volta voices january-march 2015 magazine

THE BRAIN SCIENCE OF HEARING: LANGUAGE,

LEARNING, LITERACY

VOLUME 22ISSUE 1JAN-MAR 2015

Not only is Sensei designed to address the auditory and speech perception needs of every stage of childhood, it meets strict internal durability and safety requirements as well as international child safety standards. We’ve minimized any allergy risks by banning more than 200 potentially harmful materials, substances and compounds. In fact, Oticon is

unique as a hearing instrument manufacturer to have completely banned the use of phthalates (suspected endocrine disruptors) in our products. • Hypoallergenic• Nano-coated• Shock and drop resistant• IP58 classified for dust

and water resistance

• Free of Phthalates and PVCs• Biocompatible • Tamper-resistant battery door

standard for ages 0-3 Providing the best hearing care as well giving a high priority to children’s safety and well being is part of Oticon’s mission to ensure a better future for every child with hearing loss.

For more information about Oticon Sensei, contact your hearing healthcare professional or visit www.oticonusa.com/children

Your child’s safety is as important to Oticon as his development

We never compromise on hearing performance or child safety

Watch how Oticon designs products for safety and durability

ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL ASSOCIATION FOR THE DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING 3417 VOLTA PLACE, N.W., WASHINGTON, DC 20007 // LISTENINGANDSPOKENLANGUAGE.ORG

JAN-MAR 2015 // VOLUME 22 // ISSUE 1

FEATURES

3 Voices from AG Bell Giving Children the Gift of Spoken Language and Literacy

5 Editor’s Note Resolve to Evolve! Turning Sound into Language: Literacy Fundamentals 24 Advocacy in Action Advancing Education Policy,

Access to Movies and Hearing Technology 26 Hear Our Voices Journeying to Independence

2 8 Focus on Chapters AG Bell Nevada

31 LSL Knowledge Early Learning, Literacy and Language Center Development Resources Online

10 Ears Are Just the Beginning: How Sound Turns into Language and Language into Literacy Journey into the brain science of hearing! Learn how the circuits that sound creates in a child’s brain lay the groundwork for the networks that will bring spoken language and, how those networks, in turn, are the foundation for learning to read. BY LYDIA DENWORTH

16 Keeping It Real: Coaching Parents to Use Natural Experiences for Learning

Read about meaningful strategies for developing listening and spoken language in children with hearing loss during natural, regular and common experiences, including daily routines. BY ELLIE WHITE, M.S., M.Ed., CED, AND DORIE NOLL, MSDE, CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd

2 0 A Life in Balance: My Journey Toward LSLS CertificationRead about a newly Certified Auditory-Verbal Educator living and working in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and his journey toward LSLS certification: the career choices and experiences that led him on the path, his relationship with his mentor and other experts from the field, his exam preparation tips and strategies, and great advice for the actual test day! BY AARON BILOTTA, M.S., CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVEd

2 Want to Write for Volta Voices?

7 Voices Contributors

8 Sound Bites

3 2 Directory of Services

4 0 List of Advertisers

DEPARTMENTSIN EVERY ISSUE

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16

20Not only is Sensei designed to address the auditory and speech perception needs of every stage of childhood, it meets strict internal durability and safety requirements as well as international child safety standards. We’ve minimized any allergy risks by banning more than 200 potentially harmful materials, substances and compounds. In fact, Oticon is

unique as a hearing instrument manufacturer to have completely banned the use of phthalates (suspected endocrine disruptors) in our products. • Hypoallergenic• Nano-coated• Shock and drop resistant• IP58 classified for dust

and water resistance

• Free of Phthalates and PVCs• Biocompatible • Tamper-resistant battery door

standard for ages 0-3 Providing the best hearing care as well giving a high priority to children’s safety and well being is part of Oticon’s mission to ensure a better future for every child with hearing loss.

For more information about Oticon Sensei, contact your hearing healthcare professional or visit www.oticonusa.com/children

Your child’s safety is as important to Oticon as his development

We never compromise on hearing performance or child safety

Watch how Oticon designs products for safety and durability

Advancing Listening and Spoken Language for Individuals Who Are Deaf and Hard of HearingAdopted by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Board of Directors, July 2013

ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELLASSOCIATION FOR THE DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING

3417 Volta Place, N.W., Washington, DC 20007ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org VOICE 202.337.5220TTY 202.337.5221 | FAX 202.337.8314

Volta Voices Staff

Director of Communications and MarketingSusan Boswell, M.A., CAE

EditorAnna Karkovska McGlew, M.A.

Advertising, Exhibit and Sponsorship SalesThe Townsend Group

Design and LayoutGRAPHEK

AG Bell Board of Directors

PresidentMeredith K. Sugar, Esq. (OH)

President-ElectTed Meyer, M.D., Ph.D. (SC)

Immediate Past PresidentDonald M. Goldberg, Ph.D., LSLS Cert. AVT (OH)

Secretary-TreasurerCatharine McNally (VA)

Chief Executive OfficerEmilio Alonso-Mendoza, J.D., CFRE

Corrine Altman (NV)

Rachel Arfa, Esq. (IL)

Jonathan Berger, Esq. (NY)

Evan Brunell (MA)

Kevin Franck, Ph.D., MBA, CCC-A (MA)

Donna Grossman, M.A. (VA)

Susan Lenihan, Ph.D., CED (MO)

Catharine McNally (VA)

Teri Ouellette, M.S.Ed., LSLS Cert. AVEd (IN)VOLTA VOICES Volume 22, Issue 1, Jan-Mar 2015 (ISSN 1074-8016) is published 4 times per year in March, June, September, and December for $50 per year by Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, 3417 Volta Pl., N.W., Washington, DC, 20007. Periodicals postage is paid at Washington, DC, and other additional offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Volta Voices, Subscription Department, 3417 Volta Pl., N.W., Washington, DC 20007, 202/337-5220 (voice) or 202/337-5221 (TTY).

Claims for undelivered issues must be made within 4 months of publication. Volta Voices is sent to all members of the association. Yearly individual membership dues are $50. Volta Voices comprises $30 of membership dues. Subscriptions for schools, libraries and institutions are $150/year (rate includes online access to The Volta Review) or $190/year (rate includes online access to The Volta Review as well as a print compilation volume of the journal).

Copyright ©2015 by the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Inc., 3417 Volta Pl., N.W., Washington, DC 20007. Articles published in Volta Voices do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing.

Acceptance of advertising by Volta Voices does not constitute endorsement of the advertiser, their products or services, nor does Volta Voices make any claims or guarantees as to the accuracy or validity of the advertisers’ offer.

PUBLICATIONS MAIL AGREEMENT NO. 40624074 Return Undeliverable Canadian Addresses to: P.O. Box 503, RPO West Beaver Creek, Richmond Hill, ON L4B 4R6

Submissions to Volta VoicesVolta Voices welcomes submissions from both AG Bell members and nonmembers. The magazine is published four times annually. Its audience consists of individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing, parents of children who are deaf and hard of hearing, and professionals in fields related to hearing loss (audiology, speech-language pathology, psychology, otology, social services, education).

For submission guidelines and to submit content, visit the Volta Voices page at ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org.

Subjects of Interest• Technology—related to hearing loss,

new technology, improvements to or problems with existing technology, or how people are using existing technology, accommodations.

• Education—related to public or private schools through post-secondary education, new approaches and teaching methods, legal implications and issues, etc.

• Advocacy—information on legislation, hearing health, special or mainstream education, and accessibility.

• Health—audiology issues relating to children or adults with hearing loss and/or their families and friends.

• Action—stories about people with hearing loss who use spoken language as their primary mode of communication; deafness need not be the focal point of the article.

Editorial Guidelines The periodicals department reserves the right to edit material to fit the style and tone of Volta Voices and the space available. Articles are selected on a space-available and relevancy basis; submission of materials is not a guarantee of use.

Transfer of Copyright The revised copyright law, which went into effect in January 1978, provides that from the time a manuscript is written, statutory copyright is vested with the author(s). All authors whose articles have been accepted for publication in Volta Voices are requested to transfer copyright of their articles to AG Bell prior to publication. This copyright can be transferred only by written agreement. Without copyright ownership, the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing cannot issue or disseminate reprints, authorize copying by individuals and libraries, or authorize indexing and abstracting services to use material from the magazine.

Art Submission GuidelinesVolta Voices prefers digital images over original artwork. When submitting electronic files, please provide them in the following formats: TIF, EPS or JPG (no BMP or GIF images). Digital images must be at least 300 dpi (at size).

Letters to the EditorLet us know how we are doing. Write a Letter to the Editor, and you could see your comment in the next issue.

Media KitVisit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org and select “About AG Bell” for advertising information.

Want to Write for Volta Voices?

On the cover:The Brain Science of Hearing: Language, Learning, Literacy

SUBMIT ARTICLES/ITEMS TO:Volta Voices Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing 3417 Volta Place, N.W. • Washington, DC 20007Email: [email protected]

Submit online at ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org

2

VOICES FROM AG BELL

This edition of Volta Voices touches on one of the most important issues to parents as well as professionals in the field—language, learning and literacy. Language

is fundamental to our interactions with others and to every aspect of our lives. It’s how we express our thoughts, feelings and emotions. Language shapes our perception of reality, and philosophers have called it the “light of the mind.” Noted linguists like Noam Chomsky said that our children are born with the ability to learn language and that the brain contains systems for recognizing patterns of sound. When we give our children who are deaf and hard of hearing the gift of listening, spoken language and literacy, we are opening doors for them by giving them the ability to communicate and interact with the world around them.

This summer, professionals will be able to expand their knowledge of these cornerstones of practice at the 2015 AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Symposium, July 9-11 at the Baltimore Marriott Waterfront, which will explore “The Brain Science of Hearing: Connecting New Pathways to Spoken Language.” The symposium will share the exciting new research advances of the past decade from a broad range of disciplines that contribute to our knowledge of the science and practice in supporting children who are deaf and hard of hearing in developing and expressing spoken language and literacy.

Keynote presenter Lydia Denworth, a noted science writer, will highlight the circuits that sound creates in a child’s brain that lay the groundwork

for networks that will bring spoken language, and in turn, are the foundation for learning to read. Ken Pugh, a Yale University researcher, will explore the relationship between phonological and auditory processing and the brain pathways used in reading. Registration is now open for the symposium which will offer professionals the opportunity to learn from leaders in the field, network and exchange ideas, and explore Baltimore’s world-famous inner harbor.

The symposium holds tremendous application for the entire listening and spoken language community—professionals and parents—in helping our children develop listening, literacy and reading skills. When I think about developing language and literacy for children who are deaf and hard of hearing, the widely quoted Nigerian proverb comes to mind—that “it takes a village to raise a child.” The message is that no child, family or individual is an island. For children who are deaf and hard of hearing, it takes the support of an extended family—brothers, sisters, grandparents and other relatives—professionals, educators and many others in the community to develop language, literacy and listening.

In my family, helping my son Jonah to develop spoken language and learn to read was a family affair. His two older brothers, Jack and Luke, were involved in Jonah’s therapy sessions where they learned strategies to help their younger brother, and became wonderful language models for Jonah. Jack would sit so unbelievably patiently with Jonah, then age 5, reading book after book to him, putting an extra “umph” into the “s” and “p” sounds to be sure Jonah picked up every crumb of language. His brothers are the reason that Jonah is able to speak and read as well as he does. This issue contains a wealth of

strategies that parents can infuse into the fabric of their everyday lives to help their child with hearing loss develop language and reading. I welcome your suggestions on what has worked for your family.

Another focal point of our community is the network of AG Bell state chapters. They play an important role in contributing to the language, literacy and overall wellbeing of our children through purpose driven events that are language-rich and fun for the whole family. Chapters serve as a connection point for parents, teens and children to meet others who are on the same journey. Chapters have developed innovative programs and local partnerships to give families that could not otherwise afford hearing aids access to technology. They have developed social events where teens can meet and mentor other teens. Chapters connect parents to informational resources in learning about hearing loss. Over the next year, chapters will be a focus for AG Bell as the association strengthens its local network and builds strong state and national partnerships.

Our association is truly at an historical juncture as we celebrate 125 years since the time that Dr. Alexander Graham Bell first founded the American Association to Promote Teaching of Speech to the Deaf. We have much to celebrate as an association with a rich history—and an exciting future with new leadership, dynamic goals and a strategic plan that guides us forward.

Sincerely,

Meredith Sugar, Esq. President [email protected]

Giving Children the Gift of Spoken Language and Literacy

VOLTA VOICES JAN-MAR 2015 3

Happy New Year! 2015 will be an exciting year for AG Bell publications. Volta Voices will streamline its print presence, coming to your mailbox quarterly,

starting with this issue, while expanding its web presence on the AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Knowledge Center to provide a digital publication that will remain available and searchable in the future. Each issue will be announced in your email inbox with an e-newsletter that highlights print and web features. We will place a greater focus on delivering great content that is designed to provide practical tips and take-away strategies and also focuses on supporting new parents in understanding their child's hearing loss and listening and spoken language development.

This issue focuses on early learning, literacy and language development and on providing both professionals and families of children who are deaf and hard of hearing and who are pursuing a listening and spoken language outcome with fundamental information, actionable strategies and practical tips for their practice and everyday life.

Lydia Denworth, best-selling author and one of the keynote presenters at the 2015 AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Symposium this coming July in Baltimore, Maryland, takes us on a fascinating journey into the brain science of hearing. We learn how the circuits that sound creates in a child’s brain lay the groundwork for the networks that will bring spoken language, and how those networks, in turn, are the foundation for learning to read. Fascination

aside, the more clearly professionals and parents understand what goes on behind the scenes in the brain of a child with hearing loss, the better able they will be to help that child maximize his or her potential.

Parents and caregivers the world over are faced with challenges and demands on their time no matter what. Moreover, caregivers who must explicitly teach a child with hearing loss to listen and talk have even more to accomplish in a day. The listening and spoken language professionals who deliver services to young children with hearing loss and their families have limited, precious time each week or month to help caregivers do so. In their article, “Keeping It Real: Coaching Parents to Use Natural Experiences for Learning,” Ellie White and Dorie Noll provide professionals and parents alike with a chock-full of meaningful strategies for developing listening and spoken language in children with hearing loss during natural, regular and common experiences, including daily routines.

In this issue, we are also pleased to provide you with a special profile article in which Aaron Bilotta, a newly certified Listening and Spoken Language Specialist (LSLS®), writes about his journey towards LSLS certification and shares his love of the outdoors and skiing.

Starting with this issue, we’ll also highlight the work of AG Bell state chapters and explore ways that you can become involved and connect locally. For our inaugural “Focus on Chapters” column, Corrine and Arnie Altman, co-presidents of AG Bell’s Nevada chapter, highlight their chapter's Purpose Driven Events, which combine fun, community and relationship building, while purposefully focusing on activities that naturally, through play and connection, cultivate listening and spoken language skills for children who are deaf and hard of hearing.

