If you think your child may be stuttering, go through the following questions:

1. Does you child repeat parts of words rather than whole words or entire phrase? (For example, “a-a-a-apple”)
2. Does your child repeat sounds more than once every 8-to-10 sentences?
3. Does your child have more than two repetitions? (“a-a-a-apple” instead of “a-a-apple”)
4. Does your child seem frustrated or embarrassed when he/she has trouble with a word?
5. Has your child been stuttering for more than 6 months?
6. Does your child raise the pitch of his/her voice, blink eyes, look to the side, or show any tension in his/her face when s/he stutters?
7. Does your child use extra words or sounds like “uh” or “um” or “well” to get a word started?
8. Does your child sometimes get stuck so badly that no sound at all comes out for several seconds when he/she’s trying to talk?
9. Does your child sometimes use extra body movements, like tapping a finger, to get sounds out?
10. Does your child avoid talking, use substitute words, or quit talking in the middle of a sentence because he/she might stutter?

If you answered “yes” to any question other than number 1, it suggests the possibility of stuttering rather than normal disfluency. If you have concerns, please contact us and we will be glad to discuss the matter with you and answer any further questions you may have.