises for Speech: What the Evidence Says

✓ Reviewed against ASHA Practice Portal (non-speech oral-motor evidence)Evidence level ALast reviewed July 1, 2026Published July 1, 2026

Oral motor exercises are non-speech mouth movements — blowing, tongue push-ups, straw drills — meant to strengthen the lips, tongue, and jaw. The research support for improving children’s speech sounds is limited, and ASHA does not recommend them to treat speech-sound errors. Practicing the actual target sounds is the better-supported approach.

Do oral motor exercises help speech?

For most children, the honest answer is: not for speech sounds. Oral motor exercises are non-speech mouth movements — blowing, tongue push-ups, straw drills, cheek puffs — meant to strengthen or “wake up” the lips, tongue, and jaw. The research support for using them to improve children’s speech-sound production is limited, and ASHA does not recommend them as a method for treating speech-sound errors.^1,2

That surprises a lot of parents, because these activities feel like they should help — they involve the same muscles used for talking. But speaking is a specific, learned skill, and the most reliable way to get better at a sound is to practice that sound in real words. This page explains what the evidence shows and what to do instead.¹

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The bottom line

Non-speech oral motor exercises (NSOME) have limited evidence for improving speech sounds and are not recommended by ASHA as a primary treatment for articulation. Direct, speech-based practice of the target sounds is the better-supported approach.

What are oral motor exercises?

Oral motor exercises are movements of the mouth structures that do not involve producing speech. They are sometimes offered with the idea that stronger or more coordinated oral muscles will lead to clearer talking. Common examples include:

Blowing — bubbles, whistles, party horns, cotton balls across a table.
Straw and suck drills — drinking thick liquids through a straw, or using a straw to move objects.
Tongue exercises — tongue push-ups, tongue-to-nose or tongue-to-chin stretches, pushing the tongue against a spoon.
Lip and cheek work — puckering, big smiles, puffing the cheeks, holding a tongue depressor between the lips.
Jaw movements — chewing chewy tubes, opening and closing against resistance.

None of these involve saying an actual speech sound — which is the key distinction that determines whether they help speech.¹

Speech vs. non-speech oral motor exercises

The crucial difference is whether the practice actually includes the sound your child is working on. Non-speech oral motor exercises (NSOME) do not — they train movements in isolation. Speech-based practice does — it trains the sound in syllables and words. Skills tend to transfer best when practice closely resembles the real task.¹

Non-speech oral motor exercises vs. speech-based practice.
	Non-speech oral motor (NSOME)	Speech-based practice
What the child does	Blows, sucks, or moves the tongue/lips without speaking	Says the target sound in syllables, words, and sentences
Goal	Strengthen or “warm up” muscles	Produce a specific sound correctly
Evidence for speech sounds	Limited; not recommended as a primary method	Well-supported; the standard of care
Example	Push a cotton ball across a table	Practice “sun, soup, bus” for the “s” sound

Non-speech oral motor exercises vs. speech-based practice.^1,2

What the research and ASHA say

ASHA’s Practice Portal on speech sound disorders directly addresses this. It advises that a speech-language pathologist should “carefully consider what a particular oral motor activity is likely to accomplish and whether it addresses the child’s speech sound error,” pointing to the evidence base rather than assuming benefit.¹

That caution comes from research. An ASHA evidence-based systematic review of non-speech oral motor exercises concluded that the available evidence does not support their use for improving children’s speech-sound production. Later reviews reached the same conclusion in specific populations — for example, one ASHA Leader summary reported that non-speech oral motor exercises for children with cleft palate are not effective.^2,3

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Why muscles aren’t the issue

Most children with speech-sound errors do not have weak mouth muscles — the same muscles chew, swallow, and smile without trouble. The challenge is learning to place and time the movements for a specific sound, which non-speech drills don’t teach.

When oral motor work may still have a role

None of this means mouth muscles never matter. Oral motor and feeding-focused work can be appropriate outside of speech-sound production — most often for feeding and swallowing, or for children with conditions involving significant low muscle tone or structural differences. In those situations, a speech-language pathologist or medical team decides whether it fits the child’s individual goals.¹

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Feeding is not the same as speech

A child may need oral motor support for safe eating and drinking and still be best helped for speech sounds through direct, speech-based practice. The two goals call for different approaches.