In this issue’s “Hear Our Voices” column, Lee and Steve Rech, parents of Anna, who has profound hearing loss and is a bilateral cochlear implant user, write about their journey and how they kept their eyes on the prize: giving their daughter the tools she needed to be an independent participant in a hearing world. Anna is now an active, successful and involved high school senior and an advanced placement/honors student in a large public high school.

In “Listening and Spoken Language at Your Fingertips,” we round up some great content from the Knowledge Center that pertains to the theme of the issue: early learning, literacy and language development.

Thank you, as always, for reading. AG Bell is currently seeking articles on topics that relate to multiculturalism, transition points at elementary, middle and high school, and success in school and beyond. If you're interested in authoring an article, please send an e-mail to [email protected] with a brief description of your article idea. Kind Regards,

Anna Karkovska McGlew, M.A.Editor, Volta Voices [email protected]

Resolve to Evolve! Turning Sound into Language: Literacy Fundamentals

EDITOR’S NOTE

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QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? CONCERNS?Write to us: AG Bell 3417 Volta Place, N.W.Washington, DC20007 Or email us: [email protected] online:ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org


Hearing Aids Assist.Hearing Implants Empower.

Hearing implants are different than hearing aids.

While hearing aids help many people, they simply amplify sounds. Unfortunately, as hearing loss progresses, sounds need to not only be made louder, they need to be made clearer. Hearing implants can give you that clarity.

Hearing implants are designed to help reconnect you to the life you love. They can help you hear your children’s laughter, participate in meetings at work, and enjoy conversations with family and friends without straining to hear.

IT’S TIME TO GET BACK THE SOUNDS YOU’VE BEEN MISSING.

Take the next step to learn if a hearing implant is right for you.

HearingImplantsEmpower.com

©Cochlear Limited 2014. All rights reserved. Trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of Cochlear Limited.

FUN2038 ISS2 JUL14

www.Cochlear.com/US

VOICES CONTRIBUTORSVOICES CONTRIBUTORS

Arnie Altman has served as co-president of the Nevada chapter of AG Bell since 2006. He married Corrine Altman in 1983 and the two of them

have raised five children, the first two of whom were born with profound hearing loss. In 2001, the Altmans, along with Senator Terry Care (D-NV) and legislators in northern Nevada, helped write Assembly Bill 250 on the need for newborn hearing screening, which was mandated in January 2002.

Corrine Altman is a member of the AG Bell board of directors and co-president of the Nevada chapter of AG Bell. She is the mother of five

children, the first two of whom were born with profound hearing loss. Altman served a three-year term as president for SOUND Foundation. In 2001, she helped with A.B. 250 and testified before the Nevada Assembly on behalf of early hearing detection. The Newborn Hearing Screening Bill was mandated in the state of Nevada on January 1, 2002.

Aaron Bilotta, M.S., CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVEd, provides listening and spoken language services to children with hearing

loss at Teton County School District #1 in Jackson, Wyoming. Previously, for over 10 years, he worked as an early intervention speech-language pathologist serving children ages birth through 6 and their families. Bilotta holds a master’s degree in Communication Sciences and Disorders from the University of New Hampshire.

Lydia Denworth is the author of the best-selling book I Can Hear You Whisper: An Intimate Journey through the Science of Sound and

Language. Denworth is one of the keynote presenters at the upcoming 2015 AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Symposium to be held July 9-11, 2015 in Baltimore, Maryland. She lives with her family in Brooklyn, New York. Her third son, Alex, was diagnosed with moderate to profound progressive hearing loss.

Dorie Noll, MSDE, CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd, is a parent educator in the Central Institute for the Deaf (CID) Joanne Parrish Knight Family

Center. She also serves as lecturer at Washington University’s School of Medicine Program in Audiology and Communication Sciences. She has served as teacher in the CID Nursery Class, facilitated the CID Nursery Class program and provided early intervention services to families in the home. She holds teaching certification in the state of Missouri in Deaf and Hearing Impaired and is credentialed with the early intervention programs in both Missouri and Illinois. Noll is also a certified parent educator with the Parents as Teachers program in Missouri and holds professional certification from the Council on Education of the Deaf. Noll is the mother of a smart, successful, flourishing, 16-year-old son with profound hearing loss and a cochlear implant. She can be reached at [email protected].

Ellie White, M.S., M.Ed., CED, is a teacher of the deaf at Central Institute for the Deaf in the pre-kindergarten/kindergarten department as

well as a curriculum facilitator. She also serves as practicum coordinator and lecturer at Washington University’s School of Medicine Program in Audiology and Communication Sciences. White holds

teaching certification in the state of Missouri in the areas of Deaf and Hearing Impaired and Early Childhood Education, as well as Missouri state principal certification. She holds professional certification from the Council on Education of the Deaf. White has published a number of articles and assessment tools related to instructing children who are deaf and hard of hearing. She can be reached at [email protected].

Lee Rech, J.D., currently serves on the board of directors of the Alexander Graham Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken

Language. Locally, Rech serves as interim chair of the board of directors at All Ears! Listening and Language Center, a pre-school in the Woodlands, Texas recently opened by Shelley Mathay, LSLS Cert. AVT. The mission of All Ears! is to provide listening and spoken language services to children with hearing loss in a pre-school setting with peers with typical hearing.

Steve Rech, J.D., is the former president of Auditory-Verbal International and has served on the AG Bell board of

directors. He has been an active advocate for educational issues that impact children who are deaf and hard of hearing, and has filed amicus curae briefs in cases on behalf of AG Bell. He is also a board member of the American Cochlear Implant Alliance, which seeks to increase access to cochlear implants through educational and outreach efforts. Locally, he serves on the board of the Houston Ear Research Foundation. Rech is a partner in the Houston office of the law firm Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease LLP. d as a board member of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing. He has been an active advocate for educational issues that impact children who are deaf and hard of hearing, and has filed amicus curae briefs


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NEWS BITES

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AG Bell Recommended Audiologic Protocol AG Bell is delighted to announce the release of its new professional practice protocol, adopted in June 2014, which is intended to support programs for early detection and management of hearing loss in infants and children. This protocol also is a guide to appropriate and ongoing audiology services recommended for children striving towards a listening and spoken language outcome.

The protocol contains recommendations as to the elements of the initial audiological diagnostic assessment, the procedures to assess amplification, audiological management for children with cochlear implants, and audiologic management regarding FM systems. Visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/Protocol.Audiological.Assessment/ to access the protocol.

Exciting Changes for The Volta Review in 2015In 2015, The Volta Review, AG Bell's peer-reviewed journal, will launch an electronic journal platform that will provide readers with a print on-demand option. Articles will be published ahead of print on a continuous basis, which will allow the research to reach readers more quickly. Research will receive greater exposure through more

robust search engine optimization and social sharing features. Readers may elect to purchase a print compilation volume at the end of the year. Stay tuned for more communications about this exciting time for The Volta Review. Kathryn L. Schmitz, Ph.D., Associate Professor and Associate Dean for Academic Administration at National Technical Institute for the Deaf, Rochester Institute of Technology, will continue as Editor of the journal. Visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/TheVoltaReview/ for updates on the journal.

FDA Approval of New Audio Processor, Software and WaterWear AccessoryThe U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently approved the SONNET Audio Processor, Maestro 6.0 software and WaterWear completely submergible cover for the RONDO Audio Processor, all manufactured by MED-EL. The SONNET Audio Processor features a lightweight, water-resistant design and is compatible with all of MED-EL’s multichannel cochlear implants. The processor is programmed with MED-EL’s MAESTRO 6.0 software. SONNET will be commercially available in Spring 2015.

RONDO Audio Processor recipients can now take advantage of the WaterWear fully waterproof cover. The WaterWear packs include three covers, each of which can be used up to three times. The covers can be worn for up to 10 hours at

AG BELL DEADLINES

Arts & Sciences Program Application deadline: April 2ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/Arts.Sciences.Award/

George H. Nofer ScholarshipApplication deadline: April 22ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/NoferScholarship/

School-age Financial Aid ProgramOpens April 1Application deadline: May 21ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/School.Age.FA/

AG BELL DEADLINES

COMPILED BY: ANNA KARKOVSKA MCGLEW, M.A.

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CHAPTERS

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PA Chapter Hosts Screening of 95 DecibelsThe Pennsylvania chapter of AG Bell recently hosted the screening of 95 Decibels. Based on a true story, the film explores the emotional obstacles parents face when they get an unexpected diagnosis of hearing loss for their child. The viewer traces one family’s journey as they seek advice and come to terms with decisions about medical options and communication strategies that will best serve their toddler. After the screening, Nancy V. Schuman, M.A., CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert. AVT, facilitated a group discussion.

Seventh Annual Charity Bowling EventMore than 150 children, families, friends, volunteers, program and corporate sponsors made the Seventh Annual Charity Bowling Event hosted by the Nevada chapter of AG Bell a fun-filled day for everyone. As is the tradition, children with hearing loss received their new bowling balls, bags and shoes, and then everyone bowled and had a blast. See page 28 for more information on the Nevada chapter’s purpose driven events.


a time, and have been tested at water depths of up to four meters (approximately 13 feet). The cover can be used in chlorinated water, freshwater and saltwater.

Members in the Media

BioCentury This Week Features AG Bell Board MembersBioCentury This Week aired a segment on cochlear implants featuring Ted Meyer, M.D., Ph.D., medical director of the cochlear implant program at Medical University of South Carolina, and AG Bell president-

elect, and Catharine McNally, AG Bell board member who, as a child, was one of the youngest children in the United States at the time to receive a cochlear implant. Meyer discussed

candidacy criteria and how the technology facilitates listening and spoken language development. McNally (pictured) shared her experience with cochlear implants. Visit http://bit.ly/1wbFbE4 to watch the captioned show online.

Her Hearing Went Away. Her Force of Will? Never. The Sarasota Herald Tribune recently profiled AG Bell member Barbara Chertok in its Sunday Profile section. Chertok, who is a writer and an advocate for people with hearing loss, experienced sudden hearing loss in both ears when she was 21 years old. Her story is one of perseverance, tenacity and connection. Read the full article at http://bit.ly/17A2FbJ.

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EARS ARE JUST THE BEGINNING:

How Sound Turns into Language and Language into Literacy

By Lydia Denworth

when i learned 10 years ago that my youngest son Alex had a significant hearing loss, all I could think about, frankly, was ears. I thought I needed to know everything there was to know about them. Putting Alex to bed at night, I stared at his small earlobes, caressed them, and whispered into them.


As we grappled with questions of language and learning, however, I quickly came to understand that I needed to think more broadly. To really know how to help a child who doesn’t hear, one needs to understand the chain reaction that is triggered by sound, which goes far beyond the inner ear and deep into the networks of the brain. AG Bell recognizes this important fact, too, and that’s why the theme for the 2015 Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) Symposium is “The Brain Science of Hearing: Connecting New Pathways to Spoken Language.” In addition to being the mother of a child with hearing loss, I am also a science writer. At the LSL

Symposium, my keynote presentation will explore sound, language and literacy, which is the topic of my recently published book, I Can Hear You Whisper. What I understood far more clearly by the time I was done with all my research is that the circuits that sound creates in a child’s brain lay the groundwork for the networks that will bring spoken language, and those networks, in turn, are the foundation for learning to read. The more clearly professionals and parents understand what goes on behind the scenes in the brain of a child with hearing loss, the better able they will be to help that child maximize his or her potential.


1. Don’t Wait: To develop spoken language and listening skills, children need as much sound as possible reaching their brains as early as possible. Their brains won’t respond in the same way later on.

2. Get Rhythm: Infants and young children learn best through repetition, rhythm and rhyme. Use baby talk, music and poetry to help develop auditory circuits, which will in turn develop language circuits.

3. Know the Windows of Opportunity: Different language systems (phonology, grammar, semantics, etc.) develop over

different periods of time in children’s brains. Emphasize sound and rhythm first, and then grammar, as those windows close first.

4. Establish a Sound Basis for Reading: Before kids can relate letters to sounds, they have to be able to hear the separate syllables and phonemes in speech. Use music, poetry and rhythm to help them do that.

5. See the Big Picture: Always remember that for children with hearing loss, the brain matters as much as the ears.

Brain BaSiCS SOUND SIGNALS

TAKE HOME MESSAGES

The mechanics of the ear are probably familiar. The folds of the earlobe collect sound waves and funnel them to the eardrum, which vibrates and sets the tiny bones of the middle ear in motion. Those bones trigger another vibration in a membrane-covered opening called the oval window, the boundary between the middle and inner ear. Waves of fluid wash through the cochlea in response to the vibrations, stimulating the ribbon-like basilar membrane that runs through the inner ear and the hair cells found there. The movement of the fluid causes the tiny stereocilia on each hair cell to bend and send an electrical impulse into the brain. The central auditory system begins where the inner ear passes a signal to the auditory nerve. In the brainstem, the auditory nerve ends at two collections of neurons called the cochlear nuclei and things start to get complicated from there. That is as it should be. The cochlear nuclei sort the incoming auditory signal along two different tracks, and the various types of cells of the cochlear nuclei each specialize in just one kind of signal. It is thought that features such as one's ability to tell where a sound comes from or the fact that one jumps at loud noises can be traced to specific cells. From the cochlear nuclei, sound signals follow an ascending path to the auditory cortex in the temporal lobe, just above the ear where the sound started.

In a child who can hear, sound sets off a cascade of responses in the brain. Waves of electrical pulses ripple along complex though predictable routes on a schedule tracked in milliseconds. In a baby, as University of Colorado auditory neuroscientist Anu Sharma has shown, the response to sound is naturally slow. By adulthood a signal that once took 300 milliseconds to register in the brain takes about 60. That increase in speed, which represents neurons communicating with each other more and more efficiently, requires practice, otherwise known as listening. From the minute a child is born—even earlier actually, in the mother’s womb—every experience that child has is being etched into his or her brain. Sound, or its absence, is part of that experience. Neurons make connections with each other, or don’t, based on experience. Cochlear implants allowed Sharma and her colleagues to investigate what happened when sound was re-introduced to a child with profound hearing loss. They found that there is an important window, a “sensitive period,” between the ages of 3 ½ and 7 (or the equivalent number of years of deafness) during which the brain can be changed by experience and is still receptive to sound. The networks of hearing—the pathways that sound travels through the brain—could still be laid down. But after that, those brain areas would

reorganize and be used for something else. “That’s important real estate,” Sharma told me. It’s not going to sit idle. Furthermore, we now know quite clearly that earlier is better. According to several studies, such as one headed by John Niparko, M.D., of University of Southern California, that has been following nearly 200 children for more than five years, the earlier a child’s brain is stimulated by sound, the better that child seems to be able to make use of that sound to develop language.

