What Is Happening When My Child Stutters?

Hearing your child repeat sounds, words, or phrases can be concerning, especially if you are unsure why it is happening. Stuttering is a common speech difference that often begins during the preschool years, while children are developing their speech and language skills. For some children, stuttering is temporary, while for others it may continue over time.

If your child is stuttering, understanding what is happening during moments of stuttering can help you know how to support them and when to consider a speech-language assessment.

What Is Stuttering?

Stuttering is a speech disorder involving disruptions in the flow of speech. A child may know exactly what they want to say but experience difficulty getting the words out smoothly. Stuttering commonly begins during the preschool years and may occur while children's speech and language abilities are developing (Donaghy & Smith, 2016).

Research suggests that stuttering is influenced by a combination of factors, including genetic, neurological, physiological, and environmental factors. It is not caused by a child being nervous, shy, or unsure of what they want to say.

Importantly, stuttering is not your child's fault. Children who stutter are not choosing to repeat or get stuck on sounds and words.

What Does Stuttering Sound Like?

Stuttering can look and sound different from one child to another. Common types of stuttering include:

Repetitions

A child may repeat a sound, part of a word, or a word or phrase.

For example:

• “I-I-I want the truck.”

• “Can-can-can I have it?”

• “I was—I was walking.”

  
  

Prolongations

A child may stretch out a sound.

For example:

• “Mmmmmom, look!”

• “Sssssstop!”

  
  

Blocks

A child may become temporarily stuck and have difficulty getting a sound or word started. You may notice a pause or period of silence before the word comes out.

For example:

• “I want the [pause] ball.”

• “He was eating over there.”

  
  

Revisions

A child may start a phrase and then change or restart what they were saying.

For example:

• “She—her mother is coming.”

• “I want the—I mean, I need the blue one.”

  
  

Children may experience more than one type of stuttering, and the frequency and severity of stuttering can change from day to day or from situation to situation (Banerjee et al., 2021).

What Is Happening During a Moment of Stuttering?

During a moment of stuttering, speech production may be temporarily disrupted. Research suggests that stuttering can involve changes in airflow, vocal fold activity, and the movement and coordination of the muscles involved in speech, including the lips, tongue, and larynx (Alm et al., 2025).

Some children experience what are called blocks, where there may be a temporary interruption in airflow or difficulty initiating a sound. A child may also show increased muscle tension in the lips, tongue, or larynx during some moments of stuttering.

However, there is no single physical pattern that occurs every time a person stutters. Stuttering can vary considerably between individuals and even within the same child.

What Does Stuttering Feel Like for a Child?

What we hear when a child stutters does not necessarily tell us what the experience feels like for them.

For example, a parent may hear a child repeat a word several times and assume that the child is not bothered by it. However, children can have experiences with stuttering that are not always obvious to parents, teachers, or other listeners. Self-report can provide important information about how a person experiences their communication and stuttering (Guntupalli et al., 2006).

As children get older, they may also become more aware of their stuttering or develop thoughts and feelings about speaking. This is one reason why a comprehensive stuttering assessment considers more than simply counting the number of stuttering moments.

Does My Child Need Speech Therapy for Stuttering?

Not every child who stutters will need the same type of support. A speech-language pathologist (SLP) can assess your child's speech and language development, the characteristics of their stuttering, and how stuttering may be affecting their communication.

A stuttering assessment may consider:

• How frequently your child stutters

• The types of stuttering they experience

• Changes in stuttering across different situations

• Whether your child appears to be experiencing physical tension

• Your child's communication confidence and participation

• Your child's feelings and attitudes toward speaking, when appropriate

• How stuttering is affecting communication at home, school, and in the community

  
  

Professional guidelines recommend considering both observable speech behaviours and the individual's experience of stuttering when completing an assessment (Brundage et al., 2021).

If you are concerned about your child's stuttering, you do not need to wait for it to become severe before seeking professional advice. An SLP can help you understand your child's individual communication profile and determine whether monitoring, parent education, or speech therapy may be appropriate.

How Can Parents Support a Child Who Stutters?

One of the most helpful things parents can do is create a comfortable environment for communication.

Try to:

• Give your child time to finish what they are saying. Avoid completing their words or sentences.

• Maintain natural eye contact and show that you are listening to what they have to say.

• Focus on the message rather than how smoothly they are speaking.

• Avoid telling your child to “slow down,” “take a breath,” or “start again.” These comments are generally not helpful and can make a child more aware of how they are speaking.

• Take turns during conversations so your child has opportunities to speak without feeling rushed.

• Show interest in what your child is saying, rather than focusing on whether they stutter.

  
  

Most importantly, let your child know that you are interested in what they have to say, not whether they say it perfectly.

Speech Therapy for Stuttering in Vaughan, Ontario

If your child is stuttering and you have questions or concerns, a speech-language pathologist in Vaughan can help you better understand what is happening and determine whether an assessment is appropriate.

At Kurliand Speech Clinic, we provide speech-language assessments and therapy for children and families in Vaughan, Woodbridge, Maple, and surrounding communities. We offer in-clinic and in-home services in Vaughan, as well as virtual speech therapy across Ontario.

Our goal is to support children in communicating confidently and comfortably while providing families with practical strategies they can use in everyday life.

Concerned about your child's stuttering? Contact Kurliand Speech Clinic to learn more about speech-language assessment and therapy in Vaughan, Ontario.

References

Alm, P. A., Brösemyr, T., Grinde, S., Johansson, S., Karlsson, J., Nordgren, G., Olsson, R., Rocksten, F., Sandsten, M., Sör, I., & White, D. (2025). Stuttering: The nature of the speech disruptions—A multimodal study of articulation and phonation. Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 19, Article 1623308. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnhum.2025.1623308

Banerjee, N., Borah, S., & Sethi, N. (2022). Intelligent stuttering speech recognition: A succinct review. Multimedia Tools and Applications, 81(17), 24145–24166. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11042-022-12817-z

Brundage, S. B., Ratner, N. B., Boyle, M. P., Eggers, K., Everard, R., Franken, M.-C., Kefalianos, E., Marcotte, A. K., Millard, S., Packman, A., Vanryckeghem, M., & Yaruss, J. S. (2021). Consensus guidelines for the assessments of individuals who stutter across the lifespan. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 30(6), 2379–2393. https://doi.org/10.1044/2021_AJSLP-21-00107

Donaghy, M. A., & Smith, K. A. (2016). Management options for pediatric patients who stutter: Current challenges and future directions. Pediatric Health, Medicine and Therapeutics, 7, 71–77. https://doi.org/10.2147/PHMT.S77568

Guntupalli, V. K., Kalinowski, J., & Saltuklaroglu, T. (2006). The need for self-report data in the assessment of stuttering therapy efficacy: Repetitions and prolongations of speech. International Journal of Language & Communication Disorders, 41(1), 1–18. https://doi.org/10.1080/13682820500126627