This was a fun session because we had three kiddos and their moms in the group. It was the first group for a boy and his mom, and he dove right in as the children walked across the street to the Davis Center for a Stuttering World Tour!
The children spoke as a group with three employees at UVM and two students — all of them unfamiliar listeners. Each child shared a fact about stuttering and a name of a celebrity who stutters. They even met an adult who stutters who talked about how hard it was to be teased, and she might join the next adult support group!
Once back at the center, the group talked about advice they would give to other children who stutter about how to advocate for people who are teased:
–Stuttering can be good because you can meet other children who stutter and help them. When I’m teased about my stutter, I say I’m Bumblebee from Transformers.
–If someone teases you, say “Yeah I stutter. It’s a cool thing to do!”
–Give people time to talk and don’t rush them.
The moms talked a lot about how stress can affect their children’s stuttering. The kiddos are extra sensitive and tuned in to the world — which makes them empathetic and great, caring friends — but also means they struggle even more if teased and their stuttering can spike up when emotions are heightened.
The student leader, Claudia, is arranging a fantastic penpal exchange with a NSA group in Arizona! Stay tuned if your child wants to participate in this letter writing fun, and see you on Dec. 11!