If we want to know how language develops in children with hearing loss, we need to understand how it works in children with typical hearing. Researchers into early language acquisition have long known that sound and the networks it creates through listening lay the neural groundwork for spoken language. What’s new is the growing understanding of just how much language learning is happening before a child’s first birthday. As kids practice listening and the circuits in their brains get more efficient, they begin to notice patterns in the speech around them. As they notice patterns, they begin to learn language because learning language means learning patterns. Essentially, as Jenny Saffran of the University of Wisconsin discovered, kids are taking statistics, noticing how

LEARNING LANGUAGE


syntax or semantics. Their idea caught on and has become the dominant one. It was also thought that language, like hearing, had a sensitive period that ended around puberty. Now researchers believe that there is not just one window of opportunity for learning language, there are several. Each of the skills around which language is now thought to be organized—phonology, grammar, meaning and so on—has its own timetable of acquisition. Helen Neville, a neuroscientist at the University of Oregon, who pioneered this kind of work, refers to the various windows of language learning as “profiles in plasticity.” The window for phonology, our ability to hear the varying phonemes of different languages, closes first. Generally,

often one sound, such as “ba,” is paired with another, such as “by.” “Input matters far earlier than we thought,” said Roberta Golinkoff, a developmental psychologist at the University of Delaware and language acquisition expert, in a recent presentation. “During the first six months of life, babies are pulling apart the speech stream, finding the words, calculating statistics, storing frequently occurring words and more.” By 3 months of age, babies with typical hearing show a preference for speech over other sounds. At 4 ½ months, babies recognize their own names and by 6 months, Golinkoff has shown, they are using their own names as an auditory wedge to help them make sense of everything else they’re hearing. By 9 months a baby can tell if the sound sequence s/he is hearing is part of her/his native language or not, and they even already understand quite a few words such as names for body parts and food items. The exaggerated cadences of baby talk, the repetition of so many common words, and the playful rhymes that are part of children’s music and poetry all help the process along. In any one of the nearly 7,000 languages of the world, babies begin to talk around their first birthday. They are able to do that and then go on to add words at an impressive clip through toddlerhood, because of all the practice they’ve had in that first year of life. A child who had no access to sound during that first year has to do some heavy lifting to catch up, notes Golinkoff.

For much of the last century, it was thought that once a person acquired language, it was organized in two general brain regions: Broca’s area governed speech production and Wernicke’s area governed speech perception. But to some researchers, that model seemed far too simplistic. About 10 years ago, New York University neuroscientist David Poeppel and his colleague Greg Hickok of University of California Irvine suggested that perhaps the brain organizes language the same way linguists do, or grammar teachers, according to systems such as phonology,

WINDOWS OF OPPORTUNITY

"...problems with processing sound appear to be at the heart of the majority of reading problems."

we will have an accent in any language we learn past the age of 7. Grammatical skills are next, falling off steeply through adolescence. The good news is that semantic skills, the capacity to add vocabulary, remains with us for life. The newest research on critical periods seeks to understand at a molecular level just how these windows work. “What processes open them, mediate their operation, and close (or reopen) them,” asked developmental psychologist Janet Werker of the University of British Columbia and her colleague Takao Hensch of Harvard University in reviewing the literature. Perhaps, they suggest, each of the cascading steps of perceptual development that leads to language, has a different sensitive period that can be altered, and importantly for children with hearing loss, perhaps extended by experience. Windows that stay open longer would allow children more time to fully develop language skills.

As complicated as I’ve just made it sound, for those with typical hearing, spoken language, though not necessarily easy, comes naturally. Reading on the other hand is not natural. As the neuroscientist and writer Steven Pinker has put it, “it’s an optional accessory that must be painstakingly bolted on.” The link between sound and reading was among the most surprising things I learned in my research. In retrospect, I was surprised at my ignorance, but I came to find out that I was not alone in it. Not everyone understands that the term “phonological awareness” doesn’t relate to letters but to sound, specifically

a child’s ability to break speech into syllables and phonemes and then use those smaller chunks. Significantly, in 2000, the National Reading Panel listed phonological awareness as the first of their five principles required for reading success. In fact, you can think of phonological awareness as the foundation of the house a child needs to build as s/he learns to read, beginning with decoding and progressing to fluency. Without that foundation most children struggle to read. Those problems with phonological awareness are reflected in how sound is processed in the brain. Research by Bruce McCandliss’s lab at Vanderbilt University (he is now at Stanford) showed that how a child reacts to sound on the first day of kindergarten correlates to how many words per minute a child will read in fourth grade. And it turns out that problems with processing sound appear to be at the heart of the majority of reading problems. Reading is an exercise in plasticity, says Ken Pugh, a cognitive psychologist

READING


Deaf Education & Hearing Science at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio

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Your career begins here!

• Two-year graduate level program

• Intensive practical experiences

• Nationally recognized reciprocal peer coaching/mentoring project

• All faculty active practitioners

• Gain skills & degree needed for certification

• Full scholarships and stipends

• Opportunities for full-time employment during studies with educational partner, Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children

Teaching teachers. Listening to students.Changing lives.

A premier listening & spoken language professional preparation program

For more information, please visit UTDeafEd.comPhone: (210) 450-0716

JOIN US FOR THE PREMIER LISTENING AND SPOKEN LANGUAGE PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT EVENT!

The symposium and pre-symposium workshops will give professionals the opportunity to earn continuing education units (CEUs) from the Alexander Graham Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language (AG Bell Academy), the American Academy of Audiology (AAA) and the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA).

LSLS certified professionals: the symposium will offer enough continuing education hours to fulfill recertification requirements.

Professionals interested in the LSLS certification: this is an invaluable chance to earn approved CEUs towards your LSLS application requirements and network with some of the most respected professionals in the field of listening and spoken language!

SYMPOSIUM ATTENDEES WILL:• Learn from the leaders in the field• Enrich their skills with practical, evidence-based strategies for

intervention that can be implemented immediately• Explore recent developments in brain science that help determine

how young children learn to understand and express spoken language• Network and exchange ideas with peers during interactive sessions

Learn more and register at ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/2015Symposium or call 866.337.5220


at Haskins Laboratories in New Haven, Connecticut, who studies the neuroscience of reading and will also be speaking at the 2015 LSL Symposium in July. “What reading demands in children with typical hearing is to get away from vision and into language as quickly as possible, because ultimately you want to use the biologically specialized systems for phonology, syntax and comprehension,” Pugh told me. Neural activity shifts and concentrates as children learn. The beginning reader looking at a word will use more of the brain in both hemispheres and from front to back—making use of areas that control vision, language and executive processes. Over time, the activity coalesces primarily in the left hemisphere, using less of the frontal lobe (anything automatic requires less thinking) and less of the right hemisphere (because language networks have become more fully engaged). Reading fluency has a signature as clear as John Hancock’s—a concentrated response that runs along the side and front of the brain, right through the language processing areas.

It’s that signature that all of us are striving to create in the brains of children with hearing loss and that I came to understand I needed to create in my son to allow him to keep up with the growing academic demands that will be placed on him. When I help Alex with his sixth grade homework these days, I can’t reach out and touch his brain the way I can his ears, but sometimes, I visualize the sound he’s hearing. I picture it coursing through his ears to the brainstem, up into the auditory cortex and then fanning out through the language networks and reasoning areas of the brain, connecting new pathways and fine-tuning old ones. His ears truly were just the beginning.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Denworth, L. (2014). I Can Hear You Whisper: An Intimate Journey through the Science of Sound and Language. New York, NY: Dutton.

Hickok, G., & Poeppel, D. (2007). The cortical organization of speech processing. Nature Reviews Neuroscience, 8(5), 393-402.

Maurer, U., Brem, S., Kranz, F., Bucher, K., Benz, R., Halder, P., Steinhausen, H. C., & Brandeis, D. (2006).

Coarse neural tuning for print peaks when children learn to read. Neuroimage, 33(2), 749-758.

Niparko, J. K., Tobey, E. A., Thal, D. J., Eisenberg, L. S., Wang, N.-Y., Quittner, A. L., & Fink, N. E. (2010). Spoken language development in children following cochlear implantation. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 303(15), 1498-1506.

Parish-Morris, J., Golinkoff, R. M., & Hirsh-Pasek, K. (2013). From coo to code: Language acquisition in early childhood. In P. Zelazo (Ed.), The Oxford handbook of developmental psychology, Vol. 1 (pp. 867-908). New York, NY: Oxford University Press.

Schlaggar, B. L., & McCandliss, B. D. (2007). Development of neural systems for reading. Annual

Review of Neuroscience, 30, 457-503.Sharma, A., Nash, A. A., & Dorman, M. (2009). Cortical

development, plasticity, and re-organization in children with cochlear implants. Journal of Communication Disorders, 42(4), 272-279.

Stevens, C., & Neville, H. (2009). Profiles of development and plasticity in human neurocognition. In M. Gazzaniga (Ed.), The Cognitive Neurosciences, 4th ed. Cambridge, MA: MIT Press.

Werker, J. F., & Takao, K. H. (2014). Critical periods in speech perception: New directions. Annual Review of Psychology, 66(1). doi: 10.1146/annurev-psych-010814-015104

PUTTING IT ALL TOGETHER

Deaf Education & Hearing Science at the UT Health Science Center San Antonio

UTM

ED51

5201

4441

B

Your career begins here!

• Two-year graduate level program

• Intensive practical experiences

• Nationally recognized reciprocal peer coaching/mentoring project

• All faculty active practitioners

• Gain skills & degree needed for certification

• Full scholarships and stipends

• Opportunities for full-time employment during studies with educational partner, Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children

Teaching teachers. Listening to students.Changing lives.

A premier listening & spoken language professional preparation program

For more information, please visit UTDeafEd.comPhone: (210) 450-0716

Coaching Parents to Use Natural Experiences for Learning

Ellie White, M.S., M.Ed., CED, and Dorie Noll, MSDE, CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd



L istening and spoken language professionals who deliver services to young children with hearing loss and their families—such as early intervention providers, speech-language pathologists, teachers of the deaf and hard of

hearing, and Listening and Spoken Language Specialists (LSLS®)—have limited, precious time each week or month to do so. They are charged with using each visit or session to prepare those caregivers to take on a task that is unfamiliar to most people: teaching listening and spoken language skills throughout the day to a child with hearing loss. These professionals must use the limited time during visits as efficiently as possible to maximize the caregivers’ potential at teaching these skills to their child between visits.

“It’s time to change your diaper. Let’s walk over there to the changing table. I’m going to lay you down right here on the changing table. Oh, look at these cute little feet. I’m going to kiss those feet. Let’s unzip your jammies. Down, down, down it goes. Now let’s take this foot out – one kiss for this foot. And then let’s take this foot out – one kiss for this foot. Let’s take off this wet diaper. It’s all wet. I’m going to throw it away. Let’s get the wipes. Pull! I got a wipe. Feel the wipe. It’s cold. Brr, the wipes are cold! Okay, let’s clean you up. There we go. Now we need a new, clean diaper. Bottoms up! Time to put your feet back in your jammies. One foot. Two feet. Zip, zip, zip. Zip your jammies. Now you have a nice clean diaper and we’re all done! How about a hug?”

Diapering also provides lots of opportunities to talk about body parts, items of clothing, or to play peek-a-boo or a tickle game. The caregiver can hang a small mirror on the wall next to the changing table and incorporate a few moments of mirror play. This simple activity can be enhanced to create a warm, language-rich interaction between caregiver and child, rather than a chore that must be rushed through many times a day.

Oh, look at these cute little feet. I’m going to

kiss those feet.

Caregivers are faced with challenges and demands on their time no matter what. Moreover, caregivers who must explicitly teach a child with hearing loss to listen and talk have even more to accomplish in a day. The most efficient and effective approach to coaching caregivers on how to do this is to teach them strategies for improving their child’s listening and spoken language during natural, regular and common experiences, including daily routines. This allows caregivers to accomplish their daily caregiving duties while using those same activities to teach spoken language skills.

Get the Basics: Learn the Family’s Daily RoutinesProfessionals must first help parents identify the language their child needs to learn, based on their specific routines, in order to communicate successfully in their home environment. This begins with the first session, during which the professional and the caregivers talk through the child’s routines. Caregivers identify parts of the day which are successful and other times that are a struggle. Sometimes, difficult parts of the day can be improved by focusing on the language the child needs to successfully participate in that routine. By focusing on the language surrounding daily routines, the child gains valuable skills that will help him/her communicate with his/her family, rather than learning a specified set of vocabulary words associated with a particular toy or game. This allows for more practice, embedded in routines that happen naturally and regularly, and provides the child with functional tools to communicate.

Diapers!One daily routine that can easily be enhanced with language development strategies is diapering. This repetitive activity performed multiple times per day provides ample opportunity for the practice of meaningful language as well as face-to-face interaction from an ideal distance for listening. Optimally, diapering should occur in a quiet environment with minimal background noise. The caregiver can take a little extra time to narrate what she/he is doing as she/he does it.


PlaytimePlaytime is an important routine in which caregivers can enhance listening and language. For an infant, this may mean simply holding the baby face-to-face, without obscuring the hearing technology, and singing or talking to him/her. Caregivers can get down on the floor next to the baby and talk to him/her about the toys he/she is batting or activate a musical toy while cuing the infant to listen. Reading books is a valuable experience for every child, and caregivers can learn the value of reading books, using a rhythm while reading aloud and just talking about the pictures.

Infants and babies benefit from time spent every day interacting directly with their caregivers during play. Caregivers can use parallel talk to provide the valuable language of play. For example, “I see you are building a tower. I see a blue block, a red block and a yellow block. Up, up, up, dowwwwn! Uh oh! You knocked them down!” Caregivers can use language to help the child initiate play (“Let’s ask Daddy. Daddy, do you want to play?”), ask for help (“Oh no! You can’t get the lid off of the box. Do you need help? You can say, ‘help me.’”), and appropriately negotiate play (“Oh, do you want a turn? You can say, ‘my turn.’”). Snack Time Another way to enhance familiar routines is to teach the caregiver to make a snack together with the child. Caregivers may not realize how much language can be incorporated into this routine by simply extending it. Rather than giving the child the snack completely prepared, for example, the caregiver can cut up fruit with the child, for example, and use repetitive language such as “cut,” “take a bite,” “mmm, yummy” and “more.” If the child is eating crackers, the caregiver can prompt the child to ask for them, and then only give him/her a few at a time, so he/she has lots of opportunities to ask for “more crackers.”

Additionally, the professional can coach the caregiver to create a meaningful listening experience by listening for the microwave to beep indicating that the oatmeal is ready, and then encourage talking by expecting his/her child to verbally request “more” when he/she wants another bite. These simple extensions can turn snack and meal times into meaningful listening and language experiences, during which the practitioner can coach the caregiver to incorporate strategies

FeedingFeeding is another repetitive routine that can easily be enhanced to incorporate listening and spoken language strategies with an infant. As with diapering, the professional can encourage caregivers to feed their baby in a quiet environment, with minimal background noise. Cradling the baby in the arms creates an optimal distance for listening and meaningful interaction, whether breastfeeding or bottle feeding. By taking the time to interact warmly with their baby, caregivers are helping to create a secure attachment as well as a motivating time for listening.

