How to Help a Child With a Hearing Impairment
When a child has a hearing impairment, it can be difficult for her to develop speech and language normally. It's important to detect and treat hearing impairments as early as possible to promote normal language acquisition. A speech-language pathologist (SLP) can work with you and your child to develop an aural habilitation plan, which includes a number of strategies to accustom the child to environmental sounds and develop effective communication with others in her environment.
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Instructions
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Obtain auditory perception training for your child. Depending on the child and his specific impairment, this training may include strategies to help him increase his awareness of sounds in his world, figure out what those sounds mean, tell the difference between common sounds and learn what those sounds mean in terms of speech and language.
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Teach your child the meaning of visual cues in person-to-person communication. When we talk with another person, we use gestures, facial expressions and other body language to get our points across. A child with a hearing impairment may be slower to learn the meaning of these cues, and can benefit from targeted teaching sessions.
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Follow proven strategies to improve your child's speech. A speech-language pathologist can provide an individualized speech plan for your child that may include the production of words and other sounds, speech volume and speed, and breathing patterns.
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Help your child develop age-appropriate language. Working with a pediatric speech-language pathologist, identify home-based activities designed to improve your child's understanding of spoken language, as well as his ability to produce language. One child may need help expanding his vocabulary, for example, while another struggles with the way language changes from one social setting to another.
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Work with your child to help her manage her communications. It's important that she understand her hearing impairment, develop strategies to manage any communication issues that arise, and figure out how to modify situations in her life to make communication easier.
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Encourage your child to be as independent as possible with his hearing aid or other assistive device. While it's tempting to manage those expensive devices yourself to keep them safe, the child should demonstrate increasing ability to maintain and trouble the equipment on his own.
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Tips & Warnings
While a typically developing child with normal hearing seems to sail through the process of acquiring speech and language, a youngster with a hearing impairment often struggles along the way. Speech-language pathologists and audiologists who are certified by the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association and experienced in working with children can serve as valuable resources for you and your child in this journey.
Don't focus so much on therapeutic interventions that you forget to have fun with your child. Incorporate speech and language acquisition strategies into developmentally-appropriate play with your son or daughter, and enjoy the time you spend together.
