DVD addresses children’s concerns about stuttering
Saturday, November 7, 2009 10:17 PM PST
VALE
Stuttering is a frustrating and embarrassing problem for millions of people, but it can be especially tough on elementary school-age children.
Help is available for parents, teachers and speech-language pathologists at many public libraries, including the Vale Public Library, in the form of a DVD designed to help school-age children who stutter.
“It’s meant to give speech-language pathologists the tools they need to deal with stuttering in this age group, but it also offers good ideas for parents and teachers,” University of Colorado at Boulder professor Peter Ramig said in a press release.
Ramig is one of five nationally recognized experts appearing in the DVD produced by the nonprofit Stuttering Foundation.
The DVD features students from first through sixth grade, some of whom talk about their experiences with stuttering. They talk openly about the teasing they face from classmates and how their stuttering sometimes makes them feel about themselves.
“We focus on demonstrating a variety of therapy strategies that are appropriate in working with children who stutter,” Ramig said.
He appears in the DVD along with speech-language pathologists Barry Guitar, Ph.D., of the University of Vermont, Hugo H. Gregory, Ph.D., and June Campbell, M.A., of Northwestern University, and Patricia Zebrowski, P.D., of the University of Iowa.
These five experts answer questions about stuttering, refute myths and misconceptions and present examples of therapy sessions showing how stuttering can be reduced.
“More than 3 million Americans stutter, yet stuttering remains misunderstood by most people," Jane Fraser, president of the Stuttering Foundation, said in a press release. “Myths such as believing people who stutter are less intelligent or suffer from psychological problems still persist despite research refuting these erroneous beliefs.”
The 38-minute DVD, “Therapy in Action: The School-age Child Who Stutters,” is being distributed free of charge to public libraries nationwide. If a local library does not have it, ask them to contact the Stuttering Foundation, (800) 992-9392, info@stutteringhelp.org or www.stutteringhelp.org. Some libraries have an older video version.
