Virtual Kids Groups
Join us!
Friends is really excited to begin offering a Virtual Kids Groups. A space for kids who stutter to meet other kids who stutter, make friends who stutter, and enjoy each other’s company. All groups are facilitated by an adult.
Age Range: This group is for kids aged 6 to 11. If you’re looking for a group for 12 years and older, please view our Virtual Teen Group.
Upcoming Dates: Saturdays at 11:00 AM on 5/10/25, 6/14/25, and 8/9/25
Register Here: Friends Kids Group Registration
Note to SLPs and graduate students: Thanks for your interest in stuttering support groups! Groups play an important role in normalizing stuttering and fostering acceptance, growth, and resilience. We are grateful to so many therapists for spreading the word about our no-cost virtual groups. If you are looking to attend a group, please note that we do not offer opportunities to observe or participate in these peer support groups. For SLP educational and training opportunities, please see our one-day conferences and annual convention. We also recommend visiting our YouTube channel to watch panels of young people who stutter, parents, adults who stutter, and presentations by fellow SLPs. Join our mailing list below to get the latest updates about upcoming CEU and training opportunities.
Group Summary
We had a GREAT group this morning! We talked about the Super Bowl, Valentine’s Day and shared our favorite books. Some of the kiddos shared about how they self-advertise about their stuttering and one attendee shared how he created a presentation all about stuttering and shared it with his class. When asked if we could write a Valentine’s Day card to our stutter it would say,
“You cause me to get stuck sometimes, but you are still important to me.”
“Stutter, if you leave, I will give you all of my Valentine’s Day chocolate.”
“You can run stutter, but you can’t hide Mwa ha ha ha!”
and, “I love you, stutter! Happy Valentine’s Day!”
— Mandy Rodstrom on facilitating the February 8th Kids Group
(We also welcome you to read past group summaries here!)
Team
Arin Sheeler I am the proud parent of a young boy who stutters. Our family found Friends through The Ohio State University One-Day Conference in 2018, and we attended our first Annual Convention in Chicago in 2019. My husband and 3 children and I live in Columbus, Ohio, and both my husband and I work for The Ohio State University. I am a Speech Language Pathologist specializing in adults with acquired neurogenic communication disorders. I work part time as a Clinical Supervisor in the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences and at The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center in the Rehabilitation Hospital. We fell in love with Friends because of the fantastic people that we have met and the welcoming community. Our son especially has felt a real sense of belonging in the Friends family, and I am excited to be a part of helping Friends continue to flourish! Email Arin
Kristel Kubart, M.S., CCC-SLP, is a speech-language pathologist and a passionate person who stutters. She has been volunteering with Friends for 14 years. She believes that it is important to ‘show up’ for members of the stuttering community and to live the message that, “It’s ok to stutter.” She works as a speech therapist at an elementary school in Brooklyn, NY where she also supervises NYU graduate students. Additionally, she is a speech therapist at the American Institute for Stuttering, where she works exclusively with children, teens, and adults who stutter, both in-person and virtually. She received her B.A. in Psychology from the College of the Holy Cross and her M.S. in Speech and Language Pathology from Purdue University. At Purdue she worked as part of a team of researchers to help understand how stuttering develops in young children. She is happily married and lives with her husband Jason and their cat Winnie in Brooklyn, NY. Email Kristel
Sophie Tabrizi is a person who stutters and has been a part of the Friends community for 13 years. She is currently in graduate school at the University of Colorado, Boulder studying Speech-Language Pathology. Sophie will be graduating next summer and hopes to specialize in fluency disorders down the line. Friends gave Sophie a lifelong community at the age of 10. She looks forward to meeting others who stutter through the Friends virtual groups! Email Sophie