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%u00a9 Elklan Training Limited 2023Speech andLanguage Support for 3-5s10.7.0 Helping Children who StammerChildren need to know that it is okay to stammer. Show them by:%u2022 Listening to what the child says without interrupting, giving advice or saying their words for them. Give time and patience. Just wait.%u2022 Showing relaxed, natural body language, eye contact and facial expressions.%u2022 Talking openly to them about their stammer especially if they are upset, frustrated or struggling. You can acknowledge what happened and the feeling - %u2018that word got a bit stuck, I can see you are upset.%u2019 Reassure them that it is ok to stammer. %u2022 Being mindful of the language you use to talk about stammering which can give the message that stammering is bad/wrong. Talk about more/less stammering rather than it being better/worse or a bad/good day.%u2022 Building resilience. Let the child be independent and do things for themselves, this includes talking for themselves. Let them make their own mistakes, solve their own problems. Give them praise for their efforts and offer empathy and support when needed.%u2022 Giving praise for their talking regardless of whether they are stammering, along with all the other things they do well. (For example, %u2018I loved the word you chose to describe%u2026%u2019)%u2022 Slowing down the pace of conversations by using pauses this allows time and space for stammering.%u2022 Using more comments than questions. Try and give four comments to every question. This gives the child who stammers more time and reduces the %u2018demand%u2019 or pressure to answer questions and respond straight away.%u2022 Encouraging turn taking in talking. Children who stammer need more time to talk and to be included in conversations. Be aware that some children have differences in their social communication and may have different turn taking preferences.If you are concerned about a child who is stammering, contact your local speech and language therapy department with the consent of the parent/carer. AL Learning an additional language does not cause stammering. If a child stammers, they should not be prevented from using either language.Useful websites:%u2022 www.stamma.org%u2022 www.actionforstammeringchildren.org%u2022 www.michealpalincentreforstammering.org