Stuttering (Speech Question 4 of 7)

Dorothy Dougherty, MA, provides speech therapy for children just learning to speak, and she is the author of How to Talk to Your Baby. In this series, she answers the questions that new parents most frequently ask her.

When is "stuttering" okay?

It is important to remember that 85% of children between the ages of two and six may show hesitations and repetitions at times when talking. These nonfluencies are considered to be a normal stage in speech and language development. If handled wisely by parents and caregivers, normal nonfluencies may last from several weeks to several months and eventually disappear. When a young child repeats a sound (b-b-b- baby) or a syllable (ba-ba baby) or a word (baby -- baby) this is not necessarily stuttering. Many times, young children are anxious to express themselves and may simply lack the sophistication to put words together smoothly. However, for some children, this may be the beginning signs of stuttering.

How can you tell if your son or daughter has crossed the line between what is "normal nonfluencies" and what is "stuttering?" In the initial stages, stuttering is very difficult to recognize, because most children beginning to stutter often sound a lot like other children their age much of the time. However, experts agree there are several things you can look for when trying to determine if your child is beginning to stutter or is just exhibiting nonfluencies like other children her age. If you observe frequent or consistent appearance of one or more of these speech behaviors, it is wise to seek the attention of a speech-language pathologist.

1. Does your child stretch out a sound, such as b...............aby longer than one second?

   
   

2. Does your child repeat more than one syllable in one word? For example, "Amermericaca."

   
   

3. Does your child use the weak schwa vowel? For example, instead of saying "bay -- bay-baby," she substitutes "buh-buh-buh-baby."

   
   

4. Does the pitch and loudness of your child’s voice increase, when she repeats or prolongs sounds and syllables?

   
   

5. Does your child exhibit any uncontrolled quivering of her lips or tongue when she repeats or prolongs sounds or syllables?

   
   

6. Does your child use an unusual number of pauses, substitutions of words, interject extra sounds, words or phrases, or avoid talking altogether?

   
   

7. Does your child appear frightened when she tries to say a word that is giving her trouble?

   
   

8. Does your child appear to have breathing difficulties or speak in spurts as if she is struggling to keep her airflow and voice flowing?