Read2mama.com features the story of one hearing impaired child, whose early reading led to school success. We aim to promote early reading in hearing impaired children using strategies useful for all kids, not just children with hearing loss.
Early tests on my son, showed a severe sensorineural hearing loss. Experts warned me that hearing impaired children often fall behind in school. The prediction was a basic education - enough to make him an independent adult. I was advised to become his advocate, but chose to first become his teacher.
I read everything available about raising children with hearing loss. One web search turned up the early reading success story of a girl with Down's syndrome. Her father insisted, "Look at her ability, not at her diagnosis. That advice changed my outlook regarding children with hearing loss.
The point is not to deny the prognosis for our hearing impaired children, but to emphasize parents’ roles in shaping the lives of children with hearing loss. We are taught how to get the necessary services, and we should, but there is much we can do ourselves. Parents are often the best early childhood educators, and the best judge of their children’s abilities.
I've learned to accept no limitations placed on my son without first testing their validity. Our experience brings to mind the poem of a man who encountered an obstacle across his path. He asked to be allowed to pass, then demanded and finally pleaded unsuccessfully. Eventually he got an idea, straightened up and walked right through the 'obstacle'. It had never prevented his progress - he'd only thought it would.
Once I'd shed my preconceived ideas about children with hearing loss, the early reading adventure began. My son was reading by age three, and went on to turn common generalizations about hearing impaired children into his personalized story of achievement.
Early reading skills boost confidence - especially important in hearing impaired children. After my son's kindergarten teacher let him read to the class, there was no stopping him. Books became constant companions, partners in mischief-making and teddy bear substitutes. I happily filled the constant demand for early reading material. Today, he is a gifted reader who truly loves books.
I think early reading gives hearing impaired children another way of connecting with the world. When parents can enable this in children with hearing loss, it's both an exhilarating experience and a blessing
