Man uses essentially the same structures for eating as he does for speaking. Speech, however, is accomplished by elaborating upon the basic ingestion functions of these structures. It is theorized that the appropriate and efficient use of these motile organs in eating should lead eventually to more appropriate and efficient patterns of speech. For example, it is a reasonable assumption that the natural exercise of the tongue and lips while eating is necessary to prepare these structures for later use in talking. A routine for the proper presentation of food especially in the case of the mentally retarded, who often have substantial speech handicaps, includes (1) a significant amount of communication with the child during feeding, (2) positioning the child to face the feeder, (3) presenting just a taste of food first, not a whole spoonful, (4) encouraging proper mastication, (5) removing the spoon from the lip area at once, and (6) not presenting a different taste until overt swallowing of the last taste has been observed. (WD)