By Katie Buda, MAT, Education Specialist
Children who are deaf and hard of hearing face unique challenges while striving to navigate the mainstream classroom environment.
One impactful way for children with hearing loss to gain confidence and foster understanding among their peers is through the sharing of their hearing loss story.
Create Your Child's Hearing Loss Story
As an education specialist working with students who are deaf and hard of hearing, I recommend a fun activity parents can do with their child to help them create their personal hearing loss story.
To get started, simply download one of the story templates below and add your own pictures to create a book that tells the story of your child's hearing loss journey.
Once completed, the book is an excellent way to engage your child in shared book reading and meaningful conversations. Discussing the content of the book can help children articulate their experiences, challenges, and achievements. And there are so many other empowering ways your child can utilize the book and its story.
Building Self-Confidence
As children narrate their journey through the personalized books, they reflect on their experiences, showcasing their pride and growth. This reflection nurtures a sense of self-confidence and self-worth. Parents can use these moments to celebrate their child's achievements and remind them of their unique strengths.
When children with hearing loss have the opportunity to share their personal stories with their peers, it creates a powerful avenue for building empathy. By openly discussing their experiences, challenges, and successes, children can help their classmates gain perspective and understanding of how their hearing equipment works. This not only educates their classmates about hearing loss but also can create a more compassionate and accepting environment.
Fostering Independence
By involving children in the process of creating their personalized books, parents encourage them to take ownership of their experiences and journey. This sense of ownership translates to other aspects of their lives, promoting independence in managing their hearing equipment and advocating for their needs as they grow.
Creating and presenting personalized books empowers children to articulate their needs and preferences effectively. Parents can encourage their children to share the books with family members, friends, and even healthcare professionals. This practice reinforces the importance of self-expression and equips them with skills that extend far beyond the classroom.
Promoting Self-Advocacy
At the appropriate age and with the support of the child's parent or Teacher of the Deaf, I encourage children to share their stories in a presentation to their classmates.
Public speaking can be daunting, especially for students in front of their peers. However, when children stand in front of their classmates and confidently share their journey, it instills a sense of empowerment and pride from a young age that nurtures positive self-image and strong self-advocacy skills.
Children with hearing loss often wear hearing aids, bone-anchored hearing aids (BAHAs), or cochlear implants, as well as utilize HAT (Hearing Assistive Technology) systems in the classroom. Explaining the purpose and functionality of their hearing equipment serves to demystify these devices. This proactive approach breaks down communication barriers, dispels misconceptions, and encourages classmates to engage and interact without inhibition.
CHC is Here to Help
Remember, you're not alone. CHC is here to support you and your child with hearing loss every step of the way in their journey to hearing, including educational support services.
Educational support plays a vitally important step in your child’s development because it bridges the gap between center-based speech/language therapy and the academic environment. Services include reading and writing support, math support, organization/classroom strategies, IEP support, school observations, teacher/school in-services, special instruction (EI) and more—many available through telehealth.
If you have questions about your child's learning needs or want to learn more about the educational support services at CHC, don't hesitate to contact me at (917) 305-7855 or kbuda@chchearing.org.
Wishing you all the best this back-to-school season!
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