Volta Voices July-September 2015 Magazine

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125 YEA

VOLUME 22 ISSUE 3 JUL-SEP 2015

THE THRESHOLDS OF LIFE: NAVIGATING TRANSITIONS

ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL ASSOCIATION FOR THE DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING

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JUL-SEP 2015 // VOLUME 22 // ISSUE 3

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FEATURES 1 0 Pathway to Success: Managing the Preschool to Elementary School Transition Transitioning to elementary or primary school from preschool involves negotiating and adjusting to a number of changes and working in partnership and developing positive relationships between and among a range of stakeholders, including children, parents and caregivers, early childhood services, school staff and the wider community.

BY JEAN MOORES-CHADWICK AND JENNY GALLOWAY

1 4 Middle School 101: Helping Your Child Make a Smooth Transition Middle school arrives at a time when your child is going through rapid physical, social, emotional and cognitive changes. Read about the three areas where students need extra support to help them transition successfully to middle school: social, academic and organizational.

BY KRYSTYANN KRYWKO, Ed.D.

le.

This is a convertib

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2 0 Vocabulary Learning: A Lifelong Adventure Vocabulary is one of the most important indicators of students' success in school. Read about tips and strategies to use the everyday to introduce and work on new vocabulary.

BY MELISSA MCDONALD, M.Ed., LSLS Cert. AVT

2 4 Speech Audiometry Testing: A Guide for Parents and Teachers In the last issue, we looked at the audiogram, the hearing testing process, and types and degrees of hearing loss. In this issue, we take a look at additional testing in the category of speech audiometry.

BY DONALD M. GOLDBERG, Ph.D., CCC-SLP/A, FAAA, LSLS Cert. AVT

IN EVERY ISSUE

DEPARTMENTS

2 Want to Write for Volta Voices?

3 Voices from AG Bell A Grand Anniversary Celebration

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5 Editor’s Note The Thresholds of Life: Navigating Transitions

Voices Contributors

8 Sound Bites

2 8 Hear Our Voices

3 4 Directory of Services

3 0 Focus on Chapters A New Jersey Partnership that Works!

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3 3 AG Bell Website Online Resources for Parents and Professionals At Your Fingertips to Ensure Students’ Success in School and Beyond

List of Advertisers

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

The Parable of the Flood

Want to Write for Volta Voices?

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

ALEXANDER GRAHAM BELL ASSOCIATION FOR THE DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING 3417 Volta Place, N.W., Washington, DC 20007 www.agbell.org VOICE 202.337.5220 TTY 202.337.5221 | FAX 202.337.8314 Volta Voices Staff Director of Communications and Marketing Susan Boswell, M.A., CAE Editor Anna Karkovska, M.A. Advertising, Exhibit and Sponsorship Sales The Townsend Group Design and Layout GRAPHEK AG Bell Board of Directors President Meredith K. Sugar, Esq. (OH) President-Elect Ted Meyer, M.D., Ph.D. (SC) Immediate Past President Donald M. Goldberg, Ph.D., LSLS Cert. AVT (OH) Secretary-Treasurer Catharine McNally (VA) Chief Executive Officer Emilio Alonso-Mendoza, J.D., CFRE Corrine Altman (NV) Rachel Arfa, Esq. (IL) Jonathan Berger, Esq. (NY) Robert J. Bush (PA) Ivette Cejas, Ph.D. (FL) Kevin Franck, Ph.D., MBA, CCC-A (MA) Donna Grossman, M.A. (VA)

Submissions to Volta Voices Volta 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 www.agbell.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 Guidelines Volta 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).

SUBMIT ARTICLES/ITEMS TO: Volta Voices Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing 3417 Volta Place, N.W. • Washington, DC 20007 Email: editor@agbell.org Submit online at www.agbell.org

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

Media Kit Visit www.agbell.org and select “About AG Bell” for advertising information.

