/dʒ/ in the initial position (/dʒ/ as in "juice," "joke" and "jam"; the letter "J" makes the /dʒ/ sound)

Practice the /dʒ/ sound with these words....

"juice,"...

 "jug" and ...

"jelly" or "jam"...and also "jar."

To practice phrases, have your child name what kinds of juice she sees while walking down the aisle.  Giant Eagle Market District has an entire aisle dedicated to juice, so there is a lot of opportunity for practice.  Labels can include kinds of juice like "apple juice" and "grape juice," or name brands like "Juicy Juice" and "Welch's juice."

To practice sentences, you can ask your child questions about juice.  For example, "Which juice is in the biggest bottle?"  The target may be, "The apple juice is in the biggest bottle."  "Which juice is the reddest?"  The target may be, "Tomato juice is the reddest."  For older children, you may ask "Which juice is the most expensive?"  Another task is to ask your child what foods go well with jelly.  Targets may include "peanut butter and jelly," "toast and jelly," and "jelly donuts."  To extend practice on /dʒ/, have your child point out which jars are jam, and which are jelly.  This will likely work best for child that can read, or who are familiar with sight words (you can pre-teach sight words at home). 

To practice conversation, try asking your child what other items come in jugs besides juice.  Targets may include, "Milk comes in jugs.  The big milk jugs are so heavy!  Water comes in jugs."  To extend practice on /dʒ/ look for jugs and have your child say "jug" every time she sees one.  If you look carefully, you will likely find jugs of ice tea, shampoo, rock salt, etc.

The /dʒ/ sound can be hard to explain to someone how to produce.  It is really a combination of two sounds, /d/ as in "dog" and /ʒ/ as in "genre" or "treasure."  It might be easiest to practice making the /d/ sound, then the /ʒ/ sound; then, make one after the other until they flow seamlessly together.  Touch cues are helpful for the /d/ sound.  Show your child how one's tongue taps the roof of the mouth behind the teeth.  This may require some pre-teaching at home before you go to the store.  You two can practice in front of a mirror.  You can also use your finger to tap the ridge behind her teeth (known as the alveolar ridge) where her tongue should be.  /ʒ/ is a little more complicated of a sound to explain, generally because it is not a common sound in English.  A friend from graduate school, LH, provided me with these tips based on an adaptation she made from a publication (see reference below): Round your lips; flatten your cheeks; then, "slush" air out between your teeth; then turn your voice "on."  I was very skeptical about these instructions, but they really work! 

If this technique doesn't work, try instructing your child to make the /dʒ/ sound in this way: Put your tongue on the roof of your mouth, round your lips, let air blow out, turn on your voice.

Secord, W.  (1981).  Eliciting Sounds, Techniques for Clinicians.  Charles E Merrill Publishing Co.: Columbus.