|  | Family Health | Childrens Health

Strategies for Hearing Impaired Children

Hearing-impaired students can participate in everything that you have to offer as a teacher. There are a few accommodations that you can make, however, to ensure that your curriculum is accessible to students with hearing impairments. With more and more classrooms becoming integrated for all children, according to the Alliance for Students with Disabilities in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), it is important to make accommodations for students with all types of special needs.

  1. Provide Interpretation

    • Provide interpretation for all aspects of your class to accommodate students who cannot hear. STEM, of Washington state, says that even students who are able to lipread need some form of interpretation. If your school has a special education department, or if your school is all inclusive, aids are available for these students. Ensure that students with hearing impairments get on the list for aids and that the aids are provided for them.

      Provide interpretation other than what the aid can give and for situations in which the aid is not available. This makes the students feel comfortable in your classroom. Provide written instructions for all students so that students with hearing impairments may reread them when needed. Write major rules and instructions on the board. When you speak to the class, speak clearly and loudly from the front section of the room. Make eye contact with students and allow lipreading students to see your face.

    Visual Cues

    • Use visual cues and clues when speaking to your class as a hole. STEM says that visual cues help all students understand more of what is going on in the classroom. Use colored cards to hold up to the class to remind them of behavior--green for good behavior, yellow for warning behavior and red for behavior that needs to stop. Hang a classroom schedule on the board for your day and week. When it is time to move to another activity, say the activity and point to the place on the schedule so students with hearing impairments understand.

    Extras

    • Provide students with hearing impairments extra time to complete assignments and exams because they need special conditions in order to do so. STEM says this is something that many teachers forget. Make accommodations for students with hearing impairments when it comes to attendance because they will miss more school due to doctor's appointments and hearing and speech therapies.

Childrens Health - Related Articles