When Stuttering Is Normal for Toddlers

Watching your toddler navigate through the complexities of developing their sense of speech is pretty exciting. Their first words are, of course, monumental, but there is something really special when your child begins to put words together in a sentence. This begins to happen during the toddler years, between the ages of two and three. It is also a time when you may notice your child developing a speech pattern that can resemble stuttering, called “developmental stuttering”. For most children, it is nothing to be concerned about.

Natural Part of Speech Development

Developmental stuttering is a normal phase of speech development that occurs when a child’s speech is rapidly developing. So rapidly, in fact, that the child’s cognitive abilities work faster than the motor system in his or her mouth can accommodate. The result is your child may repeat the first word of a sentence several times before continuing with the rest of the sentence. For example, “Mom, Mom, Mom, I need to go potty” or “I, I, I want the blue one.” This type of stuttering usually resolves itself within three to six months. As children advance in their speech development, it is not uncommon to see some amount of developmental stuttering. However, if your child’s stuttering persists beyond six months or becomes more pronounced, you may be dealing with real stuttering.

What Is Stuttering?

Stuttering is an interruption in a person’s speech that results in the repetition, prolongation or interruption of sound. While it is not clear what actually causes stuttering, research on adults who stutter indicate that different pathways in the brain are used for speech than in brains of adults who don’t stutter.

We have also been able to identify a number of risk factors that help us better anticipate and treat children with stuttering.

Family history: Just about everyone has a family member who stuttered for a short time as a child and then outgrew it. This does put your child at risk, but not as high of a risk as when there is a family member who had or has a stuttering issue that required treatment. Nearly 50% of kids who stutter have a family member who also stutters.

Onset Factors: Children are more likely to outgrow stuttering when it begins before the age of three. Children who continue stuttering beyond six months are less likely to outgrow it without intervention.

Gender: The ratio between boys and girls and 4 to 1. We think this may be the result of two factors: first, boys and girls typically have different inherent speech and language abilities; second, is the fact that adults interact with boys and girls differently because of these differing abilities. This doesn’t mean that boys don’t outgrow stuttering. It just means that they are more likely to begin stuttering.

Language skills: We used to believe that children who stutter had lower language skills, but we are finding that it may be just the opposite. If you notice that your child speaks clearly with few speech errors, he or she is more likely to outgrow stuttering.

What To Do In The First Six Months

If your child has begun stuttering, don’t panic. It may resolve itself and we won’t be able to determine if it is true stuttering right away. The best thing to do is support your child where they are at in their speech development. Here are a few tips to follow as your child progresses through his or her speech development, whether you notice a stuttering problem or not:

• Spend time listening to your child. It may even help to get down to his level.
• Encourage your child to keep trying to talk, especially when she gets frustrated.
• Listen for the message of what your child is saying and not so much how it sounds.
• Avoid asking your child to produce answers to open ended questions for friends and family. Build his confidence by providing options that he can choose from and repeat after you.
• Make sure to acknowledge that your child is struggling in a positive way. “You are still learning to speak. Take your time. I’ll listen”

One thing that I hear parents say to their children who struggle with stuttering is “slow down”. The reality is that if slowing down actually helped, no one would ever need speech therapy. Instead of asking your child to slow down their speech, I encourage parents to do so. It helps children in hearing the distinct sounds of words and increases their ability to mimic them.

Finally, remember that it is perfectly normal for children to go through a period of stuttering. Nearly ¾ of the time, it will resolve itself.

Lisa Sikora is a Pediatric Speech Language Pathologist at Advocate Lutheran Children's Hospital.