October 10, 2026 · 1:12 · Assessment · Cueing
Dynamic Assessment in Action: One DEMSS Item
One item from the DEMSS, the word "me," with a child who needs a lot of support: the cues the clinician adds after the first try, and how the final, uncued try is scored.
Full transcript
First try, direct imitation: the clinician models the word at a natural rate, and the child imitates.
Clinician: Watch my mouth, and then try to say what I say. "Me."
Child: "Meh." (vowel distorted)
Cue 1: the clinician draws attention to her lips, describes the movement, and gives a slightly slower model with a gesture.
Clinician: Okay, watch here. Look at my lips. Look how I get my lips together in the beginning, and then they spread out. "Meee."
Child: "May-ah." (a different distortion)
Cue 2, simultaneous production: clinician and child say the word together, slowly.
Clinician: Okay, let's try to say it together. Can you meet me here with your lips closed? "Mmmeee…"
Child: "Mayyyy." (closer, still off)
Cue 3, simultaneous production with a touch cue: they say it together again while the clinician's thumb and index finger gently spread the child's lips.
Clinician: This time I'm going to help you with your lips. You feel this? This is how your lips should come together, and then they spread into a smile. Let's say it together again. "Mmmeee…"
Child: "Mmmeee-ay." (a little closer)
Cue 4, simultaneous production: after talking about how the movement feels, they say it together one more time.
Clinician: Do you feel the way your lips are coming together in the beginning, and then they're spreading into a smile? Let's try it one more time together. "Mmmeee…"
Child: "Mmmeee…" (closest yet, still not quite right)
Final try, no cues: the clinician models the word once and the child imitates on their own. This is the try that is scored.
Clinician: Now you say it. "Me."
Child: "Mey." (still not accurate, and different from the first try)
Clinician: Good trying.
On screen, how "me" is scored: Vowel Accuracy 0, because the vowel was distorted on the first try, which is when vowels are scored. Overall Articulatory Accuracy 0, because after four cued tries the final try without cues was still not accurate. Consistency 0, because the child's attempts changed from one try to the next. This is one item; the child's responses to cueing across all 60 items are what inform diagnosis, severity, and treatment planning.
