Supporting D/HH Students in the Mainstream Setting

Presented by Diane BeardOutreach Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

Presentation Overview

• Team Approach

• Impact of Hearing Loss

• Accommodations & Modifications

• Self-Advocacy Skills & Understanding Communication Breakdown

• Resources

Team Approach• Working together: parents, classroom teacher, teacher of the deaf and hard of hearing, interpreter, speech/language therapist, special education teacher, educational audiologist and the principal

Team Approach• Set up a notebook system/email• Frequent “5 minute meetings”• A longer debriefing meeting

occasionally• Continually monitoring progress

Impact of Hearing Loss• Varies from mild to profound hearing

losses

Speech Banana, Retrieved from http://listening andspokenlanguage.org/Document.aspx?id=1101

Impact of Hearing Loss• Varies depending on which

frequencies they do or don’t hear

• Is there consistency in wearing amplification?

• Training in using amplification

Room Acoustics

• Carpeting and curtains lessen the reverberation of noise

• Background noise affects understanding of speech

• Student avoid sitting near an overhead projector or heater

• Close classroom door to minimize hallway noise

Accommodations & Modifications

Communication Accommodations

• Preferential seating; limit pacing around the room

• Seating in a horseshoe or circle shape

• Free to determine where pupil and interpreter should sit/stand for ideal line of sight

• Be aware of lighting/glare issues

Communication Accommodations• Get student’s attention prior to

speaking/signing.

• Allow student to see your face when you are talking

• • Speak clearly at a normal pace

• Make sure the student knows the subject/context has changed.

Communication Accommodations

• If the student asks what you said, try saying the same thing using different words.

• If the student does not understand you, don’t give up or say “it’s not important” or “I’ll tell you later.” Try saying it in a different way.

Communication Accommodations• Respect the turn-taking process to

allow equal communication access.• If you have handouts:

-allow time to read before discussion

-Provide interpreter with a copy of materials• Reading and watching the

interpreter or teacher simultaneously is not possible.

Instructional Accommodations

• Visual clues and supplements are very important – gestures, facial expressions, pictures, charts, maps, vocabulary lists, overheads, lecture outlines, etc…

Instructional Accommodations

• Check for understanding of information – student can also use a signal

• Predictability in the environment & routines help a great deal

• Allow some down time/breaks from listening/watching

Instructional Accommodations• Interactive whiteboards• Captioning for videos & tv

• Buddy system for notes and to assist D/HH student

• Preteach vocabulary and concepts.

• Teach cognitive or language strategies that will help them understand the text.

Educational Resourceswww.cricksoft.com – reading and writing tool with picture support

Multiple Auditory Skills Super Pack – activity bookwww.greatideasforteaching.com

Fun card decks, games & stories related to a variety of auditory and language skillswww.superduperinc.com

Educational Apps

Bitsboard Book Creator

Phrasal Verbs Machine Signed StoriesAuditory Processing Studio

Self-Advocacy Skills

• Promote self-advocacy and activities to foster inclusion.

• Direct instruction on how to interact socially with hearing peers

• Help the student understand his/her own hearing loss

• Plan opportunities to meet other D/HH peers and adults.

Self-Advocacy Skills

• Student practices communication repair strategies:

• Repetition• Revision• Addition• Nonverbal

Self-Advocacy Skills

• Use games to:• Describe strategies to

address challenging listening situations

• Identify source of listening difficulty:• Speaker• Listener• Environmental issues

Self-Advocacy SkillsSupporting Success for Kids With Hearing

Losshttp://successforkidswithhearingloss.com

Information and games to support students with hearing loss

Hear It, Fix It

Monkey Talk

What’s the Problem?

FREE E-BOOK: Self-Advocacy for Students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing

The second edition of this popular book is a 2012 e-version written by Kristina English, PhD, of the University of Akron. She generously has made the e-version of this 105-page book freely available.

References

Colorado Department of Education and Colorado Hands & Voices. (2011) The Colorado Resource Guide for Families of Children Who are Deaf/Hard of Hearing. Retrieved March 6, 2014 from http://www.cde.state.co.us/cdesped/SD-Hearing_ Resources.asp.pdf.

Roy, C. (2009) Considerations for Teaching a Student Who is Deaf or Hard of Hearing in the Mainstream Setting. Retrieved from http://www.dhhslancaster.org/sub/education/edman.pdf.