Children go through the same learning patterns while developing their first language as adults do when learning languages other than their native language.Although many adults display types of dysfluency, it is usually in relation to comprehending or expressing different materials under stress. Developmental dysfluency is a normal part of the acquisition of language. An individual may not be fluent in language due to frequent stuttering or as a result of neurogenic dysfunction. The origin of stuttering is not yet fully understood but parents/adults can mitigate the risk of developmental dysfluency by reducing the conversational demands on their child. Modeling slow, smooth speech and acknowledging the demanding and complex nature of learning language can help. Symptoms
Symptoms of developmental dysfluency include the repetition of sounds or pauses between words. These symptoms have generally been noted within children from 18 months to 5 years of age. This may persist for weeks or months but eventually disappears due to the maturation of the childs nervous system. Children with a family history of stuttering are more likely to develop the disorder than those without.ex. : "Mommy, I am, I am, um, I am..."
Usually, this language dysfluency is a transitional stage that most children will leave behind as they master oral communications. At this point, there is little to no need for any therapeutic intervention. The typical occurrence lies between the ages of 18 months and 7 years as children pass through stages of speech dysfluency as they learn how to talk.
The brain and language development
As a child attempts to develop their language acquisition as one of the most fundamental human traits it is the brain that undergoes the developmental changes. During the phases of language acquisition the brain both stores linguistic information and adapts to the grammatical regularities and irregularities of language. Recent advances in Functional neuroimaging (fMRI) have contributed to the system leave analysis of the brain in relation to linguistic processing. In order for language to be obtained, there needs to be brain stimulation and memory processes at work in order to form the correct brain pathways. When synapses are stimulated repeatedly that pattern of neural connections is then written into the brain and it becomes a more efficient permanent pathway that allows signals to be quickly transmitted. In terms of language, these pathways need to be created in order to remember and understand the language and communicate with it. During specific periods in a childs development the brain is active in forming connections for different abilities, one of which being language. Infants start out able to distinguish sound and process different auditory stimuli but after six months they are only able to do so in their native language. As infants hear sounds repeated a different cluster of neurons in the auditory cortex of the brain that responds to sound. During preschool years, the development of syntax and grammar takes place. It is during this period that children begin to exhibit symptoms of developmental dysfluency if they have it.