Mr Tongue Tells

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The postsulcal tongue, circumvallate papillae, palatoglossal arches, and oropharynx are governed by the glossopharyngeal nerve ( CN IX). The vagus nerve (CN X) only provides supply to taste buds in the pharyngeal extremity of the tongue. These impulses are conveyed by the internal laryngeal branch of the vagus nerve, via the pharyngeal plexus. In many cases, as children grow with their tongue ties, their mouths very easily adapt and they have no problem with speech sounds. As children begin to learn to read, they need to have an awareness of how sounds are structured in words, and be able to manipulate these sounds. The presulcal tongue originates from the first pharyngeal arch, while the postsulcal part arises from the third and fourth pharyngeal arches. Mr Tongue lives inside his mouth house, "Hello". He loves to explore and make sounds with his mouth.

As is the case with all of anatomy, it is important to understand the terminology associated with describing the structures of interest. The prefix gloss- and the suffix - glossus are commonly used with reference to the tongue. Therefore, the name glossopharyngeus refers to the muscle arising from the tongue and inserting in the pharynx. Similarly, the name hyoglossus speaks of a muscle originating at the hyoid bone and inserting in the tongue. Key facts about the tongue Embryology To improve tongue strength, we encourage the child to give his tongue full movement throughout his mouth. For this, you can try these exercises: Phonological awareness helps children hear the larger units of spoken language as well as the smaller parts. So, they are able to hear and manipulate syllables, onsets and rimes; (thus allowing them to rhyme and alliterate). Tongue ties present differently in each child. Not all children with tongue ties have speech difficulties. The tongue is one of those structures derived from the pharyngeal apparatus. Towards the end of the fourth gestational week, the mesenchyme of the ventromedial aspect of the first pharyngeal arches begins to proliferate in the floor of the primitive pharynx to form the median lingual swelling (tuberculum impar). This triangular protuberance is located cranial to the foramen cecum (opening of the thyroglossal duct) and is later joined by the two distal tongue buds ( lateral lingual swellings). The lateral lingual swellings are oval enlargements arising on either side of the median lingual swelling. The rate of growth of the lateral lingual swellings exceeds that of the median lingual swelling.Another important point to note is that the tongue is embryologically divided into an anterior and a posterior part. The anterior part of the tongue is also called the oral or presulcal part of the tongue. Conversely, the posterior part of the tongue is referred to as the pharyngeal or postsulcal part of the tongue. Lastly, avoid interchanging the words root and base when discussing the tongue, as these represent two anatomically distinct areas. The base of the tongue refers to the postsulcal part that forms the ventral wall of the oropharynx, while the root of the tongue refers to a part of the presulcal tongue that is attached to the floor of the oral cavity. To help your toddler improve his speech articulation, you can try out these tongue exercises and activities:

For either of these it is helpful to encourage lots of listening activities- listening to sounds around them, hearing rhymes, working out what sounds words begin and end with. The intrinsic tongue muscles can operate independently, or in combination with each other to give rise to numerous shapes. This is an important feature of the tongue as it facilitates molding of the food particles into a bolus in preparation for deglutition and speech. Key facts Superior longitudinal Because the evidence we have now doesn’t support a correlation between tongue-tie revisions and improved articulation skills, we do not recommend releasing your child’s tongue tie just to prevent potential future problems. To put it really plainly, there’s just no guarantee that tongue-tie release surgery (also called a frenectomy) will make a difference. If you are following all of these bits of advice and your child is still not progressing, you may need a referral to a speech and language therapist.It’s not the same as a standardised measure a specialist would carry out but it should give you an idea of how your baby or child is developing and whether you need some support or advice to help you and them.

Unfortunately, not one of my children’s feeding skills improved dramatically afterward, and their reflux persisted every time. But, it did help by decreasing mouth breathing. And when it comes to sleep, who knows? 😂 They all had trouble figuring out sleep as newborns, but they’re doing great now! Also, one child had his lip tie and tongue tie clipped, and I will say that brushing his teeth is worlds easier than it is with the other kids! Again, there are so many variables here, but in most of the cases, I’m glad I did it! The palatoglossal and palatopharyngeal arches (along with the palatine tonsils) have lateral relations to the posterior third of the tongue. Posterior to the base of the tongue is the dorsal surface of the epiglottis and laryngeal inlet, and the posterior wall of the oropharynx. As mentioned earlier, the presulcal and postsulcal parts of the tongue differ not only by anatomical location, but also based on embryological origin, innervation, and the type of mucosa found on its surface. Anterior two thirds When a child with a speech delay has to pronounce a big word like, ‘telephone’, he might say ‘tephone’. Additions The way tongue-tie affects development is a really interesting topic and one that’s hard to sum up with one big blanket statement like, “If your child has a tongue-tie, they will always X or never Y!” (Thankfully, we don’t like blanket statements like that very much, anyway!) The development of taste buds begins as the last of the papillae are formed in the 11th week of gestation. Their formation is influenced by the invading special sensory nerve fibers, as well as inductive factors from the surrounding epithelium. Although the majority of these specialized gustatory receptors will develop on the dorsum of the tongue, they also arise on the hard and soft palates, dorsum of the epiglottis, palatoglossal arches, and the posterior oropharyngeal wall. Taste bud development is concluded around the 13th gestational week. Nerve supplyEmerging at the anterior limit of the hyoglossus, the sublingual arteries course between the mylohyoid and genioglossus as it travels towards the sublingual glands in the floor of the oral cavity. As it arborizes, one of its branches anastomoses with the submental branches of the facial artery, while another traverses the gingiva of the mandible to anastomose with the analogous contralateral vessel. The intrinsic tongue muscles are responsible for adjusting the shape and orientation of the organ. It is made up of four paired muscles, which are discussed below in a dorsoventral manner. As always, I hope this article will help you build better communication skills in toddlers . If you notice your child struggling and these strategies aren’t helping, I would love to help you determine your child’s individual needs. Please reach out to set up a free consultation. We are here to support you as you help your child blossom!

The language of maths can be very challenging to understand for many children. For example, understanding that 'times' and 'multiply' mean the same thing and so do 'take away' and 'minus'. These are some activities to help children overcome some of the barriers language poses to solving maths problems: All content published on Kenhub is reviewed by medical and anatomy experts. The information we provide is grounded on academic literature and peer-reviewed research. Kenhub does not provide medical advice. You can learn more about our content creation and review standards by reading our content quality guidelines.If you enjoyed reading Tongue Exercises For Speech Articulation in Toddlers, you might also enjoy reading: As the lingual artery terminates near the lingual frenulum on the ventral surface of the tongue, it is referred to as the deep lingual artery. Similarly, a study by Salt et al. (2020) advises against tongue-tie revisions solely to prevent speech problems. The research has not yet provided conclusive evidence that tongue-tie releases improve speech production and age appropriate speech errors may resolve on their own. These activities will support the phonics work you get from your child's school and are fun ways to work on reading and spelling without needing a pen and pencil!