Good speaking skills are essential in today's 21st century world. If your child has a speech or language disorder, early intervention is the best way to prepare them for the future. Fortunately, Sounds of Success: Preschool and Learning Center in Aiea, HI, provides affordable childcare services and an excellent speech therapy program to help your preschooler succeed.

One speech disorder that can affect young children is stuttering. Affecting the fluency of speech, stuttering is defined as and "interruption of the flow of speech that may include hesitations, repetitions, prolongations of sounds or words." The certified and licensed speech-language pathologists at Sounds of Success: Preschool and Learning Center will work with children to improve fluency, along with other speech disorders and language disorders.

If you have a child that stutters, there are ways you can help at home. Here are six tips for parents courtesy of The Stuttering Foundation:

• Slow Down Your Speech: It is important to speak with your child in a way that's not rushed. Frequently pausing while you talk in a relaxed manner works better than telling your child to "slow down" or "say it again more slowly."
• Listen Lovingly: While you don't have to stop everything each time your child speaks, it's important to increase how often you listen with intent. Give your child your full attention to show them that you are really listening.
• Hold Your Questions: While questions come up naturally in daily life, rapid-fire questions in a row are unhelpful for a child who stutters. Make a comment or observation and then wait for your child to respond.
• Take Turns Talking: It's good to practice good conversation skills with the whole family. Model taking turns with talking and listening without talking over one another.
• Increase Confidence: Offer children specific praise for behaviors that are unrelated to speaking skills. Rather than saying, "Good job," try saying "I really like how you helped clear off the table after dinner. Thank you."
• Make Time For Quality Time: Take time to give your kid your complete attention without distraction.

In addition to daily childcare, preschool, and speech therapy, Sounds of Success: Preschool and Learning Center offers after school speech therapy classes for members and non-members. Give your child the support he or she needs to succeed with speech and language skills. Visit them online and call (808) 488-2211 to find out more.