Articulatory gestures

When we talk, our mouths make special movements called "articulatory gestures".

Think of your mouth like a machine that can create different sounds. Each sound needs a specific set of movements - like pressing different buttons on a machine. When we speak, our brain tells our mouth which buttons to press (aka which gestures to make) to produce the right sounds.

For example, when you say the letter "M", your lips come together and you hum a tiny bit, kind of like when you're pretending to be a bumblebee. That's one articulatory gesture. When you say the letter "F", you put your teeth on your bottom lip and blow out air. That's another gesture.

There are lots and lots of different articulatory gestures that we use to make all the sounds in our language. And as we learn more languages, we have to train our mouth to make new gestures to produce different sounds!