Changing attitudes in Children Who Stutter

I chose to read the article titled “Changing the Attitudes in Children Who Stutter.” I picked this article because I believe it is very important to have a good understanding of the child’s attitudes and ways to help them form more positives ones about themselves. The article was extremely helpful and provided some great tips when working with a child who stutters. Here are some of them:
1. First: Learn vocabulary to describe stuttering, the speech process and techniques to modify rate and tension.
2. Second: Learn to analyze and problem solve approaches to various Speaking Situations
3. Third: Understand the impact of negative thinking on attitudes while speaking in difficult situations; transfer negative thoughts into positive ones.
4. Fourth: Tell Your Story; Read the stories of other children/teens!
5. Fifth: Meet other people who stutter
I asked the author what she would do when working with a child who was hesitant to open up and talk about stuttering. Here is her response: “Great question...sometimes clients are not ready for what you (as a clinician) may think is best. I really try to listen to what the client is saying and thinking. Then explore those issues. Sometimes, I suggest some activities. This is one reason that I generally start with some discussion of the various aspects of stuttering. The powerpoints often help as the client is responding to another person's feelings/comments.”
I thought that her response was very insightful and definitely came from a place of experience and knowledge. It made me realize that just because I may think it is best to be open and talk about feelings and attitudes related to stuttering, the child may not. This may be a very sensitive subject that they have a difficult time talking about and I need to be aware of this and give them the space they need to feel comfortable to eventually talk about it. I will always try to refer back to this when working with a child who stutters.