“Oh, sweet baby, you are really crying! Are you hungry? I hear you! Here it is. Here’s your bottle! Mmm, there you go. It’s yummy! That’s better. Now your belly feels much better!”

During feedings, the caregiver can sing songs, talk about body parts, or just speak softly and warmly about the day. Using a standard cradle hold to feed a baby is very natural, but can be tricky for a baby with hearing aids because of potential feedback. By simply altering the baby’s position from a standard cradle hold to a football hold, the caregiver decreases the potential for feedback and can be confident the baby is prepared for a wonderful listening opportunity. Out and AboutBusy caregivers can even incorporate strategies while running errands to create meaningful listening and language experiences for their infants or toddlers. Putting the infant carrier or the toddler in the grocery cart, for example, is a good face-to-face interaction that can help minimize the distractions of a noisy environment at the grocery store. Professionals should encourage the caregiver to use self-talk as he/she chooses which apples to buy (“I wonder which apples I should get. I like the green apples, but the red apples are on sale. I think I’ll get the red apples today.”), or narration as they walk down the aisles and look for all of the items on their grocery list (“OK, we have the milk, the bread and the eggs. Next, we need to get cheese. Where is the cheese? Oh, here it is.”). These opportunities add to the baby’s listening and language exposure while allowing caregivers to accomplish the tasks of a busy day.

Sweet baby, you are really crying! Are you

hungry?

Up, up, up, dowwwwn! Uh oh! You knocked

them down!

Professionals can point out that these daily routines are big opportunities for language development with the child. During sessions, professionals can promote listening and language of daily routines by coaching caregivers through the activities. The practitioner can demonstrate how to talk about what the child is experiencing, label objects and incorporate songs while performing the task of the activity. Caregivers can practice enriching the language of these routines, while encouraging the child to listen, imitate and respond. Everyday routines provide ample opportunities for meaningful repetition and this repetition reinforces the language of daily activities often and naturally. Additionally, these daily activities are familiar to caregivers, so they feel more comfortable talking about what they are doing than they might with less familiar activities. Avoiding the Toy BagMany professionals plan various craft activities and games to motivate young children to improve their language during home visits. However, the language of crafts or games that are only played during sessions is less useful for the caregiver and child on a regular basis, and therefore less “bang for the buck.” Materials brought in to be used in the session but not left with the caregivers only allow for infrequent and potentially less useful language practice. Caregivers may learn from their listening and spoken language professional strategies for using certain games and toys for language development, yet may not be able to generalize those strategies with their own toys or during routine activities. If the professional brings toys for visits and then leaves them for parents to use between visits, this allows for more practice time. Yet, this means caregivers must set aside additional time during their already busy day to play with these specific toys that they might not otherwise do. They may also feel less comfortable with the strategies or language associated with toys or games that don’t belong to them. It makes sense for children to understand and use the language of their daily routines and activities because that will be most meaningful to them. Helping caregivers enrich this language is the most efficient use of the professional’s limited time and resources.

Ultimately, practitioners work with parents through active and timely coaching to teach them how to use natural, everyday activities and proven techniques to prepare their infant with hearing loss to become a 3- to 4-year-old chatterbox whose daily life is filled with singing, reading, conversation and games with peers regardless of hearing ability in a variety of acoustic environments, so that children with hearing loss are ready for a mainstream school environment, self-advocacy and wholehearted participation in their community of choice.

such as wait time, withholding, narrating and sabotage. Meal time is usually very appealing for a young child, so caregivers can capitalize on that natural interest to create a motivating reason for communicating. Caregivers can be coached to incorporate sabotage by pretending to pour juice without taking the lid off so the child has to request that the lid be removed, withholding by only giving the child two or three crackers at a time so he/she has to repeatedly request more, narrating by describing the food preparation or talking about what the child is eating, and wait time by asking the child a question and waiting patiently and expectantly for a response. Household ChoresCaregivers can also be coached to use simple household chores to provide fun, meaningful language opportunities. By taking a little extra time to complete these chores, the caregiver can enrich the language associated with the chores in addition to taking advantage of a toddler’s natural desire to “help.”

For example, a caregiver can provide a toddler with a damp paper towel to wipe down the table or a dry one to help with dusting; or fill a squirt bottle with water and teach the child to “squeeze” and “wipe” the windows. The child can help the caregiver match socks, roll them into a ball, and throw them into the laundry basket, working on color words and sorting, sequencing (first, then), as well as simple vocabulary like “sock” and “throw.” Sorting laundry can become an auditory exercise as simple as “hand me the pants” or as complex as listening for two critical elements: “Give me the red shirt.” Caregivers can turn washing dishes into an engaging sensory experience, during which one can build vocabulary by naming items, work on counting and color words, and practice adjectives such as “hot,” “cold,” “wet” or “dry.”

Using Daily Routines

The most natural experiences a child has each day are based

on the family’s daily routines. Daily routines are the single most important resource for

activities to encourage listening and language development. After

all, young children should be able to talk about the activities of their

daily lives. Busy caregivers might go through these routines, such as eating

breakfast or getting dressed, with the intention of accomplishing

the task at hand quickly and efficiently rather than

teaching the language. To access this article online as well as additional downloadable resources on how to use natural experiences and daily routines for language learning, visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/VoltaVoices/Jan-Mar2015/DailyLearning


20 LISTENINGANDSPOKENLANGUAGE .ORG20 A day of ski touring to the volcano Nevados de Chillán, Bío Bío Region, Chile.

credit: mike taylor, chilean andean snow adventures

A LIFE IN BALANCEBY AARON BILOTTA, M.S., CCC-SLP, LSLS CERT. AVEDMY JOURNEY TOWARD LSLS CERTIFICATION

My name is Aaron Bilotta and I recently completed the Listening and Spoken Language Specialist

(LSLS®) certification process and am now a newly Certified Auditory-Verbal Educator living and working in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.


I studied Communication Disorders and Sciences at the University of New Hampshire and completed my clinical fellowship year in Portland, Maine, working with young children and their families. At that time, working in the early intervention environment was the only “certainty” about my career path. I enjoyed the direct one-on-one work with children, but was equally excited to form relationships with moms and dads, brothers and sisters. It made sense to me that was where the “real work” was being done.

People are drawn to the landscape and ruggedness of Jackson Hole and I was no different. I moved to Jackson in 2001 to ski, play, and most likely, work in the ski industry. At the same time, I was excited about my career as a new speech-language pathologist (SLP) and wanted to continue to learn and grow as a professional. In Jackson Hole, where I was employed at the early intervention center, I loved the work, the home visits and the connections made in the community.

The balancing act of seemingly opposite career choices ensued and I found a way to appease both. During the academic year beginning in September, I worked as an SLP. In June, I hopped on a plane and flew to South America to work as a ski guide for the summer months. Life was balanced.

Another choice had arisen years prior during my education. My skill set in working with children and families made it clear that I wanted to pursue the speech-language pathologist certification rather than a certification in audiology. I loved the daily and weekly work of being an SLP, but I also really liked the “hard science” of the audiology world—the ability to quantify, measure and use technology to make positive and immediate changes.

I worked with my first child with a cochlear implant in 2003 and I was fortunate in that his family was fully supportive in developing their child’s listening and spoken language. I was introduced to and worked with clinicians from The John Tracy Clinic and flew to Los Angeles to attend my first AG Bell convention. On that same trip, I observed and met my future mentor, Sylvia Rotfleisch, M.Sc.A, CCC-A, LSLS Cert. AVT. I witnessed what these young children could learn if provided

with education, guidance and family support. During that year, I was introduced to hearing assistance technologies and auditory work. The hard sciences of hearing technology and the creative discipline of speech and language intervention are combined in auditory-verbal practice. I found out that professional life could also be balanced.

In 2010, at the request and with the guidance of families of children with hearing loss, the local school district in Jackson Hole, created a new position to meet the growing needs of students with hearing loss—the Itinerant Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing for Teton County School District #1. The families approached me and encouraged me to apply for the position. At the same time, Berte Hirschfield, MSE, a philanthropic grandmother of two children with profound hearing loss, was working closely with pediatric audiologist Jane Madell, Ph.D., LSLS Cert. AVT, and the local hospital to create and establish a regional hub for top-tier audiologic services here in Jackson Hole. The Pediatric Audiology Project (PAP) was created as a result of this collaboration so that children and families from Jackson Hole and surrounding mountain towns did not have to drive all the way to Salt Lake City or Denver in order to receive appropriate audiological services. PAP works to advocate for the needs of children with hearing loss for optimal success at school, at home and in building relationships. PAP has an annual conference in Jackson Hole—Jane Madell, Sylvia Rotfleisch, Nancy Caleffe-Schenck, Amy McConkey-Robbins, Karen Anderson, Sherri Vernelson, and Kathryn Wilson have all presented at the conference.

I was offered and accepted the position at the school district and began to work closely with Jane and the newly founded PAP in pursuing my LSLS certification The value and necessity of LSLS certified professionals was at the forefront of establishing optimal local services for children with hearing loss. Many of the local families were traveling great distances to work with LSLS certified therapists. I was excited to specialize and to begin the certification process. I attended my second AG Bell convention in Orlando, Florida in 2010. Many hours were spent those

Powder-day play at El Colorado ski resort, Lo Barnechea, Chile. credit: aaron bear chan, chilean andean snow adventures

first few years absorbing new information and establishing new relationships. I was learning how to use strategies and techniques to promote optimal acquisition of spoken language through listening. I was working closely with the local audiologist and attending student’s audiological evaluations. I was talking on the phone with numerous representatives from hearing aid and cochlear implant manufacturers. I was teaching teachers about the use of personal FM technology and classroom amplification. The LSLS certification process provides a framework for how to manage that learning curve and also mandates that you work closely with a mentor.

I could not have been any more fortunate to be mentored by Sylvia Rotfleisch. Sylvia studied at McGill University directly under Dr. Daniel Ling and has been at the top of the field for many years. She is extremely skilled at what she does and I had a long way to go and still do. The mentoring process is unique. It requires equal work from both parties and an understanding of personal teaching and learning styles. Over the course of more than three years, Sylvia and I spent many hours building and expanding my knowledge base and ability to put it into practice. We used some live video technology, but mostly traveled in order to work together in person, both finding that format much more engaging and beneficial. We pursued a goal of “Can you teach it to others?” in meeting certification requirements and preparing for the LSLS certification examination. Sylvia encouraged me to ask the questions and bear ownership over fulfilling the necessary certification requirements. We discussed the need to study for the exam and to know what areas demanded the majority of my time for studying, but we devoted our time to

auditory-verbal practice—how and why we’re doing what we’re doing.

I sat for the LSLS examination in Portland, Oregon in the fall of 2014. The examination was rigorous and comprehensive. Throughout the certification process I referred to the Core Competencies/Domains of Knowledge for the LSLS Written Examination found in the Certification Handbook as a guide for self-evaluation of individual skills. The mentoring process requires that you understand your own strengths and weaknesses as a clinician, allowing you and your mentor to shift focus to the areas that are acknowledged areas for growth. I felt very comfortable in the areas of Child Development and Spoken Language Communication. I knew that I needed to spend more time asking questions and learning about Hearing and Hearing Technology, Auditory Functioning, and Strategies for Listening


Clarke: Where Children Listen, Talk... and Thrive!

Clarke’s preschool programs build children’s listening, speech, language and pre-literacy skills, while fostering their social, emotional, cognitive, creative and physical

development. Clarke teaches children who are deaf or hard of hearing to listen and talk.

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Aaron Bilotta with Jose at Colter Elementary School in Jackson, Wyoming. credit: aaron huggins


Captioned Telephone Service from Sprint offers the ability for anyone* with hearing loss to communicate independently on the telephone with easy-to-read captions. Listen, read and respond to your callers with the ease of a CapTel phone from Sprint!

Although CapTel can be used for emergency calling, such emergency calling may not function the same as traditional 911/E911 services. By using CapTel for emergency calling you agree that Sprint is not responsible for any damages resulting from errors, defects, malfunctions, interruptions or failures in accessing or attempting to access emergency services through CapTel whether caused by the negligence of Sprint or otherwise. CapTel Captioning Service funded through FCC provisions. CapTel callers are responsible for their own long distance call charges. CapTel is intended for use by people with hearing loss. See sprintcaptel.com for details. © 2014 Sprint. Sprint and the logo are trademarks of Sprint. CapTel is a registered trademark of Ultratec, Inc. Other marks are the property of their respective owners.

Quality you can count on…Accuracy you can depend on…Customer Service you can rely on…From a company that is trusted by 32 states, the Federal Government and New Zealand!

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and Spoken Language Development. The Core Competencies/Domains of Knowledge helped immensely to narrow my focus.

In preparing specifically for taking the examination, I read from Dr. Ling’s, Foundations of Spoken Language for the Hearing Impaired Child and Speech and the Hearing Impaired Child: Theory and Practice, finding that certain chapters were particularly helpful in preparing for the test. I relied heavily on Children with Hearing Loss: Developing Listening and Talking, Birth to Six by Elizabeth Cole and Carol Flexor. I also read from Pediatric Audiology by Jane Madell and Carol Flexor, and Educational Audiology for the Limited Hearing Infant and Preschooler by Doreen Pollack, Donald Goldberg and Nancy Caleffe-Schenck. I made note cards of important tables and facts, making sure that I had that information in my head. The LSLS exam emphasizes application, so the reading will be important, as will leaning on your mentor to answer the questions that you have about what you’ve read.

On test day, I found it helpful to immediately unload the information found on tables and charts onto the blank piece of paper that is provided. This immediate mental dump of degrees of hearing loss, corresponding speech information carried by key speech frequencies, corresponding Ling sound frequencies, etc., allowed me to spend more time thinking about how to apply my knowledge in relationship to the test questions. I was also reminded to “think like an AVT” when reading the questions. The test-makers are testing your knowledge about auditory-verbal practice and want to know if you look at scenarios with an ‘auditory-first’ mentality.

I am proud to be a LSLS Certified Auditory-Verbal Educator and look forward to expanding my fund of knowledge in the field of auditory-verbal work. The art of creative therapy and teaching combined with the application of technology is indeed a perfect balance. I am very grateful to Sylvia, Jane and other LSLS who guided me through the certification process and continue to be so generous in their availability and their willingness to answer questions and offer feedback. The mentor and certification processes have established and broadened my abilities to teach and guide others through the many challenges that children with hearing loss and their families face. The certification process is demanding, but the confidence that it instills is invaluable. I work directly with moms and dads, brothers and sisters, audiologists and pediatricians, classroom teachers and school administrators, to help provide children with hearing loss the most optimal acquisition and development of spoken language through listening and it is the most rewarding work.

