As a parent, when you first notice your child stuttering it can be very worrisome. The first signs of stuttering can appear when a child is between 18-24 months old. This is the age when there is typically a language explosion and children are putting words together and formulating longer sentences.
Let’s look at what is considered typical versus atypical stuttering in children:
Typical:
· Children will repeat words one to two times. For example: “I, I want a cookie.”
· Children will repeat phrases “I go, I go.”
· Children may hesitate when speaking and use fillers such as “um, “like”, or “uh.”
Atypical
· Syllables, words, or sounds are repeated more than twice. For example, “I, I, I, I want to go outside,” or “I w-w-w-w want to play.”
· Your child starts a sentence with fillers instead of saying them within a sentence. “Um, um, um, I want to go outside.”
· Your child experiences a “block.” A block is when your child attempts to say something, though there are no words.
· Has facial or body movements along with stuttering.
If your child continues to stutter for periods longer than 3 months you should have your child evaluated by a speech and language pathologist.
For more information on stuttering: https://blog.asha.org/2019/05/15/5-tips-to-share-with-parents-of-preschoolers-who-stutter/