Speech and Language Intervention Tool (SPEL-IT): House on Phonic Hill K.S. Budhrani, I.P. Acosta, R.M. Espiritu, C.C. Ngo, and J.L. Wong Information Technology Department, De La Salle University 2401 Taft Avenue, Manila, Philippines Children with specific language impairment (SLI) have difficulty differentiating and recalling similar sounding words due to poor processing in their auditory memory. The proponents developed a courseware based on learning theories and instructional strategies to help children with SLI differentiate and recall similar sounding words. The courseware includes 16 stories integrating a total of 46 CVC similar sounding words with lesson drills, practice activities and story assessment. A number of 20 SLI children were asked to test the courseware and the result shows that the children can better differentiate and recall similar sounding words with the use of a multimedia courseware. 1. SPECIFIC LANGUAGE IMPAIRMENT Based on the general curriculum of the Department of Education (DepEd), one hundred minutes are allotted daily in teaching English to grade one students. By the end of grade one, students are expected to recognize differences in speech sounds, word stress, intonation patterns in sentences heard; read with ease and understanding beginners’ books in English; and write legibly information about oneself, common words and simple sentences in manuscript form. Children who cannot cope with the given curriculum may be at risk of having language impairment. Specific language impairment (SLI) is a significant deficit in language abilities among children due to impaired development in the central nervous system. It is not caused by developmental disorder or sensory impairment. The dysfunction in the central nervous system causes SLI children to have a memory problem. Some symptoms that are evident among children with SLI are (a) delay in speech and (b) slow vocabulary development [1]. 1.1 Learning problems among children with SLI Our memory is composed of the short term and long term memory connected by the episodic buffer. The short- term memory is further divided into the central executive, phonological loop and the visuospatial sketchpad. When information is received, it is processed in the short-term memory. The phonological loop processes the things we hear or auditory information. The visuospatial sketchpad processes the things we see or visual information. The central executive integrates information from the two parts and passes it to the episodic buffer. Information is then processed in the episodic buffer then stored in the long-term memory [2]. Children with specific language impairment (SLI) have difficulty differentiating and recalling similar sounding words (phonemes) due to poor processing in their auditory memory or phonological loop. Examples of similar sounding words at the grade one level are rhymes (t ub, c ub) and alliterations (cab , cap ). Because SLI children poorly process what they hear or auditory information, their long-term memory processing is affected. Overtime, vocabulary development is impaired. 1.2 Speech Therapy Intervention Children who are diagnosed to have language impairment are usually enrolled in speech therapies or in Special Education (sped) schools. The child is in an inclusion setup wherein he goes to a regular school some of the time, and to a sped school for part of his school day. As with the above cases, therapy could be done either in or out of any school setup. These children undergo speech therapy or specialized English classes for about 45 minutes to one-hour sessions once or twice a week. During this time, speech therapists or teachers make use of books and toys as the learning materials in their classes to give the child the proper intervention depending on his or her needs. After which, they make reports and insights for the parents to be aware on the progress and needs of the child. However, it is seen that the time given for the classes and therapy sessions is not sufficient to address the needs of these children. Follow-up training through practice drills is needed at home to address their auditory processing deficiency. 1.3 Technology Intervention