# Phoneme Practice: /h/ Sound for Toddlers

Little Wheels Talk & Listen provides 25+ minutes of /h/ sound practice through vehicle words, vocabulary themes, and sound-specific games with mic recognition.

## About the /h/ Sound

The /h/ sound is one of the easiest consonants—it's simply a breath of air through an open mouth. No tongue or lip obstruction required.

### When Children Typically Master /h/
- Emerges: 12-18 months
- Mastered: By age 3
- One of the first consonants produced

## /h/ Words in Talk & Listen

### Vehicle Words with /h/
- **helicopter** - flying vehicle
- **hot rod** - classic car
- **horse trailer** - animal transport
- **hovercraft** - water/land vehicle
- **hearse** - specialty vehicle

### Vehicle Sounds with /h/
- **honk** - horn sound!
- **hum** - engine sound

### Body Words with /h/
- **head** - top of body
- **hand** - essential body part
- **hair** - on head
- **heart** - inside body
- **heel** - foot part

### Action Words with /h/
- **help** - assistance (highly functional!)
- **hold** - grasping
- **hop** - jumping
- **hug** - affection
- **hide** - game action
- **hit** - contact (safety word)

### Descriptive Words with /h/
- **happy** - emotion
- **hot** - temperature (safety!)
- **hungry** - state
- **hurt** - pain (important!)

### Greetings with /h/
- **hi** - greeting
- **hello** - greeting
- **hey** - casual greeting

## How Talk & Listen Teaches /h/

### Layer 1: Vehicle Card Practice
Tap vehicles with /h/ names (helicopter, hot rod) and practice "honk" sounds across all vehicles.

### Layer 2: Category Gateways
Body parts category (Ambulance) includes many /h/ words: head, hand, hair, heart.

### Layer 3: Phoneme Drill Mode
Select /h/ from the soundboard to see ALL /h/ words across categories. Practice for 25+ minutes on one sound.

### Sound Games with Mic Recognition
Mic-enabled games detect the /h/ sound's characteristic breath release.

## Practice Tips for Parents

### Modeling /h/
1. Open mouth relaxed
2. Push air out from throat
3. Like a gentle sigh or breath
4. Feel warm air on your hand

### Fun /h/ Activities
- "Honk honk!" with toy vehicles
- Helicopter sounds ("hhhh-helicopter!")
- "Hi!" and "Hello!" greetings
- Hot/cold temperature games
- Hide and seek ("hide!")

### Why /h/ is Easy
- No tongue positioning required
- No lip shaping needed
- Just controlled breath
- Visible breath on cold days or mirrors

### Safety Words with /h/
- **hot** - temperature warning
- **help** - requesting assistance
- **hurt** - communicating pain
- **hold** - requesting support

## Related Resources
- All phoneme guides: littlewheels.app/llm/phoneme-practice-overview.txt
- Helicopter page: littlewheels.app/vehicles/helicopter
- Talk & Listen app: littlewheels.app/apps/talk-listen

## About Little Wheels
Little Wheels Talk & Listen provides 25+ minutes of practice per phoneme across 300+ words. Mic recognition games, call-and-response prompts, SLP-informed methodology. One-time $4.99, 100% offline.