Martine has a friend at school who seems to have great difficulty expressing himself. His speech often seems “blocked”: he hesitates and repeats sounds. Martine wanted to know: does my friend stutter? What is stuttering?
Stuttering – What is it?
First, stuttering affects four times as many boys as girls and about 4-6% of children are said to have it. Stuttering is manifested by:
• Word part repetitions (ha…ha…hat)
• Extensions of sounds (He’s making a ssssssnake.)
• Blockages (g……ift.)
In addition, stuttering can be accompanied by facial straining (a kind of grimacing or eye blinking) or body movements.
Warning! Many children will have a temporary period of stuttering between the ages of 2 and 5 years old. However, the latter should not last more than 6 months and it coincides with the time when the child is learning adult language.
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