Numerous surveys have shown that speech-language pathologists are generally less comfortable treating stuttering than other disorders, even though most clinicians already possess many of the skills and much of the knowledge they need to be effective stuttering therapists.
This two-day workshop is designed to help clinicians become more comfortable with their ability to appropriately diagnose and effectively treat both preschool and school-aged children who stutter, so they will feel more confident with their clinical skills and, ultimately provide better service to children who stutter. The workshop will begin with a brief overview of current understandings of the cause of stuttering, with special consideration of the reasons that many clinicians view stuttering as “too difficult.”
Next, participants will discuss various options for diagnosing and evaluating stuttering, with guided practice in identifying important risk factors and behaviors that indicate the need for treatment and differentiate stuttering from normal disfluency.
The majority of the time in this workshop will address specific treatment strategies for working with preschool and school-aged children who stutter, including analysis of the goals of treatment and guided practice with techniques for helping children improve their speech fluency and their communication attitudes.
Particular attention will be paid to the critical transition between early stuttering and more advanced stuttering which often occurs for children who stutter in the early school-age years.
Throughout the workshop, an emphasis will be placed on capitalizing on clinicians’ existing skills and abilities for working with other speech and language disorders and on recognizing clinicians’ strengths for helping children who stutter.
More info:
http://www.speechcare.pt/events/dr-scott-yaruss-practical-treatment-strategies-for-preschool-and-school-age-children-who-stutter