Free Speech Therapy is a School Benefit

At a time of spiraling health care costs, speech therapy is one free benefit many parents can appreciate. If your child stutters, he or she may be eligible for free speech therapy in school.

Under federal law, public and private schools must provide special education services such as speech therapy to children, even preschoolers, who need them. "Unfortunately, many parents aren't aware that this free resource exists and that it can save them hundreds of dollars in health care costs," said Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation. "Stuttering therapy may not be covered by employer-based health insurance either," she added.

A Hero of their Own - chargers.com

alt textBy Casey Pearce
Chargers.com

Darren Sproles spent one morning encouraging approximately 30 youngsters who, like the star running back, battle stuttering issues.

Counseling Parents

Counseling Parents of a Child with Normal Disfluencies

If a child appears to be normally disfluent, parents should be reassured that these disfluencies are like the mistakes every child makes when he or she is learning any new skill, like walking, writing, or bicycling. Parents should be advised to accept the disfluencies without any discernable reaction or comment.

Eliminating Stereotypes About Stuttering

  • People who stutter are as intelligent and well-adjusted as non-stutterers.

     

  • Don't assume that people who stutter are prone to be nervous, anxious, fearful, or shy. While stuttering behaviors may sometimes resemble the behaviors of non-stutterers who experience these emotions, people who stutter exhibit the same full range of personality traits as those who do not.

     

  • Stuttering is not the result of emotional conflict or fearfulness.

     

Etiology

Although the etiology of stuttering is not fully understood, there is strong evidence to suggest that it emerges from a combination of constitutional and environmental factors. Geneticists have found indications that a susceptibility to stuttering may be inherited and that it is most likely to occur in boys.1,2,3 Further support for inheritance comes from twin studies that have demonstrated a higher concordance for stuttering among both members of identical twin pairs than fraternal twin pairs.4,5 Congenital brain damage is also suspected to be a predisposing factor in some cases.1 For a large number of children who stutter, however, there is neither family history of the disorder nor clear evidence of brain damage.

Finding Help for Stuttering

Newly discovered families give impetus to genetics research

by Lisa Scott-Trautman, Ph.D.

Q: How can you tell if your child has a stuttering problem?

Resources for Teachers

We have compiled a list of resources on stuttering therapy, teasing, and building self-esteem in children. The list includes resources for children, parents, teachers, and speech-language pathologists. You may also call the Stuttering Foundation at 800-992-9392 for a list of support groups.

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