Raising a Deaf Child Makes the World Sound Different

Google Image

Lydia Denworth,  a journalist and parent, describes how having a child with a hearing loss has changed the way she listens. She describes the power of sound in shaping speech, language and literacy skills.  Raising a Deaf Child Makes the World Sound Different

Christmas shopping? See which toys could damage your child's hearing.

Google image

Noise induced hearing loss can result from a single exposure to a very loud sound or prolonged exposure to moderately loud sounds.  Two dozen popular toys were tested to see if they made the grade.  Toys that could damage your child's hearing | UC Irvine Health | Orange County, CA

Stick writing: Drawing that supports oral and written language

Pictographs are simple stick drawings used to represent the chronology of events in a story or procedure. Children can use stick drawings as a means to support memory and organization for oral story telling or as a pre-writing task.
http://www.ecstresources.com/uploads/6/1/9/1/6191025/pictographydetails.pdf

Is childhood art key to developing language literacy?

image - The Vancouver Sun

Bob Steele, retired professor of art education at UBC, has spent his career raising awareness about the importance of fostering drawing in young children.  He describes spontaneous drawing as a medium for language and a developmental stepping stone towards written expression.   Raise-a-Reader: Is childhood art key to developing language literacy?

A Parent's Guide for Hearing Loss

google image

My Child has a Hearing Loss; A Parent's Guide, is an online resource for parents.  Phonak, a hearing aid manufacturer, provides a thorough and easy to read review of the causes and types of hearing loss, as well as suitable technology and practical communication tips. Click on the link to access the guide:
http://www.phonak.com/content/dam/phonak/b2b/Pediatrics/Brochure_BtC_Junior_Hearing_Loss_140x210_GB_V2.00_028-0289-02.pdf

Unilateral hearing loss - possible impacts on speech, language, behaviour and learning

UNILATERAL HEARING LOSS
Possible Impact on the Understanding of Language and Speech	Possible Social Impact	Potential Educational Accommodations and Services
·  Child can "hear" but can have difficulty understanding in certain situations, such as hearing faint or distant speech, especially if poor ear is aimed toward the person speaking. ·  Will typically have difficulty localizing sounds and voices using hearing alone. ·  The unilateral listener will have greater difficulty understanding speech when environment is noisy and/or reverberant, especially when normal ear is towards the overhead projector or other competing sound source and poor hearing ear is towards the teacher. ·  Exhibits difficulty detecting or understanding soft speech from the side of the poor hearing ear, especially in a group discussion.	·  Child may be accused of selective hearing due to discrepancies in speech understanding in quiet versus noise. ·  Social problems may arise as child experiences difficulty understanding in noisy cooperative learning, or recess situations. ·  May misconstrue peer conversations and feel rejected or ridiculed. ·  Child may be more fatigued in classroom due to greater effort needed to listen, if class is noisy or has poor acoustics. ·  May appear inattentive, distractible or frustrated, with behavior or social problems sometimes evident.	·  Allow child to change seat locations to direct the normal hearing ear toward the primary speaker. ·  Student is at 10 times the risk for educational difficulties as children with 2 normal hearing ears and  1/3 to 1/2 of students with unilateral hearing loss experience significant learning problems. ·  Children often have difficulty learning sound/letter associations in typically noisy kindergarten and grade 1 settings. ·  Educational and audiological monitoring is warranted. ·  Teacher inservice is beneficial. ·  Typically will benefit from a personal FM system with low gain/power or a sound-field FM system in the classroom, especially in the lower grades. ·  Depending on the hearing loss, may benefit from a hearing aid in the impaired ear.

School readiness begins with responsive relationships and stimulatng experiences

google image 

In those early years, before formal education begins, a child's brain development is being influenced by his/her experiences.  The neural connections that are formed prepare a foundation for future learning.  http://www.examiner.com/article/school-readiness-for-children-with-disabilities

Virus Present at Birth Causes More Than 10 Percent of Hearing-Loss Cases in Kids

google image

Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is the most common non-inherited cause of hearing loss in children. Newborn hearing screenings and following-up on a child's hearing until age 6 are necessary steps to detect delayed onset or progressive hearing loss from CMV.

Virus Present at Birth Causes More Than 10 Percent of Hearing-Loss Cases in Kids

Building Language in Babies Well Before First Words are Spoken

google image

In the first few months, babies begin to distinguish the sounds that make up language from all the other sounds they hear. Between 4 - 7 months, "babies can be trained to more effectively recognize which sounds "might" be language, accelerating the development of the brain maps which are critical to language acquisition and processing....Read the full article describing recent research at Rutgers University:
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2014/09/140930171434.htm

Communication Milestones Birth to 5 years

Birth to 3 months:

Does the child:

• make cooing sounds

• have different cries for different needs

• smile at you

• startle to loud sounds

• soothe/calm to a familiar voice

4 to 6 months:

Does the child:

• babble and make different sounds

• make sounds back when you talk

• enjoy games like peek-a-boo

• turn his/her eyes toward a sound source

• respond to music or toys that make noise

7 to 12 months:

Does the child:

• wave hi/bye

• respond to his/her name

• let you know what he/she wants using sounds, and/or actions like pointing

• begin to follow simple directions (e.g., Where is your nose?)

• localize correctly to sound by turning his/her head toward the sound

• pay attention when spoken to

By 12 to 18 months:

Does the child:

• use common words and start to put words together

• enjoy listening to storybooks

• point to body parts or pictures in a book when asked

• look at your face when talking to you

By 18 to 24 months:

Does the child:

• understand more words than he/she can say

• say two words together (e.g., More juice)

• ask simple questions (e.g., What’s that?)

• take turns in a conversation

2 to 3 years:

Does the child:

• use sentences of three or more words most of the time

• understand different concepts (e.g., in-on; up-down)

• follow two-part directions (e.g., take the book and put it on the table)

• answer simple questions (e.g., Where is the car?)

• participate in short conversations

3 to 4 years:

Does the child:

• tell a short story or talk about daily activities

• talk in sentences with adult-like grammar

• generally speak clearly so people understand

• hear you when you call from another room

• listen to TV at the same volume as others

• answer a variety of questions

4 to 5 years:

Does the child:

• pronounce most speech sounds correctly

• participate in and understand conversations even in the presence of background noise

• recognize familiar signs (e.g., stop sign)

• make up rhymes

• hear and understand most of what is said at home and school

• listen to and retell a story and ask and answer questions about a story