Sara Grosvenor (DC) Susan Lenihan, Ph.D., CED (MO) Catharine McNally (VA) Teri Ouellette, M.S.Ed., LSLS Cert. AVEd (IN)

On the cover: THE THRESHOLDS OF LIFE: Navigating Transitions

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VOLTA VOICES Volume 22, Issue 3, Jul-Sep 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).

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 $137/year domestic (rate includes online access to The Volta Review), $150/year international (rate includes online access to The Volta Review) or $190/year both domestic and international (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

VOICES FROM AG BELL

A Grand Anniversary Celebration As you read this publication, we are coming close to the date of September 16. On this day, 125 years ago, in 1890, Dr. Alexander Graham Bell founded the American Association for the Promotion and Teaching of Speech to the Deaf.

In most historical accounts of the life of Dr. Bell, this fact accounts for a mere sentence in describing the life of a man whose life was rich with achievement and exploration of many realms.

Dr. Bell is best known for his most lasting contribution to the field of invention and modern technology, the telephone. However, he eventually came to distance himself from it because it was never Dr. Bell’s great passion. In fact, Dr. Bell described himself not as an inventor or engineer, but, first and foremost, as a teacher of the deaf. This is how he wanted to be remembered.

Dr. Bell was born to a family that was famous for their elocutionary skills—the study of speech and public speaking.

His father, Alexander Melville Bell, published a book called, “The Standard Elocutionist,” which was a great success in its day. He also developed a system of visible speech. Dr. Bell’s mother was deaf, and as a child, he developed a system to communicate with her.

As a young man, Dr. Bell moved to Boston after the family emigrated from Scotland, where he began to teach others the method of visible speech formulated by his father, and he began to tutor children and adults who were deaf. One of these students was 16-year-old Mabel Gardiner Hubbard, who lost her hearing to scarlet fever at age five.

For Dr. Bell, it was love at first sight.

He called her voice “naturally sweet,”

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although she never heard it. Mabel, however, didn’t take an immediate fancy to him. During their speech sessions, she would eventually grow fond of him. Theirs was a love story that would last for more than 45 years.

Mabel was vocal in her support of Dr. Bell’s work on the telephone, as well as his work in the education of people who are deaf.

While spending his days teaching elocution, Dr. Bell worked late into the night in his lab on telephony experiments.

On that momentous day of Feb. 14, 1876, Dr. Bell was the fifth person to file a patent—and the first person to file one that day for the telephone. He became the first person to receive a patent for the telephone and the first to develop a workable device.

Dr. Bell was awarded the Volta Prize by the French government in 1880 for his invention, and used the proceeds to advance his beliefs in listening and spoken language and his true passion for educating people who are deaf and hard of hearing. Funds from the Volta Prize were used to develop the Volta Laboratory in Georgetown where work was done to develop recordable discs and cylinders.

The proceeds of these inventions were later used to finance the construction of the Volta Bureau. Dr. Bell called the groundbreaking of the Volta Bureau on May 8, 1893 one of the happiest days of his life, and he was thrilled that the 13-year-old prodigy Helen Keller was able to participate as she turned the first spade of dirt.

Dr. Bell also began an elementary school that accepted students with and without hearing loss. The students who were deaf attended classes separately, but all students socialized together at recess. In his students, Dr. Bell saw many intellectual gifts. He believed that students with hearing loss should

not be educated separately from other students—an idea that was a dramatic departure from the norm at that time.

Dr. Bell established the association three years later because he believed deeply in the power of listening and spoken language. He believed that people who are deaf and hard of hearing could learn and live in the mainstream.

He believed that they should live lives of abundance and be able to enjoy the benefits that society had to offer. He believed deeply in the abilities and talents of people who are deaf and hard of hearing. And he sought to encourage teachers of the deaf and hard of hearing to help students achieve their potential through developing listening and spoken language.

