For Teens
STUTTERING IS Hiding Burying myself in books Whispering Using bad habit Trying to be perfect Ignoring People Annoying Words caught in my throat Being stared at Not talking Avoiding Words caught in my mouth Scary Handicap Embarrassing Eating lunch by myself Trying to hide my speech Not chiming in Speeding Up Choppy Keeping to yourself Redirection attention Saying other things Covering Up Doing More Worrying all the time Throat drying up Hesitating Being Paranoid Never Volunteering
Stories written by Teens for Teens
Going back to school as a person who stutters
A Summary of Our September Virtual Teen Group“We had a great September teens group! We started off by getting to know each other and sharing fun memories from the summer! We then talked about going back to school as a person who stutters. Many of the teens asked...
Ways We Can Advocate for Ourselves
A Summary of Our August Virtual Teen Group“We talked about looking forward to seeing old friends, meeting new friends, ALL the feels that come with a new school year, and the fun activities/clubs we look forward to joining (soccer, basketball, tae kwon do,...
Chatting about life, stuttering, and summer!
A Summary of the June Virtual Teen Group“Teens had an awesome time talking sports, comics, art, and everything in between! We brought our pets into the group and asked each other questions about stuttering being a great part of our lives! So many of our teens have fun...
Listener reactions, disclosure, and growth
A Summary of the May Virtual Teen Group“The teens had a great meet-up on 5/8/24! After some ice breaker activities, we had a lively discussion about what bugs us about how listeners react to our stuttering. Some teens in the group had previously disclosed their...
Best Friends Were Made
A Summary of the April Virtual Teen Group“Best friends were made in April’s teen session! Teens from all over the country - East Coast to West Coast - came to talk about speaking up for themselves, standing up for ourselves, and educating others about stuttering. So...
The Value of Taking Risks
A Summary of the January Virtual Teen Group“We had a great January teen group! We connected by sharing where we lived, our hobbies, and our favorite movies or TV shows. Hobbies ranged from music to video games to sports and playing instruments. Many people had...
Teens Want to Know
Wish my parents knew:
Stuttering Secrets
Trying new things (stuttering related) is better with others When I don’t get stuck that much it makes me feel glad Never let stuttering hold you back. You can accomplish anything in your life if you put your mind to it When I get stuck, other people think there is...
Siblings Speak
Don’t overdo stuff — Chloe, 12 years old
I was a little scared…and I did it anyway!
Young people who stutter show us acts of courage on a daily basis. They often make choices that may increase their risk of being uncomfortable, feeling different and possibly ending up at the receiving end of ridicule. Friends would like to honor these acts of...
Wishes for Others – Denver
Dear Ian, I wish you were a millionaire! Plus cool hat! Also I wish you would never be bullied again. From, Evan Dear Wraith (chase), I hope you learn stuttering techniques. Your friend,Ian To: Ian honey badger Hope to be your captain next year and bring your shirt....
Stuttering Secrets Shared at a Convention
“Although a large majority of the time I do not focus on my stuttering, I still find myself avoiding and becoming very frustrated and embarrassed when my stuttering surfaces. I am not comfortable with openly stuttering.”
Inspiration for the Classroom
How to give a classroom presentation on stuttering
Introduction - Ask the students: What is a Speech-Language Pathologist? What kind of things do SLP’s work on with kids? Have any of you ever worked with a SLP? What is stuttering? Learn more about stuttering by watching a video from the FRIENDS YouTube channel So...
Teacher Letters
Dear Teacher, My name is Ryan. I’m just a regular kid and I stutter. Stuttering is when someones speech gets stuck It hurts when people make fun of me please help me try to make the kids stop. Sensearly, Ryan Dear Teacher, I have some things to work on. I studder I...
Dear Teacher
Dear Teacher, Hey, I’m Grace and I will be in your ________ class. I’m writing this letter to let you know that, well, I stutter, and I feel like I gotta let you know some stuff about it – how I plan on dealing with it to make myself more comfortable in class. ...
Telling Teachers
by Aileen Hi Ms. XXX, My name is Aileen I and am going to be in your AP Calculus class. I wanted to let you know that I stutter. I have decided that emailing you may help you to understand some things about stuttering that you might not already know. Stuttering is...
Telling The Class About Stuttering
by Francine J. Bliss Should you tell the class about stuttering? The response from my nine year old son, who stutters is, “YES!” Ryan has done so for three years now. I have never regretted asking him to do it. His first time telling his class was in the middle of...
Ryan’s School Letter
Dear _________________________________, Hi! My name is Ryan Bliss. I am 9 years old. I live in Commack. I wanted to let you know that I stutter. Stuttering is when your vocal cords get stuck and sometimes you repeat sounds or words. The best way to help me is to...
About Me
(Editors Note: This is a class presentation that Friends member Aileen of New York gave to her tenth grade class.) Hi my name is Aileen. I am the oldest of 3 children and I have a dog named Maggie who is almost 3 years old and gets treated like the fourth child....
A Proud Mom’s Story
(Editors Note: This is a story about a girl who stutters and her mom, who is very proud of her.) Summer vacation was about over and back-to-school time was just around the corner. Before a new school year begins, we make a phone call to our daughter’s new teacher, to...
How I Advocated for Myself… Or How to Make Jeopardy Work for You
by Ashlee Walsh My name is Ashlee Walsh and I did a presentation on stuttering my English class. I really thought that it was a good idea because most people have no clue what stuttering really is. I also thought that, eventually, the class would notice something was...