At Rock Therapeutic Services, we are able to complete standardized and non-standardized fluency assessments and set goals to meet your needs.
What is Fluency and Stuttering?
Fluency refers to the continuity, smoothness, effort, and rate of speech production. If your child has a problem with fluency, they may hesitate to speak or repeat words or phrases. A fluency disorder is an interruption in the flow of speaking. Your child could exhibit a repetition of sounds, syllables, words, and phrases when they speak. Stuttering is the most common fluency disorder. It is an interruption in the flow of speaking.
Contact our Seattle Speech Therapists for your consultation.
How We Can Help.
A few examples of fluency and stuttering
Common Questions & Helpful FAQs
What causes Stuttering?
Two most likely factors contribute to stuttering:
- Genetics: approximately 60% of those who stutter have a family member who also stutters;
- Child development: Children with other speech and language disorders/difficulties are more
likely to stutter.
Don’t all children stutter at some point?
Some pre-school children may go through periods of speech disfluency where they repeat words and phrases – which is perfectly normal. Only 5% of children show signs of actual stuttering, like sound repetitions, prolongations of sounds, and speech blocks. About 75% of children will not continue to stutter, but those who continue will benefit from specialized speech therapy.
Does my child only stutter because they’re nervous?
Nervousness does not cause stuttering! Speech fluency can be disrupted in the context of emotional distress. Nervousness and feeling pressured is not a direct link to stuttering. It is important not to assume that people who stutter and clutter are prone to be nervous, fearful, or shy.
What causes my child to stutter all of a sudden?
The sudden onset of stuttering may be the result of the following:
- Neurogenic: brain having trouble sending signals to areas of the brain that control speaking;
- Psychogenic: emotional difficulties;
- Or brain trauma.
Although stuttering can happen all of a sudden, stuttering can also develop gradually over time.
How can I help my child with stuttering or cluttering at home?
Our speech-language pathologists will give you tips to work on at home, but here are a few ways to support your child who stutters or clutters their speech.
Speak with your child in an unhurried way, pausing frequently. Waiting a few seconds to speak after your child finishes speaking will be far more effective than letting them know to “slow down” or “go
slowly.”
Use more wait time. If your child begins to stutter or clutter, wait for them to finish their sentence. Although you may think it is helpful to continue on to what they are saying, give them time to finish their
phrase before beginning to speak.
Encourage taking turns when talking. Help all members of your family take turns talking and listening. Children may find it easier to talk where there are fewer interruptions.