Over the next three years AG Bell will begin a celebration of the long and rich history of the association, the historic landmark building, and the lives of two very special people—Alexander Graham Bell and his wife Mabel Hubbard Bell.

Without them, our organization would not exist today. Without the immeasurable talents of our board of directors, our staff, our tireless volunteers and our members, our organization would not be what it is today. Later this year, we will begin announcing more information about our plans for the 125th anniversary of our organization, and we invite you to join in a grand anniversary celebration.

Sincerely,

Meredith Sugar, Esq. President info@agbell.org

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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.

Watch how Oticon designs products for safety and durability

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

EDITOR’S NOTE

The Thresholds of Life: Navigating Transitions This issue of Volta Voices addresses one of the most salient and ongoing features in the life of any child and his/her family—namely, the milestone transition points that we all go through and that can have profound consequences for the rest of our life. We are born and for the first few years of life, we cling to our parents’ legs as we slowly develop consciousness as a person, separate from mom and dad. Little by little, the process of individuation and letting go continues with perhaps attending daycare or kindergarten, becoming a first grader, entering middle school, then high school, moving onto post-secondary training and education, and finally becoming an independent adult.

These transitions are by definition stressful and uncertain. They are the metaphorical thresholds we all need to cross on our life journey. If we handle them well and receive the proper support, we can live more gracefully, thrive and provide a contribution to make the world a better place for all of us.

The previous issue served as a guide to parents of newly diagnosed children with hearing loss. This issue picks up from there and starts with one of the first important transitions in life: that of moving from daycare or kindergarten to the formal world of elementary or primary school.

In “Pathway to Success: Managing the Preschool to Elementary School Transition,” Jean Moores-Chadwick and Jenny Galloway write about the Victorian Deaf Education Institute of Australia Transition Program which endeavors

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to build a bridge between the end of early intervention services and the beginning of primary/elementary school, setting the scene for the establishment of strong networks between family, school and local community. The provision of specific school resources and information included in this school transition program helps to inform and guide the family along their transition pathway.

From there, author Krystyann Krywko identifies three areas where students need extra support to help them transition successfully to middle school: social, academic and organizational.

The transition to middle school can be especially challenging because it arrives at a time when children are going through rapid physical, social, emotional and cognitive changes, and when parents begin to let go a little bit and allow their child to have some more independence.

Vocabulary is one of the most important indicators of students' success in school, on standardized tests and in life. Melissa McDonald gives us five steps for introducing new vocabulary and helps us embrace teachable moments to help children with hearing loss learn new words and concepts in their natural environment and practice them frequently.

In the last issue, Donald Goldberg introduced us to the audiogram, the hearing testing process, and types and degrees of hearing loss. In this issue, he takes us on a tour to look at additional testing in the category of speech audiometry.

In this issue’s “Hear Our Voices,” Nick Stone uses the Parable of the Flood to offer us some great advice on how to take advantage of life’s opportunities and challenges and transition successfully into adulthood. Whether it’s active listening, practicing self-advocacy, advocating for others or achieving a goal, we each

have the ability to succeed as long as we continue to take advantage of the opportunities around us by having the will to act.

Our “Focus on Chapters” profiles the New Jersey chapter of AG Bell. Sue Schmidberger, president of the chapter, writes about one of the chapter's most successful endeavors—its partnership with the New Jersey Bergen County Special Services School District Program for the Hearing Impaired and C.H.A.T.S. (Conversation – Hearing Loss – Advocacy – Teen – Social). This symbiotic relationship garnered the Special Activity or Program Chapter Award at the 2014 AG Bell Convention.

Finally, in “AG Bell Website at Your Fingertips,” we provide you with online content suggestions from the AG Bell website that can assist parents and professionals to ensure students' success in school and beyond.

Thank you, as always, for reading.

Remember to check out the Back to School Volta Voices archive at www.agbell.org/BacktoSchool.

