Effective Speech Therapy Games: Enhance Articulation with Four in a Row in Minimal Pairs Arcade

When you are doing minimal pairs therapy, a fast turn-taking game such as Four in a Row can get you a lot of speech trials. This blog post offers essential tips for speech and language therapists and parents using the Four in a Row game in the Minimal Pairs Arcade app.

Many children enjoy the act of playing without fully understanding the rules. Start by explaining that getting four counters in a row in any direction results in a win. This clarity helps set the stage for focused gameplay and learning.

Four in a Row in Minimal Pairs Arcade is a fun turn-taking game, where the child alternates turns with an SLP, SLT, or parent. Each player should articulate the target word five times per turn, aiding the child’s auditory processing and pronunciation skills.

Encourage the child to articulate the target word with you during your turn. This strategy doubles the speech trials, reinforcing correct pronunciation and boosting confidence through cooperative engagement.

Prolong the game by preventing the child from winning too soon while ultimately letting them win. This tactic keeps the game engaging and encourages the child through playful competition.

Us the star rewards system from Minimal Pairs Arcade. Each correct pronunciation rewarded with a star keeps the child motivated. Aim for at least five repetitions, but be flexible as children will happily keep going when highly engaged, which of course means even more speech trials.

Use the recording feature to enhance the child’s self-awareness of their speech sounds. Listening to their own recordings can be an exciting and effective way to notice progress and articulation errors.

Adjust the game grid settings to include target words, non-target words, or a combination of both, depending on the speech therapy focus. This customization allows for targeted speech practice and varied difficulty levels.

Note: when doing minimal pairs therapy, the target word is the word that starts with the sound the child is working on while the non-target word is a word that starts with a sound they can already say. For more info on the steps of minimal pairs therapy, visit our post on the topic here.

Change the voice feedback settings to suit the therapy goals: use "Voice on Show" for automatic pronunciation upon revealing a flashcard, or "Voice on Tap" for more spontaneous speech practice.

These top tips for using the Four in a Row game in the Minimal Pairs Arcade are designed to make speech therapy both fun and effective. Download the free version Minimal Pairs Arcade Lite and start enhancing your speech therapy sessions today.

If you have additional tips or experiences with the Four in a Row game, please share them in the comments below.