Aaron Bilotta with Miguel at Davey Jackson Elementary School in Jackson, Wyoming. credit: aaron bilotta


ADVOCACY IN ACTION

AG Bell ensures that the needs of children and adults who use listening and spoken language are represented as public policy is shaped through participation in national coalitions representing consumers and professionals in the hearing health and education arenas and by raising awareness of listening and spoken language with congressional representatives and their staff.

AG Bell advocated on a number of key issues that have made a difference for children and adults with hearing loss by providing greater access to movie theater captioning, school-based accommodations, and hearing technology. AG Bell also is laying the groundwork for the shape of the future of federal education legislation. Movie Captioning Rules AG Bell, in collaboration with other organizations representing consumers

with hearing loss and movie theater owners, announced an historic agreement in December 2014 to file joint recommendations on rulemaking for movie theater access.

In response to a U.S. Department of Justice Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NPRM) the organizations filed Joint Recommendations on Movie Captioning and Audio Description. The comments were filed by the following organizations: AG Bell, Association of Late Deafened Adults (ALDA), the Hearing Loss Association of America (HLAA), the National Association of the Deaf (NAD), and the National Association of Theatre Owners (NATO).

Following several weeks of discussions, the five organizations agreed on a set of recommendations, including:• Installation of closed captioning

(CC) and audio description (AD) technologies in all digital movie theater auditoriums nationwide.

• Specific minimum closed captioning device requirements with a monitoring requirement. This f lexible, market-responsive device scoping method will ensure access for all deaf and hard of hearing patrons and respond to actual consumer demand.

• Reasonable compliance timelines for delivery and installation of CC and AD systems. A joint news conference at the National

Press Club on the movie theater captioning agreement resulted in extensive coverage in major media, including the LA Times, New York Times, movie theater industry media, local media and local organizations serving people with hearing loss and blogs.

This historic collaboration got the attention of the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE), which explored in its "Money and Business" column how organizations that were former adversaries became allies in giving

Advancing Education Policy, Access to Movies and Hearing Technology

From left to right: John Fithian, president and CEO of National Association of Theatre Owners; John Stanton, chair of AG Bell Public Affairs Council; Anna Gilmore Hall, executive director of Hearing Loss Association of America; Andrew Phillips, policy counsel at the National Association of the Deaf; Steven John Fellman, Washington counsel for the National Association of Theatre Owners; Edwin Gladbach, vice president of AMC Showplace Theatres.


consumers greater access to captioning in movie theaters, setting a precedent for other associations representing consumers and industry. Visit http://bit.ly/1yhYYll to read the interview with John Stanton, Esq., chair of the AG Bell Public Affairs Council, and find out how AG Bell advocates on your behalf. Visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/PR.MovieCaptioning/ to learn more. Position Statement on IDEA Reauthorization AG Bell is pleased to announce the release of its position statement on the reauthorization of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). The position statement expresses AG Bell’s support for the reauthorization of IDEA and supports changes to the IDEA to better meet the needs of children with hearing loss particularly those children whose chosen communication mode is listening and spoken language.

Specifically, the position statement calls for insertion of language into the IDEA that:• Ensures informed choice of

communication mode;• Improves the coordination between

Early Hearing Detection and Intervention (EHDI) and Early Intervention (EI);

• Ensures that the communication mode of listening and spoken language is adequately supported.Visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.

org/reauthorization.individuals.idea/ to read the full position statement.

Bone-anchored ImplantsThe Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) issued a final rule on Oct. 31, 2014 that preserves Medicare coverage for bone-anchored hearing devices, which include osseointegrated implants. Earlier in 2014, a proposed new rule aimed at reclassifying the implants from a prosthetic device to a hearing aid. This would have effectively ended Medicare reimbursement because hearing aids are not covered under Medicare.

AG Bell advocated vigorously for preserving coverage through a sign-on letter as part of the ITEM Coalition (Independence Through Enhancement of Medicare and Medicaid). The October 31 agency rule clearly distinguished these implants from hearing aids. This means that thousands of people who do not benefit from hearing aids and people who need to replace or update their bone-anchored implant will continue to be able to do so under Medicare. The final rule was published in the November 6 issue of the Federal Register.

Guidance to Schools on AccommodationsThe U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Department of Education released guidance on Nov. 12, 2014 to remind schools of their responsibility to provide

communication access for students with hearing, vision and speech disabilities. The guidance highlighted schools’ responsibilities under three different laws: Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) (Title II), and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Schools must give “primary consideration to students and parents” in determining supports that are needed to ensure effective communication, and these supports can include communication access realtime translation (CART).

The guidance comes with a document entitled “Frequently Asked Questions on Effective Communication for Students with Hearing, Vision, or Speech Disabilities in Public Elementary and Secondary Schools,” which addresses the interplay between IDEA and ADA Title II requirements and explains the responsibility of public schools to ensure that communication with students with hearing, vision, or speech disabilities is as effective as communication with all other students. Visit ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/Guidance.Schools.Accomodations/ to read more and access these important documents.


Journeying to Independence BY LEE AND STEVE RECH

HEAR OUR VOICES

When our daughter Anna was born in 1997, we lived in Lee’s small hometown in western Nebraska, where we intended to raise our children, near Lee’s family. Anna’s grandfather, who dropped by the house every morning to spend time with Lee and his granddaughter, began to suspect that Anna had hearing loss when she was about 5 months old. Newborn hearing screening was not yet mandated, and we knew nothing about hearing loss. We dismissed the notion. It just couldn’t be true. But soon thereafter, we secretly conducted our own tests: nap time was not interrupted by the loudest of sounds... We made an appointment in Denver, the closest big city, which was three hours away.

We were stunned when the ENT proclaimed Anna had profound hearing loss. He said she would never have good speech and suggested we start learning sign language. He politely added that we should buy the book Choices in Deafness and directed us to the bookstore down the street. We left the hospital in tears, and did as we were told.

We spent that Labor Day weekend delivering the news to family members, reading our new book, learning sign

language letters, and trying to make sense of our new world. By the end of the weekend, our fingers tired, we had discovered an approach called auditory-verbal. We decided that if it could lead to Anna’s listening and speaking, it was the approach we would choose. Anna’s independence became our goal. We hoped that Anna would one day be able to ask her own questions in the classroom, order her own dinner at a restaurant, go to movies with friends and find her way across a college campus.

We called anyone and everyone who might know someone with knowledge of hearing loss (the Internet hadn’t really taken off in small town America in the late 1990s). We knew we needed to move back to Houston, where we lived prior to Nebraska, to take advantage of adequate services and resources for Anna. In the blur of 60 days from diagnosis, we moved back to Houston, had Anna fitted with hearing aids and began working with the amazing and gifted listening and spoken language specialist Nancy Caleffe-Schenck, M.Ed., CCC-A, LSLS Cert. AVT.

Once in Houston, we quickly researched cochlear implant centers and made plans for Anna’s surgery, which she wouldn’t have until age 18 months per the guidelines of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) at the time. For the next 12 months, as we waited, we prepared Anna’s “ears” for the surgery. We continued aggressive listening and spoken language therapy and either flew to Denver to work with Nancy, or she traveled to Texas, as there were no auditory-verbal professionals in Houston. We blended the principles of the auditory-verbal approach into our way of life. Anna’s audiologist and therapist were critical members of our team, and Anna needed all of us. Our “sound bites,” or mantras, were to teach her that “sound has meaning,” hearing is “all about the brain” and get Anna “access to sound.”

We read, and read, and read to Anna, since reading is an auditory skill. We hoped she would beat the popularly cited statistic that children who are deaf rarely read above the fourth grade level. We narrated the details of our daily life, and became masters at dramatic effect, in hopes of getting responses from Anna. Teaching her to listen and speak was hard, given her level of hearing loss, but the

The Fantastic Four—Anna Rech, Alli Emge, Emily Bush and Larissa DePamphilis—at the 2014 AG Bell Convention where they presented a concurrent session titled "Now You Hear Us: DEAFinitely Awesome Teens!" credit: lee rech

Anna Rech's senior yearbook photo at College Park High School, The Woodlands, Texas. credit: blu moon photography


principles of the therapy made it fun and exciting for her.

During this time, we attended our first AG Bell Convention in Little Rock, Arkansas. Meeting other families who had chosen the listening and spoken language path further validated our choice. We were introduced to an incredible network of dedicated professionals. We attended every session we could and took home with us valuable tools for helping us on our journey.

By the time Anna got her first cochlear implant, sound had meaning. She hasn’t stopped talking since her activation. At 2.5 years old, she went to a mainstream preschool and by the time she entered mainstream kindergarten, her verbal and reading skills were significantly ahead of those of her peers with typical hearing. Her continued love of reading helped expand her vocabulary, and placed emphasis on articulation.

Near the end of kindergarten, the FDA had approved bilateral implants for children, so Anna went bilateral. She was unaided in her non-implanted ear since her first implant, and the activation and subsequent therapy for the second implant were more difficult. At times, we wondered if she would ever benefit from it, but after months of therapy she began showing positive results. There is now no doubt that she hears better with both cochlear implants.

By second grade, we began to understand the importance of self-advocacy skills. Anna began her school by speaking for herself at her ARD (Admission, Review and Dismissal) meeting (this is how an Individualized

Education Program is called in Texas). She presented information about her hearing loss and gave her teachers tips to help her hear in their classes. She also gave a presentation to her classmates explaining her technology. Kids love technology, and her peers were no exception. Her introduction removed any awkwardness about her implants, as she spoke freely and confidently about them, and she answered any questions the kids had. Anna continues to handle her own meetings at the beginning of each school year, although now she operates under a 504 plan rather than an IEP.

Anna is now a senior and an advanced placement/honors student in a large public high school, where she uses the Phonak Roger Pen FM system as her assistive listening device. She serves as president of her school’s Literary Club, as copy editor for her school’s newspaper, and is a member of National Honor, National English Honor, National Spanish Honor and National Science Honor Societies. Given her active teenage daily life, it’s unbelievable to think that when she was first diagnosed we were told she would never be able to hear and that sign language was the best option for her.

Anna is keenly aware that her accomplishments and experiences are due in no small part to her effective communication skills. Over the years, she has developed a passion for helping other children with hearing loss to learn to listen and speak. When she was 10, she was asked to meet with the head of Texas Medicaid, and the following year with members of the Texas congressional delegation in Washington, D.C., to talk

about the need for higher Medicaid reimbursement rates for cochlear implant surgeries. Anna also served as co-emcee for Houston’s Center for Hearing and Speech Annual Gala at age 9 and again in 2014. She has twice been a camp counselor for the Center’s summer camp for children, ages 6-10.

We have attended many AG Bell conventions over the years. Anna attended AG Bell's Leadership Opportunities for Teens (LOFT) program in 2013 and, thanks to Ken Levinson, the wonderful counselors and the amazing friends she met there, described it as one of the best experiences of her life. Anna was lead presenter of “Now You Hear Us: Deafinitely Awesome Teens” at the 2014 AG Bell Convention in Orlando, Florida.

We reached our goal of giving Anna the tools she needed to be an independent participant in the hearing world. She is ready and eager for college next fall, and is determined to make a difference in the world.

Weingarten Children's Center is the new name for Jean Weingarten Peninsula Oral School for the Deaf located in Redwood City, California. The new name reflects our expansion of services to children who are deaf and hard of hearing and their families. Our programs include:

Steve, Anna and Lee Rech at the Houston's Center for Hearing and Speech Annual Gala 2014. credit: lee rech

Anna Rech and Tom Koch, ABC13 news anchor, at the Houston's Center for Hearing and Speech Annual Gala 2014. credit: lee rech

FOCUS ON CHAPTERS

AG Bell Nevada BY ARNIE AND CORRINE ALTMAN


When the desired outcome for a child with hearing loss is to hear and talk, then early learning, literacy and language development are necessary components to achieve a listening and spoken language outcome. AG Bell state chapters can play a crucial role in building community among parents of children with hearing loss, professionals and adults with hearing loss. One way they do this is through Purpose Driven Events (PDE). The AG Bell Nevada chapter (AGBNV) has found that PDEs work well to improve early learning, literacy and language development while simultaneously creating community awareness, networking and rich opportunities for families to share experiences.

Planning successful PDEs is, without a doubt, no easy task and requires a lot of energy and effort. Rewardingly, the most heartfelt results have revealed themselves at these events. Magic happens in bringing together family and friends, children, parents, professionals and people inthe community to engage in a purpose driven environment. For our children with hearing loss, the PDEs are filled with various activities that create fun, laughter and playful competition. These events are also designed to encourage listening and spoken language skills in a setting that accepts, encourages and enhances their growth.

AGBNV organizes three such PDEs: the Charity Bowling Event, the Spring Fling Picnic and the Christmas/Family Holiday Party.

The Annual Charity Bowling event, which helps raise funds for the chapter,

serves a deeper purpose. A local bowling center helps to house the event and provides us with reduced lane rates. We work with a local bowling pro shop to put together the Ball, Bag and Shoe Program. We find sponsors for each child with hearing loss and their donation provides that child with a custom fitted bowling ball or a new pair of bowling shoes. The children receive the experience of visiting the bowling pro shop two weeks prior to the event to select from the display rack of a variety of new bowling balls. Using listening and language skills, the children choose a ball and bag and determine the color of their new gear. The technician helps determine proper ball weight and measures for the holes that will be drilled in the new ball. At the event, attendees receive their new bowling balls, bags and shoes, and the action begins.

Aside from the many door prizes, raffle drawings and all the fun, the best moments are seeing the children interact with their peers and watching some of the more experienced parents interact with newer parents. They share listening and spoken language achievements, challenges

and helpful tips that only parents of children with hearing loss could know. Unsurprisingly, we have been told more than once about the insights and hope that parents feel they received after this event. As the AG Bell Family Needs Assessment showed, speaking with parents of children older than one’s own gives a glimpse into what parents can expect and provides hope for the future.

A corporate sponsor adopted our Annual Spring Fling Picnic as their community project after one of their employees read a newspaper article about AGBNV and our mission. Held at a local park in Henderson, Nevada, the sponsor team provides, prepares and serves hamburgers, hot dogs, chips, cookies and a variety of other favorite picnic dishes. Volunteers help organize and facilitate outdoor activities for the kids. Upon arrival at this event, families are given a checklist of lawn games and events in which to participate.

Year after year the most talked about games seem to be the Cake Walk, Watermelon Eating Contest and Water Balloon Toss, which require the children to listen attentively in order to participate

AG Bell Nevada 1000 North Green Valley Parkway Suite 440 - #563 Henderson, NV 89074 Call/Text Msg: 702.553.2029 Email: [email protected] Website: www.agbellnv.com

Participants enjoy all the outdoor activities at the Nevada chapter's Annual Spring Fling Picnic. A crowd favorite always seems to be the Water Balloon Toss where adults and children alike test their skills. credit: rainbow media, las vegas


successfully. Last year marked our seventh annual event and we have definitely witnessed the bonds between families and children on their journey with hearing loss. In seven years, some children have gone from grade school to high school maintaining friendships formed during this event. Many children with hearing loss are now teens and have become role models to families with younger children to support listening and spoken language. Early learning, literacy and language development truly blossomed.