What to do instead: speech-based practice

If your goal is clearer speech, practice the sounds themselves. Pick the sound your child is working on, and practice it in real words with lots of repetition, a good model, and warm, specific feedback. Techniques such as minimal pairs — contrasting word pairs like “key/tea” — target the exact errors that make a child hard to understand.¹

Everyday language-rich habits help too: read together often, narrate what you’re doing, and turn practice into play. Play and shared reading are among the most reliable ways to build young children’s communication.^4,9,10

A quick way to start is with a ready-made word list on your target sound. Our free Word Generator builds speech-sound practice words — the kind of direct, speech-based practice the evidence supports.

Free Practice Word Generator

Generate speech-sound practice words that actually build speech.

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How to practice target sounds at home

1Choose one target sound — ideally the one your child’s SLP is working on, or a sound they’re missing that other children their age already use.
2Start where they can succeed: the sound alone, then in a syllable (“sssa”), then at the start of short words.
3Give a clear model. Say the word slowly, let your child watch your mouth, then have them try.
4Praise the try, and gently show the target again if it’s off — no drilling to frustration.
5Keep sessions short and playful: a few minutes, a few times a day beats one long session.
6Move up only when the current step is easy — words, then phrases, then everyday conversation.

Remember that many sounds come online later than parents expect. In large U.S. reviews, later-developing sounds — like “s” and “z” around age 4, and “r” and “th” closer to ages 5 and 6 — often aren’t fully mastered until the early school years, so a young child still working on them may be right on schedule.¹²

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Safety first

Practicing speech sounds is safe. If you ever try mouth or blowing activities, supervise closely for choking hazards with small parts, and stop if your child is uncomfortable. When in doubt, ask a speech-language pathologist what fits your child.

When to see a speech-language pathologist

By age 3, most children can be understood by people outside the family much of the time. If unfamiliar listeners frequently can’t understand your child, errors persist past the expected age, or your child gets frustrated when not understood, it’s worth a professional look.^5,6,8

You often don’t need to wait for a referral. Talk with your pediatrician about your concerns, and you can find a certified speech-language pathologist directly through ASHA’s ProFind directory. Acting early — rather than “waiting and seeing” — leads to better outcomes.^11,7

Frequently asked questions

Do oral motor exercises actually improve speech?＋

For most children, no. Non-speech oral motor exercises such as blowing, tongue push-ups, and straw drills have limited research support for improving speech-sound production. ASHA’s Practice Portal advises clinicians to carefully consider whether an oral motor activity actually addresses a child’s speech sound error, and a systematic review found the evidence does not support these exercises for changing speech sounds. Practicing the target sounds directly is the better-supported approach.

What does ASHA say about non-speech oral motor exercises (NSOME)?＋

ASHA does not recommend non-speech oral motor exercises as a method for treating children’s speech-sound errors. Its Practice Portal notes that a speech-language pathologist should carefully consider what a given oral motor activity is likely to accomplish and whether it addresses the child’s actual speech sound error, citing evidence-based reviews that did not find support for these exercises.

Are blowing, straws, and tongue push-ups useful for speech sounds?＋

These activities can be fun and are generally safe, but there is no strong evidence that they carry over into clearer speech. Speaking is a highly specific, learned skill — blowing bubbles or moving the tongue in isolation does not teach the brain to produce a particular sound in words. If the goal is clearer speech, practicing the actual sound in real words is more effective.

When might oral motor work be appropriate?＋

Oral motor and feeding-focused work can have a role in areas outside speech-sound production — for example, feeding and swallowing difficulties, or conditions involving low muscle tone or structural differences. In those cases a speech-language pathologist or medical team decides whether it fits an individual child’s goals. It is not a general treatment for saying sounds correctly.

What should I do instead to help my child’s speech sounds?＋

Use speech-based practice: work directly on the sounds your child is targeting, in real words, with lots of repetition and warm feedback. Read together, model the correct sound, and turn practice into play. If your child is hard for unfamiliar people to understand by age 3, or errors persist past the expected age, ask your pediatrician about a speech-language evaluation.