Question: My 4 1/2 year old has speech delays and he has been improving a lot in speech therapy. however he has been stuttering for a few weeks now. Should i tell him to slow down, or just ignore it?

Answer: If it has just started then the best thing to do is ignore it & treat it like it’s no big deal. but be very positive about his speech. Say encouraging things like, “You are so good at your new sounds” etc. Let him know with actions and body language that you will give him as much time as he needs to say what he needs to say.

it is normal for kids to stutter any time in the preschool years, it’s just how long it goes and how severe it is that determines whether they need speech therapy for it.

Just a funny: My DD stuttered off and on for over a year and it cleared up on its own. the funny thing is that she “backwards stuttered” for lack of a better term. Instead of repeating first sounds I l-l-l-like cookies she repeated the end part of the word “I like-ike-ike-ike cookies”. I’m a pediatric speech therapist and in 11 years i’ve never seen another child do this!