Perhaps because of our connection to Las Vegas, one might sense that we have an advantage in entertainment and Purpose Driven Events are all we have to offer. However, workshops, conferences,

advocacy and parent education are the cornerstone activities of our chapter. We have advocated for legislation for newborn hearing screening, attended annual Early Hearing Detection & Intervention (EHDI) conferences, and developed the N*Courage*Mint program, a parent education and support program.

N*Courage*Mint focuses on parent education and on providing vital information for a new parent dealing with a hearing loss diagnosis for their child. Parent support assures acceptance, compassion and understanding from parent peers as well as group accountability. The classes create a safe parent-to-parent environment along with education through a live web feed from

The John Tracy Clinic. Examples of the learning curriculum include: Beginning Audition, Expressive Language and Beginning Speech.

Our calendar ends with the best attended Purpose Driven Event of the year, the Annual Christmas/Family Holiday Party. We use email and social media marketing to help promote this and other events. Often, we call parents to cultivate the necessary one-on-one connection. We encourage parents to bring the entire family and we make certain to include the siblings who may sometimes need more attention and support with so much attention focused on the child with hearing loss. This event is also designed with several intentional language experiences. A Holiday Activity card is given to the children as they check in. Volunteers greet the children at each booth or table and the children are encouraged to return a verbal greeting.

Activities include making a tree ornament or holiday art craft, decorating a Christmas cookie, finding Miss Elfie for a bag of treats, and getting painted holiday cheek designs. When the children finish each activity they ask for their Holiday Activity card to be stamped. Selected children with hearing loss read a short Christmas story from a book, which is always an inspirational moment for everyone. We also include our kids in helping with announcements over the microphone, which they find exciting. Our chapter non-profit status has allowed us to connect with the local Toys for Tots program providing toys for all the children with hearing loss and their siblings. The party ends with a visit from Santa to hand out toys and to provide a family photo op with the jolly ole fellow for each attending family.

We hope in sharing these ideas to encourage your chapter in planning annual Purpose Driven Events to create awareness, build community, and foster early learning, literacy and language development as necessary components to support children who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Ethan, 4, communicates to Santa what he wants for Christmas at the 2014 Christmas/Family Holiday Party. credit: rainbow media, las vegas

The Giambattista family shows up in big numbers to support the annual Charity Bowling event. Tommy G, a hearing aid user, happily signals a thumb up. credit: rainbow media, las vegas

High School Sophomores and Juniors... Come Explore Your Future at Rochester Institute of Technology!

Two Sessions: July 11 – 16, 2015 or July 18 – 23, 2015

• Explore the hottest new careers• Discover new friends• Learn how to turn your interests into a future career

Apply Today!Visit www.rit.edu/NTID/EYFV or call 585-475-6700, toll free in the U.S. and Canada at 866-644-6843, or by videophone at 585-743-1366.

Application Deadline: April 30, 2015

Summer Camps I for Hard-of-Hearing and Deaf Students

Two RIT camps for girls and boys entering 7th, 8th or 9th grade in fall 2015

July 25 – 30, 2015Build your own computer, discover the secrets of robotics, conduct fun laboratory experiments and more.

Register Today!Visit www.rit.edu/TechGirlzV or www.rit.edu/NTID/TechBoyzV or call 585-475-7695 or by videophone at 585-286-4555.

Registration Deadline: May 31, 2015

Rochester Institute of Technology I National Technical Institute for the Deaf I Rochester, New York

Health Care Careers Exploration Campfor students entering 10th, 11th or 12th grade in fall of 2015.

July 26 – 31, 2015 Explore a range of career options and learn about important issues in health care.

Apply Today!Visit www.rit.edu/NTID/HealthCareersV or call585-475-7695 or by videophone at 585-286-4555.

Application Deadline: May 30, 2015


LSL KNOWLEDGE CENTER

LET’S KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING:

More information on advocacy resources online through the AG Bell YouTube channel:

THREE THINGS FOR SUCCESS IN DEVELOPING LANGUAGE Listen to an audiologist and an otolaryngologist discuss the three things that are necessary for a child to be successful in language development. http://bit.ly/1yL5QJd

LATE DIAGNOSIS AND HEADED TO COLLEGE Although this high school student received a late diagnosis for hearing loss, she is on grade level with reading, and is motivated to apply for college. http://bit.ly/14aIS0d

NO LIMITS FOR CHILDREN WITH PROGRESSIVE HEARING LOSS This child’s options for language development have increased thanks to technology, and she will attend a mainstream school where her mother hopes that she has a voice. http://bit.ly/1BJ9liZ

COMMUNICATION: HOW BABIES LEARNBabies are learning the properties of a language—rhythm, acceptable sound sequences, language categorization and visual cues such as lip movements and hand gestures—simultaneously. Those properties of language set the stage for word learning. http://bit.ly/1wCZE05

When reading aloud, parents effectively capture the toddler’s attention and cultivate his/her future desire for reading, learning and exploring. Pairing props with actions is an effective way to cultivate listening and language development. ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/DialogicReading/

HOW ARITHMETIC WORD PROBLEMS HELP LANGUAGE DEVELOPMENT Explore the connection between learning arithmetic and learning language. In general, word problems incorporate important language distinctions, and arithmetic word problems offer a large array of language development opportunities. ListeningandSpokenLanguage.org/ArithmeticWordProblemsHelpLanguageDevelopment/

DIALOGIC READING

DIRECTORY OF SERVICES


Our Mission: Assist children with hearing loss and oral language challenges to listen and speak through engaging inactivities with horses and their peers. We are a 501(c)(3) corporation.

Our Programs*Pony Camp: M-TH; Daily riding and camp

activities; ages 6-10; eight sessions thissummer; special needs inclusion

*Parent and Tot: A 90 minute “play-date”includes a ride and barn activities

*Riding Club: For beginner or advancedbeginner riders

*NEW program: Wranglers Round-Up!Day Camp M-TH: Daily riding andcamp activities for kids ages 11-13; twosessions this summer!

Four miles east of Parker at 10556 East Parker Road Parker, CO 80138

NOW ENROLLING!! MAKE IT A SUMMER TO REMEMBER!!SUMMER RIDING ACTIVITIES FOR ALL CHILDREN WHO LOVE HORSES

VOLUNTEERS WANTED AND NEEDED

Visit our website to register. All programs mix kids with and without special needs together. We all have fun!www.rosiesranch.com * 303-257-5943 * 720-851-0927

Directory of ServicesThe Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing is not responsible for verifying the credentials of the service providers below.

Listings do not constitute endorsements of establishments or individuals, nor do they guarantee quality.

CaliforniaEcho Center/Echo Horizon School, 3430 McManus Avenue, Culver City, CA 90232 • 310-838-2442 (voice) • 310-838-0479 (fax) • 310-202-7201 (tty) • [email protected] (email) • www. echohorizon.org (website) • Vicki Ishida, Echo Center Director. Private elementary school incorporating an auditory/ oral mainstream program for students who are deaf or hard of hearing. Daily support provided by credentialed DHH teachers in speech, language, auditory skills and academic follow-up.

HEAR Center, 301 East Del Mar Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91101 • 626-796-2016 (voice) • 626-796-2320 (fax) • Specializing in audiological services for all ages. Auditory-Verbal individual therapy, birth to 21 years.

HEAR to Talk, 547 North June Street, Los Angeles, CA 90004 • 323-464-3040 (voice) • [email protected] (e-mail) • www.hear2talk.com • Sylvia Rotfleisch, M.Sc.A., CED, CCC, Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapist®, LSLS Cert. AVT, Licensed Audiologist, California NPA Certified. Trained by Dr. Ling. Extensive expertise with cochlear implants and hearing aids.

Jean Weingarten Peninsula Oral School for the Deaf, 3518 Jefferson Ave. Redwood City, Ca. 94062 • [email protected] (email) • www.deafkidstalk.org (website) • Kathleen Daniel Sussman–Executive Director–Pamela Hefner Musladin–Director of School A listening and spoken language program where deaf and hard of hearing children listen, think and talk! Cognitive based program from birth through Kindergarten. Students develop excellent language, listening and social skills with superior academic competencies. Services include educational programs, parent/infant, speech/language/auditory therapy, mainstream support, educational/clinical audiology, occupational therapy and Tele-therapy.

John Tracy Clinic, 806 West Adams Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90007 • 213-748-5481 (voice) • 800-522-4582 · [email protected] • www.jtc.org & www.youtube.com/johntracyclinic. Early detection, school readiness and parent empowerment since 1942. Worldwide Parent Distance Education and onsite comprehensive audiological, counseling and educational services for families with children ages birth-5

years old. Intensive Summer Sessions (children ages 2-5 and parents), with sibling program. Online and on-campus options for an accredited Master’s and Credential in Deaf Education.

Listen and Learn, 4340 Stevens Creek Blvd., Suite 107, San Jose, CA 95129 • 408-345-4949 • Marsha A. Haines, M.A., CED, Cert. AVT, and Sandra Hamaguchi Hocker, M.A., CED • Auditory-verbal therapy for the child and family from infancy. Services also include aural habilitation for older students and adults with cochlear implants. Extensive experience and expertise with cochlear implants, single and bilateral. Mainstream support services, school consultation and assessment for children in their neighborhood school. California NPA certified.

No Limits Speech and Language Educational Center and Theatre Program, 9801 Washington Blvd., 2nd Floor, Culver City, CA 90232 310/ 280-0878, 800/ 948-7712 www.nolimitsspeaksout.org. Free individual auditory, speech and language therapy for dhh children between the ages of five-and-eighteen as well as a biweekly literacy program, computer training, weekly parent classes and a nationwide theatrical program.



Training and Advocacy Group (TAG) for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Children and Teens, Leah Ilan, Executive Director • 11693 San Vicente Blvd. #559, Los Angeles, CA 90049 • 310-339-7678 • [email protected] • www.tagkids.org. TAG provides exciting social opportunities through community service, field trips, weekly meetings, college prep and pre-employment workshops, guest speakers and parent-only workshops. site in the community. Group meetings and events offered to oral D/HoH children in 5th grade through high school seniors. USC Center for Childhood Communication (C3), 806 W. Adams Blvd, Los Angeles,CA 90007. USC C3 provides state of the art diagnostic audiology services, hearing aids, and implantable devices to children from birth to adulthood, speech language therapy and auditory verbal therapy, and educational counseling and support. Located on the campus of the John Tracy Clinic, USC C3 is part of the University of Southern California’s Keck School of Medicine. Otologic and surgical services are provided by John Niparko, M.D., and Rick Friedman, M.D. For appointments: 855-222-3093. Fax-213-764-2899. For inquiries regarding services: margaret. [email protected] or call 213-764-2801.

ConnecticutCREC Soundbridge, 123 Progress Drive, Wethersfield, CT 06109 • 860- 529-4260 (voice/TTY) • 860-257-8500 (fax) • www.crec.org/soundbridge (website). Dr. Elizabeth B. Cole, Program Director. Comprehensive audiological and instructional services, birth through post-secondary, public school settings. Focus on providing cutting-edge technology for optimal auditory access and listening in educational settings and at home, development of spoken language, development of self advocacy–all to support each individual’s realization of social, academic and vocational potential. Birth to Three, auditory-verbal therapy, integrated preschool, intensive day program, direct educational and consulting services in schools, educational audiology support services in all settings, cochlear implant mapping and habilitation, diagnostic assessments, and summer programs.New England Center for Hearing Rehabilitation (NECHEAR), 354 Hartford Turnpike, Hampton, CT 06247 • 860-455-1404 (voice) • 860-455-1396 (fax) • Diane Brackett. Serving infants, children and adults with all degrees of hearing loss. Speech, language, listening evaluation for children using hearing aids and cochlear implants. Auditory-Verbal therapy; Cochlear implant candidacy evaluation, pre- and postrehabilitation, and creative individualized mapping. Post-implant rehabilitation for adults with cochlear implants, specializing in prelingual onset. Mainstream school support, including onsite consultation with educational team, rehabilitation planning and classroom observation. Comprehensive audiological evaluation, amplification validation and classroom listening system assessment.

New England Center for Hearing Rehabilitation (NECHEAR), 354 Hartford Turnpike, Hampton, CT 06247 • 860-455-1404 (voice) • 860-455-1396 (fax) • Diane Brackett. Serving infants, childrenand adults with all degrees of hearing loss.Speech, language, listening evaluation forchildren using hearing aids and cochlearimplants. Auditory-Verbal therapy; Cochlearimplant candidacy evaluation, pre- and postrehabilitation, and creative individualizedmapping. Post-implant rehabilitation foradults with cochlear implants, specializing inprelingual onset. Mainstream school support,including onsite consultation with educationalteam, rehabilitation planning and classroomobservation. Comprehensive audiologicalevaluation, amplification validation andclassroom listening system assessment. Florida Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/Jacksonville, 9803 Old St. Augustine Road, Suite 7, Jacksonville, FL 32257 • 904-880-9001 • [email protected] • www.clarkeschools.org. Alisa Demico, MS, CCC-SLP, LSLS Cert AVT, and Cynthia Robinson, M.Ed., CED, LSLS Cert. AVEd, Co-Directors. A member of the Option Schools network, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech provides children who are deaf and hard of hearing with the listening, learning and spoken language skills they need to succeed. Comprehensive listening and spoken language programs prepare students for success in mainstream schools. Services include early intervention, toddler, preschool, pre-K, kindergarten, parent support, cochlear implant habilitation, and mainstream support. Summer Listening and Spoken language Program provides additional spoken language therapy for toddler and preschool-aged children. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has locations in Boston, Bryn Mawr, Jacksonville, New York City, Northampton and Philadelphia.

GeorgiaAtlanta Speech School—Katherine Hamm Center, 3160 Northside Parkway, NW Atlanta, GA 30327 • 404-233-5332 ext. 3119 (voice/TTY) • 404-266-2175 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.atlantaspeechschool.org (website). A Listening and Spoken Language program serving children who are deaf or hard of hearing from infancy to early elementary school age. Children receive language-rich lessons and highly individualized literacy instruction in a nurturing environment. Teachers and staff work closely with parents to instill the knowledge and confidence children need to reach their full potential. Early intervention programs, audiological support services, auditory-verbal therapy, mainstreaming opportunities and independent education evaluations. Established in 1938.

Auditory-Verbal Center, Inc.—Atlanta, Macon, Teletherapy—1901 Century Boulevard, Suite 20, Atlanta, GA 30345 • OFFICE:

404-633-8911 • EMAIL: [email protected] • WEBSITE: www.avchears.org AVC provides Auditory-Verbal Therapy that teaches children who are deaf and hard of hearing to listen and speak WITHOUT the use of sign language or lip reading. AVC provides AV therapy expertly by their Listening & Spoken Language Specialists (LSLSTM) through their two main locations in Atlanta and Macon but also virtually through teletherapy. Together, the LSLS and the parents work together to maximize each child’s listening and spoken language skills. AVC also has a full Audiology & Hearing Aid Clinic that provides diagnostic testing, dispensing and repair of hearing aids and cochlear implant mapping for adults. Additional offices: 2720 Sheraton Drive, Suite D-240, Macon, GA 31204, 478-471-0019 (voice)

IllinoisAlexander Graham Bell Montessori School (AGBMS) and Alternatives In Education for the Hearing Impaired (AEHI), www.agbms.org (website) • [email protected] (email) • 847-850-5490 (phone) • 847-1!50-5493 (fax) • 9300 Capitol Drive Wheeling, IL 60090 • AGBMS is a Montessori school educating children ages 15 months-12 who are deaf or hard of hearing or have other communicative challenges in a mainstream environment with hearing peers. Teachers of Deaf/Speech/Language Pathologist /Reading Specialist/Classroom Teachers emphasize language development and literacy utilizing Cued Speech. Early Intervention Services available to children under 3. AEHI, a training center for Cued Speech, assists parents, educators, or advocates in verbal language development for children with language delays or who do not yet substantially benefit from auditory technology.

Child’s Voice School, 180 Hansen Court, Wood Dale, IL 60191 • (630) 565-8200 (voice) • (630) 565-8282 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.childsvoice.org (website). Michele Wilkins, Ed.D., LSLS Cert. AVEd., Executive Director. A Listening and Spoken Language program for children birth to age 8. Cochlear implant (re) habilitation, audiology services and mainstream support services provided. Early intervention for birth to age three with parent-infant and toddler classes and home based services offered in Wood Dale and Chicago. (Chicago–phone (773) 516-5720; fax (773) 516-5721) Parent Support/Education classes provided. Child’s Voice is a Certified Moog Program.

MarylandThe Hearing and Speech Agency’s Auditory/Oral Program: Little Ears, Big Voices, 5900 Metro Drive, Baltimore, MD 21215 • (voice) 410-318-6780 • (relay) 711 • (fax) 410-318-6759 • Email: [email protected] • Website: www.hasa.org • Jill Berie, Educational Director; Olga Polites, Clinical Director; Erin Medley, Teacher of the Deaf. Auditory/Oral education and therapy program for infants and young children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Early intervention services are



available for children birth to age 3 and a preschool program for children ages 3 through 5. Cheerful, spacious, state-of-the-art classrooms located in Gateway School are approved by the Maryland State Department of Education. Services include onsite audiology, speech-language therapy, family education and support. Applications are accepted year-round. Financial aid available.

MassachusettsClarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/Boston, 1 Whitman Road, Canton, MA 02021 • 781-821-3499 (voice) • 781-821-3904 • [email protected] • www.clarkeschools.org. Barbara Hecht, Ph.D., Director. A member of the Option Schools network, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech provides children who are deaf and hard of hearing with the listening, learning and spoken language skills they need to succeed. Comprehensive listening and spoken language programs prepare students for success in mainstream schools. Services include early intervention, preschool, kindergarten, speech and language services, parent support, cochlear implant habilitation, and an extensive mainstream services program (itinerant and consulting). Children and families come to our campus from throughout Eastern and Central Massachusetts, Cape Cod, Rhode Island, Maine and New Hampshire for services. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has locations in Boston, Bryn Mawr, Jacksonville, New York City, Northampton and Philadelphia.

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/Northampton, 45 Round Hill Road, Northampton, MA 01060 • 413-584-3450 • [email protected] • www.clarkeschools.org. Bill Corwin, President. A member of the Option Schools network, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech provides children who are deaf and hard of hearing with the listening, learning and spoken language skills they need to succeed. Comprehensive listening and spoken language programs prepare students for success in mainstream schools. Services include early intervention, preschool, day school through 8th grade, cochlear implant assessment, summer programs, mainstream services (itinerant and consulting), evaluations for infants through high school students, audiological services, and a graduate degree program in teacher education. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has locations in Boston, Bryn Mawr, Jacksonville, New York City, Northampton and Philadelphia.

MinnesotaSoundWorks for Children, 18 South Main Street, Topsfield, MA 01983 • 978-887-8674 (voice) • [email protected] (e-mail) • Jane E. Driscoll, MED, Director. A comprehensive, non-profit program dedicated to the development of auditory-verbal skills in children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing. Specializing in cochlear implant habilitation and offering a full continuum of inclusionary support models

from preschool through high school. Early Intervention services and social/self-advocacy groups for mainstreamed students are offered at our Family Center. Summer programs, in-service training, and consultation available.

MississippiDuBard School for Language Disorders, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive #5215, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-0001 • 601-266-5223 (voice) • [email protected] (email) • www.usm.edu/dubard • Maureen K. Martin, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, CED, CALT, QI, Director. The DuBard School for Language Disorders is a clinical division of the Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences at The University of Southern Mississippi. The school serves children from birth to age 13 in its state-of-the-art facility. Working collaboratively with 20 public school districts, the school specializes in coexisting language disorders, learning disabilities/dyslexia and speech disorders, such as apraxia, through its non-graded, 11-month program. The DuBard Association Method®, an expanded and refined version of The Association Method, is the basis of the curriculum. Comprehensive evaluations, individual therapy, audiological services and professional development programs also are available. AA/EOE/ADAI.

Magnolia Speech School, Inc., 733 Flag Chapel Road, Jackson, MS 39209 – 601-922-5530 (voice), 601-922-5534 (fax)– [email protected]–Anne Sullivan, M.Ed. Executive Director. Magnolia Speech School serves children with hearing loss and/or severe speech and language disorders. Listening and Spoken Language instruction/therapy is offered to students 0 to 12 in a home-based early intervention program (free of charge), in classroom settings and in the Hackett Bower Clinic (full educational audiological services, speech pathology and occupational therapy).Assessments and outpatient therapy are also offered to the community through the Clinic.

MissouriCID–Central Institute for the Deaf, 825 S. Taylor Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110 314-977-0132 (voice) • 314-977-0037 (tty) • [email protected] (email) • www.cid.edu (website) Lynda Berkowitz/Barb Lanfer, co-principals. Child- and family-friendly learning environment for children birth-12; exciting adapted curriculum incorporating mainstream content; Family Center for infants and toddlers; expert mainstream preparation in the CID pre-k and primary programs; workshops and educational tools for professionals; close affiliation with Washington University deaf education and audiology graduate programs.

The Moog Center for Deaf Education, 12300 South Forty Drive, St. Louis, MO 63141 • 314-692-7172 (voice) • 314-692-8544 (fax) • www.moogcenter.org (website) • Betsy Moog Brooks, Executive Director, [email protected]. Services provided to children who are deaf and hard-of-hearing from birth to 9 years of age.

Programs include the Family School (birth to 3), School (3–9 years), Audiology (including cochlear implant programming), Teleschool, mainstream services, educational evaluations, parent education and support groups, professional workshops, teacher education, and student teacher placements. The Moog Center for Deaf Education is a Certified Moog Program.

New JerseyHIP of Bergen County Special Services, Midland Park School District, 41 E. Center Street, Midland Park, NJ 07432. • Contact Kathleen Treni, Principal (201) 343-8982, [email protected]. An integrated, comprehensive pre-K through 6th grade auditory oral program. Services include AV Therapy, Cochlear Implant Habilitation, Parent Education and Audiology services. STARS Early Intervention for babies, 0 to 3, with Toddler and Baby and Me groups available. SOUND SOLUTIONS consulting teacher services for mainstream students in North Jersey public schools. Contact Lisa Stewart, Supervisor at 201-343-6000 ext 6511 for information about teacher of the deaf, speech and audiology services to public schools. SHIP is the state’s only 7 through 12th grade auditory oral program. CART (Computer Realtime Captioning) is provided in a supportive small high school environment and trained Social Worker is onsite to work with social skills and advocacy issues.

Summit Speech School for the Hearing-Impaired Child, F.M. Kirby Center is an exclusively auditory-oral/auditory-verbal school for deaf and hard of hearing children located at 705 Central Ave., New Providence, NJ 07974 • 908-508-0011 (voice/TTY) • 908-508-0012 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.summitspeech.org (website) • Pamela Paskowitz, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, Executive Director. Programs include Early Intervention/Parent Infant (0-3 years), Preschool (3-5 years) and Itinerant Mainstream Support Services for children in their home districts. Speech and language, OT and PT and family support/family education services available. Pediatric audiological services are available for children birth-21 and educational audiology and consultation is available for school districts.

New YorkAnne Kearney, M.S., LSLS Cert. AVT, CCC-SLP, 401 Littleworth Lane • Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY 11579 • 516-671-9057 (Voice) • [email protected]. Family-centered auditory-verbal speech therapy for infants, children and adults with any level of hearing loss.

Auditory/Oral School of New York, 3321 Avenue “M”, Brooklyn, NY 11234 • 718-531-1800 (voice) • 718-421-5395 (fax) • [email protected] (email). Pnina Bravmann, Program Director. An Auditory/Oral Early Intervention and Preschool Program serving children with hearing loss and their families. Programs include: Early Intervention (center-based and home-based), preschool, integrated preschool classes with



children with normal hearing, multidisciplinary evaluations, parent support, auditory-verbal therapy (individual speech, language and listening therapy), complete audiological services, cochlear implant (re)habilitation, mainstreaming, ongoing support services following mainstreaming.

Center for Hearing and Communication, 50 Broadway, 6th Floor, New York, NY 10004 • 917 305-7700 (voice) • 917-305-7888 (TTY) • 917-305-7999 (fax) • www.CHChearing.org (website). Florida Office: 2900 W. Cypress Creek Road, Suite 3, Ft. Lauderdale, FL 33309 • 954-601-1930 (Voice) • 954-601-1938 (TTY) • 954-601-1399 (Fax). A leading center for hearing and communication services for people of all ages who have a hearing loss as well as children with listening and learning challenges. Our acclaimed services for children include pediatric hearing evaluation and hearing aid fitting; auditory-oral therapy; and the evaluation and treatment of auditory processing disorder (APD). Comprehensive services for all ages include hearing evaluation; hearing aid evaluation, fitting and sales; cochlear implant training; communication therapy; assistive technology consultation; tinnitus treatment, emotional health and wellness; and Mobile Hearing Test Unit. Visit www.CHChearing. org to access our vast library of information about hearing loss and hearing conservation.

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/New York, 80 East End Avenue, New York, NY 10028 • 212-585-3500 • [email protected] • www.clarkeschools.org. Meredith Berger, Director. A member of the Option Schools network, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech provides children who are deaf and hard of hearing with the listening, learning and spoken language skills they need to succeed. Comprehensive listening and spoken language programs prepare students for success in mainstream schools. Clarke’s New York campus is located on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and serves children age birth-5 years old from New York City and Westchester County. Clarke is an approved provider of early intervention evaluations and services, service coordination, and pre-school classes (self-contained and integrated). There are typically little or no out of pocket expenses for families attending Clarke New York. Our expert staff includes teachers of the deaf/hard of hearing, speech language pathologists, audiologists, social workers/service coordinators and occupational and physical therapists. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has locations in Boston, Bryn Mawr, Jacksonville, New York City, Northampton and Philadelphia. Cleary School for the Deaf, 301 Smithtown Boulevard, Nesconset, NY 11767 • 631-588-0530 (voice) • www.clearyschool.org • Jacqueline Simms, Executive Director. Auditory Oral Programs include Parent-Infant (birth-3years) and Preschool (3-5 years). Offers Teacher of the Deaf, Speech Therapy & AV therapy. The primary focus of the Auditory-Oral Program is to develop students’ ability to “listen

to learn” along with developing age appropriate speech, language, and academic skills. These programs offer intensive speech therapy services with a goal to prepare students for life long learning. Additional services: Autism Resource, Audiological, Music, Art, Library, OT, PT and Parent Support.

Mill Neck Manor School for the Deaf, 40 Frost Mill Road, Mill Neck, NY 11765 • (516) 922-4100 (voice). Francine Atlas Bogdanoff, Superintendent. State-supported school: Infant Toddler Program focusing on parent education and support including listening and spoken language training by a speech therapist and TOD. Certified AVEd and Audiological services onsite, integrated auditory-verbal preschool and kindergarten programs; comprehensive curriculum utilizes play, music, literacy and hands on experiences to promote listening and spoken language skills and academic standards. Speech, occupational and physical therapies, as well as counseling and Cochlear Implant MAPpings, are available onsite.

Rochester School for the Deaf, 1545 St. Paul Street, Rochester, NY 14621 • 585-544-1240 (voice/TTY) • 866-283-8810 (videophone) • [email protected] • www.RSDeaf.org • Harold Mowl, Jr., Ph.D., Superintendent/CEO. Serving Western and Central New York State, Rochester School for the Deaf (RSD) is an inclusive, bilingual school where children who are deaf and hard of hearing and their families thrive. Established in 1876, RSD goes above and beyond all expectations to provide quality Pre-K through 12th grade academic programs, services and resources to ensure a satisfying and successful school experience for children with hearing loss.

St. Joseph’s School for the Deaf, 1000 Hutchinson River Pkwy., Bronx, NY 10465 • 718-828-9000 (Voice) • 718-828-1671 (TTY) • 347-479-1271 (Video Phone) • www.sjsdny.org. Debra Arles, Executive Director. SJSD has a long history of providing academically rich programs for students with hearing loss from birth to 8th grade. All students receive individual and/or small group speech therapy sessions. Individual and sound field FM systems are utilized throughout the school day. Onsite audiological services (assessments and amplification fitting/maintenance) are available in addition to occupation and physical therapies, and counseling. Our Parent-Infant Program offers individual family sessions and a weekly group session, and emphasizes language acquisition, development of spoken language and auditory skills. In addition, our vibrant, multi-lingual Parent Education program provides practical information and peer support to empower parents raising a child with hearing loss. Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children, 603 E. Hildebrand Ave., San Antonio, TX 78212; 210/824-0579; fax 210/826-0436. Founded in 1947, Sunshine Cottage, a listening and spoken language school promoting early identification of hearing loss and subsequent intervention teaching children with hearing

impairment (infants through high school.) State-of-the-art pediatric audiological services include hearing aid fitting, cochlear implant programming, assessment of children maintenance of campus soundfield and FM equipment. Programs include the Newborn Hearing Evaluation Center, Parent-Infant Program, Hearing Aid Loaner and Scholarship Programs, Educational Programs (preschool through fifth grade on campus and in mainstream settings), Habilitative Services, Speech Language Pathology, Counseling, and Assessment Services. Pre- and postcochlear implant assessments and habilitation. Accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Council on Accreditation and School Improvement, OPTIONschools International, and is a Texas Education Agency approved non-public school. For more information visit www.sunshinecottage.org.

North CarolinaCASTLE- Center for Acquisition of Spoken Language Through Listening Enrichment, 5501 Fortunes Ridge Drive, Suite A, Chapel Hill, NC 27713 • 919-419-1428 (voice) • http://www.med.unc.edu/earandhearing/castle (website) • CASTLE is a part of the UNC Ear & Hearing Center and the UNC Pediatric Cochlear Implant Team, Our mission is to provide a quality listening & spoken language program for children with hearing loss; empower parents as primary teachers and advocates; and train and coach specialists in listening and spoken language. We offer toddler classes, preschool language groups, Auditory-Verbal parent sessions, and distance therapy through UNC REACH. Hands-on training program for hearing-related professionals/university students.

OHIOOhio Valley Voices • 6642 Branch Hill-Guinea Pike, Cincinnati, OH 45140 • 513-791-1458 (voice) • 513-791-4326 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.ohiovalleyvoices.org (website). Ohio Valley Voices’ mission is to teach children with hearing loss to listen and talk. Our primary goal is for children with hearing impairment to leave our program speaking within normal limits and reading at or above grade level. Our vision is for all children with hearing loss to have a bright future with endless possibilities. We provide early intervention, oral deaf education through 2nd grade, intensive speech/ language therapy, parent education, and support groups for families. We offer a 1:3 therapist to child ratio and complete audiology services, including daily maintenance/repairs on children’s cochlear implants and/or hearing aids.

OklahomaHearts for Hearing, 3525 NW 56th Street, Suite A-150, Oklahoma City, OK 73112 • 405-548-4300 • 405-548-4350(Fax) • Comprehensive hearing health care for children and adults with an emphasis on listening and spoken language outcomes. Our family-centered team includes audiologists, LSLS Cert. AVTs, speech-language pathologists,



physicians and educators working closely with families for optimal listening and spoken language outcomes. Services include newborn hearing testing, pediatric and adult audiological evaluations, hearing aid fittings, cochlear implant evaluations and mapping. Auditory-verbal therapy as well as cochlear implant habilitation is offered by Listening and Spoken Language Specialists (LSLS®), as well as an auditory-oral preschool, parent-toddler group and a summer enrichment program. Continuing education and consulting available. www.heartsforhearing.org.

OREGONButte Publications, Inc., P.O. Box 1329, Hillsboro, OR 97123 • 866 312-8883 • www.ButtePublications.com. Butte Publications is an educational publisher focused on the needs of deaf or hard-of-hearing students, their families, teachers and other professionals. At Butte, you’ll find time tested as well as new titles covering language skill building, professional resources, and other interesting and informative publications. Visit our website to see the scope of our line.

PennsylvaniaClarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/Pennsylvania, 455 South Roberts Road, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 • 610-525-9600 • [email protected] • www.clarkeschools.org.

Judith Sexton, MS, CED, LSLS Cert AVEd, Director. A member of the Option Schools network, Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech provides children who are deaf and hard of hearing with the listening, learning and spoken language skills they need to succeed. Comprehensive listening and spoken language programs prepare students for success in mainstream schools. Locations in Bryn Mawr and Philadelphia. Services include early intervention, preschool, parent education, individual auditory speech and language services, cochlear implant habilitation for children and adults, audiological services, and mainstream services including itinerant teaching and consulting. Specially trained staff includes LSLS Cert. AVEd and LSL Cert. AVT professionals, teachers of the deaf, special educators, speech language pathologists and a staff audiologist. Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech has locations in Boston, Bryn Mawr, Jacksonville, New York City, Northampton and Philadelphia.

Delaware County Intermediate Unit # 25, Hearing and Language Programs, 200 Yale Avenue, Morton, PA 19070 • 610-938-9000, ext. 2277, 610-938-9886 (fax) • [email protected] • Program Highlights: A publicly funded program for children with hearing loss in local schools. Serving children from birth through 21 years of age. Teachers of the deaf provide resource room

support and itinerant hearing therapy throughout Delaware County, PA. Services also include audiology, speech therapy, cochlear implant habilitation (which includes LSLS Cert. AVT and LSLS Cert. AVEd), psychology and social work.

DePaul School for Hearing and Speech, 6202 Alder Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 • 412-924-1012 (voice) • 412-924-1036 (fax) • www.depaulhearingandspeech.org (website) • [email protected] (email) • Mimi Loughead, Early Childhood Coordinator. DePaul School is the only school in the western Pennsylvania tri-state region that provides Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) education to children who are deaf or hard of hearing. DePaul School serves children in Pennsylvania and from Ohio and West Virginia. A State Approved Private School, most programs are tuition-free to approved students. DePaul School provides early intervention services for children (birth to age 5); a center-based toddler program (ages 18–36 months); a preschool program (ages 3–5) and a comprehensive academic program grades K-8. DePaul School provides clinical services including audiology, Auditory-Verbal and speech therapy, cochlear implant MAPping and habilitation, physical and occupational therapy, mainstreaming support and parent education and support programs. Most children who participate in DePaul School’s early intervention



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programs gain the Listening and Spoken Language (LSL) skills needed to succeed and transition to their neighborhood schools by first grade.

Tucker Maxon Oral School, 2860 SE Holgate Blvd., Portland, OR 97202.(503) 235-6551. [email protected]. www.tuckermaxon.org. Glen Gilbert, Executive Director. Linda Goodwin, Principal. Founded in 1947, Tucker-Maxon is an OPTION-accredited school offering early intervention, tele-intervention, preschool, and K-5 education for deaf and hearing-impaired children with a focus on listening and speaking. On-site audiology and speech-language pathology provide cochlear implant and hearing aid assessment and assistance. Our collaborative, family-centered approach develops children’s listening and speaking abilities while supporting the family in providing a language-rich environment at home. Our small classes with an average 8:1 student-to-teacher ratio and co-enrollment with typically hearing children results in improved listening and speaking skills. Art, Music and PE programs augment our focus on building communication, problem-solving and scholastic achievement.

South Carolina The University of South Carolina Speech and Hearing Research Center, 1601 St. Julian Place, Columbia, SC, 29204 • (803) 777-2614 (voice) •

(803) 253-4143 (fax) • Center Director: Danielle Varnedoe, [email protected]. The center provides audiology services, speech-language therapy, adult aural (re)habilitation therapy, and Auditory-Verbal Therapy. Our audiology services include comprehensive diagnostic evaluations, hearing aid evaluations and services, and cochlear implant evaluations and programming. The University also provides a training program for AV therapy and cochlear implant management for professional/university students. Additional contacts for the AVT or CI programs include Wendy Potts, CI Program Coordinator (803-777-2642), Melissa Hall (803-777-1698), Nikki Herrod-Burrows (803-777-2669), Gina Crosby-Quinatoa (803) 777-2671, and Jamy Claire Archer (803-777-1734).

TennesseeChild Hearing Services (CHS) - University of Tennessee Health Science Center, 578 South Stadium Hall • Knoxville, TN 37996 • 865-974-5451 (voice) • 865-974-1793 (fax) • http://www.uthsc.edu/allied/asp/hsc/chs.php (website) • [email protected] (email) • Emily Noss, M.A. CCC-SLP • CHS provides aural re/habilitation services for children who are deaf or hard of hearing ranging in age from birth-21. Group and individual treatment as well as aural/oral communication assessments, pre and post cochlear implant assessments, auditory training, adult cochlear implant training,

and parent guidance are offered. The objectives of CHS are for each child to develop listening and spoken language skills commensurate with their peers. CHS is also a training program for audiology and speech-language pathology students.

Memphis Oral School for the Deaf, 7901 Poplar Avenue, Germantown, TN 38138 • 901-758-2228 (voice) • 901-531-6735 (fax) • www.mosdkids.org (website) • [email protected] (email). Teresa Schwartz, Executive Director. Services: Family Training Program (birth-age 3), Auditory/Oral Day School (ages 2-6), Audiological Testing, Hearing Aid Programming, Cochlear Implant Mapping and Therapy, Aural (Re)Habilitation, Speech-Language Therapy, Mainstream Service.

Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center - National Center for Childhood Deafness and Family Communication, Medical Center East South Tower, 1215 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37232-8718 • www.mc.vanderbilt.edu/VanderbiltBillWilkersonCenter (web). Fred Bess, Ph.D., Director NCCDFC [email protected]; Michael Douglas, M.S., Principal, Mama Lere Hearing School [email protected]; Lynn Hayes, Ed.D., Director, Master’s in Education of the Deaf Program [email protected]; Anne Marie Tharpe, Ph.D., Associate Director of Education, NCCDFC [email protected].



The National Center for Childhood Deafness and Family Communication (NCCDFC) at the Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center houses a comprehensive program of research, education, and service for infants and children (birth through 18 years) with hearing loss and their families. Early intervention services include newborn hearing screening, full range of pediatric audiology services (diagnostic services, hearing aid fittings, and cochlear implant program), infant-family training, and toddler group. The Mama Lere Hearing School provides preschool educational services for listening and spoken language development. Telepractice services, including deaf education, speech-language intervention, audiology services, and professional coaching are available. The Department of Hearing and Speech Sciences offers an innovative, highly-ranked, interdisciplinary graduate program for audiology, speech-language pathology, and deaf education students. The NCCDFC is engaged in cutting-edge, basic and applied research in the area of childhood hearing loss.

TexasCallier Center for Communication Disorders/UT Dallas, Callier - Dallas Facility: 1966 Inwood Road, Dallas, TX 75235 • Main number: 214-905-3000 • Appointments: 214-905-3030.

Callier-Richardson Facility: 811 Synergy Park Blvd., Richardson, TX 75080 • Main number: 972-883-3630 • Appointments: 972-883-3630 • [email protected] (email) • www.utdallas.edu/calliercenter. For half a century, the Callier Center has been dedicated to helping children and adults with speech, language and hearing disorders connect with the world. We transform lives by providing leading-edge clinical services, conducting innovative research into new treatments and technologies, and training the next generation of caring clinical providers. Callier provides hearing services, Auditory-Verbal therapy, and speech-language pathology services for all ages. Audiology services include hearing evaluations, hearing aid dispensing, assistive devices, protective devices and tinnitus therapy. We are a partner of the Dallas Cochlear Implant Program, a joint enterprise among the Callier Center, UT Southwestern Medical Center and Children’s Medical Center. Callier specializes in cochlear implant evaluations and post-surgical treatment for children from birth to 18 years. Our nationally accredited Child Development Program serves children developing typically and allows for the inclusive education of children with hearing impairments.

The Center for Hearing and Speech, 3636 West Dallas, Houston, TX 77019 • 713-523-3633 (voice) • 713-874-1173 (TTY) • 713-523-8399 (fax) - [email protected] (email) www.centerhearingandspeech.org (website) CHS serves children with hearing impairments from birth to 18 years. Services include: auditory/oral preschool; Audiology Clinic providing comprehensive hearing evaluations, diagnostic ABR, hearing aid and FM evaluations and fittings, cochlear implant evaluations and follow-up mapping; Speech-Language Pathology Clinic providing Parent-Infant therapy, Auditory-Verbal therapy, aural(re) habilitation; family support services. All services offered on sliding fee scale and many services offered in Spanish.

UtahSound Beginnings at Utah State University, 2620 Old Main Hill • Logan, UT • 84322-2620 • 435-797-9235 (voice) • 435-797-7519 (fax) • www.soundbeginnings.usu.edu • Ali Devey, MA, Sound Beginnings Program Coordinator, [email protected] • Kristina Blaiser, Ph.D., CCC-SLP, [email protected] • Listening and Spoken Language Graduate Program. A comprehensive listening and spoken language program serving children with hearing loss and their families. Services include early

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intervention, parent training, toddler and preschool classrooms, pediatric audiology, tele-intervention and individual therapy. The Department of Communicated Disorders offers an interdisciplinary Listening and Spoken Language graduate training program in Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology, and Deaf Education. Sound Beginnings partners with the Utah School for the Deaf.

WisconsinCenter for Communication Hearing & Deafness, 10243 W. National Avenue • West Allis, WI 53227 • 414-604-2200 •414-604-7200(Fax) • www.cchdwi.org • Amy Peters Lalios, M.A,. CCC-A, LSLS Cert. AVT, Director, Therapy Services. Private non-profit agency, near Milwaukee, providing quality, state-of-the-art comprehensive therapy services to individuals, of all ages, who have hearing loss. Highly qualified professionals at CCHD include: LSLS certified practitioners; speech-language pathologists (including bilingual-Spanish); audiologists; teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing; and social worker. Services include family-focused, culturally responsive individualized early intervention; parent education; auditory-verbal therapy; tele-therapy via ConnectHear Program; speech-language therapy; toddler communication groups with typically hearing peers; pre- post

cochlear implant therapy for all ages; specialized instruction; consultations; professional mentoring as well as agency related programs, resources, ongoing educational and parent-to-parent events.

INTERNATIONAL

CanadaChildren’s Hearing and Speech Centre of British Columbia , 3575 Kaslo Street, Vancouver, British Columbia, V5M 3H4, Canada • 604-437-0255 (voice) • 604-437-0260 (fax) • www.childrenshearing.ca (website) • Janet Weil, Principal and Executive Director, [email protected]. Celebrating our 50th year, our listening and spoken language clinical educational centre serves children and families from birth through Grade 12 including audiology, SLP, OT, First Words family guidance, preschool and primary classes, itinerant services and video-conferencing/tele-therapy.

Montreal Oral School for the Deaf, 4670 St. Catherine Street, West, Westmount, QC, Canada H3Z 1S5 • 514-488-4946 (voice/ tty) • 514-488-0802 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.montrealoralschool.com (website). Parent-infant program (0-3 years old). Full-time educational program (3-12

years old). Mainstreaming program in regular schools (elementary and secondary). Audiology, cochlear implant and other support services.

EnglandThe Speech, Language and Hearing Centre–Christopher Place, 1-5 Christopher Place, Chalton Street, Euston, London NW1 1JF, England • 0114-207-383-3834 (voice) • 0114-207-383-3099 (fax) • [email protected] (email) • www.speech-lang.org.uk (website) • Assessment, nursery school and therapeutic centre for children under 5 with hearing impairment, speech/language or communication difficulties, including autism. • We have a Child Psychologist and a Child Psychotherapist. • Auditory-Verbal Therapy is also provided by a LSLS Cert. AVT.



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LIST OF ADVERTISERSAdvanced Bionics Corporation .............................................................4

CapTel .............................................................................Inside Back Cover

Central Institute for the Deaf ...............................................................38

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech .........................................22

Cochlear Americas ......................................................................................6

Ear Technology Corp. (Dry & Store) ................................................37

MED-EL Corporation ............................................................Back Cover

National Technical Institute for the Deaf—RIT......................30, 39

Oticon ............................................................................Inside Front Cover

Rosie's Ranch ..............................................................................................32

Sprint CapTel ...............................................................................................23

St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf ........................................................36

University of Texas Health Science Center ...................................15

Weingarten Children's Center .............................................................27

AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Symposium ............ 14


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volta voices january-march 2015 magazine

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