Kind Regards,

Anna Karkovska, M.A. Editor, Volta Voices editor@agbell.org

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©2013 Cochlear Limited. All rights reserved. Hear Now. And Always and other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of Cochlear Limited.

THEY SAID NOTHING COULD BE DONE ABOUT HEARING LOSS. GOOD THING HE DIDN’T LISTEN. What drove Dr. Graeme Clark to invent the first multi-channel cochlear implant over 30 years ago?

What kept him going when others called him crazy and sometimes worse? His father was profoundly deaf and growing up, all he wanted was to find some way to help. His invention came too late for his dad, but for the hundreds of thousands of people whose lives he helped change, it’s been nothing short of a miracle. Let there be sound.

Today they can hear because one man chose not to listen. Read their stories at Cochlear.com/US/Hear.

Or to connect with a Cochlear Concierge call 800-483-3123 or email Concierge@Cochlear.com.

VOICES CONTRIBUTORS Donald M. Goldberg, Ph.D., CCC-SLP/A, FAAA, LSLS Cert. AVT, is a Full Professor in the Department of Communication at the College of Wooster in Ohio and a Consultant, Professional Staff, for the Hearing Implant Program at the Cleveland Clinic’s Head and Neck Institute. He has been a university/college professor, the co-director of one of the largest cochlear implant centers in the United States, and is the former executive director of the Helen Beebe Speech and Hearing Center in Easton. Goldberg is the co-author of Educational Audiology for the Limited-Hearing Infant and Preschooler: An Auditory-Verbal Program (Pollack, Goldberg, & CaleffeSchenck, 1997). He has written several book chapters, published numerous research-based and clinical publications, and has been a presenter throughout the United States and Canada, along with speaking opportunities in 13 other countries in Europe, Asia and Australia, including New Zealand.

Jenny Galloway is a teacher of the deaf with many years experience in a range of schools and educational settings, encompassing all age levels and abilities, both within Australia and the United Kingdom. These have included working in mainstream schools with a deaf facility/unit, working as a visiting/peripatetic teacher of the deaf, and working in early intervention. During 2012-2014, she worked on a project “Transition to Primary School” in collaboration with the Victorian Deaf Education Institute (VDEI) and the Australian Department of Education and Training, both located in Melbourne, Australia. Galloway is currently working for Aurora School in its early intervention program in Melbourne, Australia.

Krystyann Krywko, Ed.D., is an award-winning education writer and researcher, specializing in hearing loss and how it affects children and families. Both she and VO LTA VO I CE S J U L-S EP 201 5

her son were diagnosed with hearing loss one year apart. She loves to engage with parents and educators in order to dispel misunderstandings about hearing loss and to focus on the strengths of children who are deaf and hard of hearing. She is the founder of Kids with Hearing Loss (www. kidswithhearingloss.org)—an initiative to provide families a place from where they can move forward with strength.

Melissa McDonald, M.Ed., LSLS Cert. AVT, is an elementary teacher in the deaf and hard of hearing program in the Cobb County School District in the state of Georgia. She has an undergraduate degree in Early Childhood Education and a master’s degree in Education for the Deaf/Hard of Hearing. McDonald also completed the First Years program through University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received a certificate in Auditory Learning. She is a past president of the Georgia chapter of AG Bell. McDonald currently resides in Smyrna, Georgia with her husband and their two daughters. She can be reached at melissa.mcdonald@cobbk12.org.

Jean Moores-Chadwick is a teacher of the deaf and has held several roles in deaf education in communitybased, government and private organisations, including working as a classroom teacher, creative movement and music teacher, a speech and language teacher, and an early intervention coordinator. During 2012-2014, she worked on a project “Transition to Primary School” in collaboration with the Victorian Deaf Education Institute (VDEI) and the Australian Department of Education and Training, both located in Melbourne, Australia. Moores-Chadwick is currently working as the team leader at St. Mary’s College for Hearing Impaired Students in Melbourne, Australia.

Nick Stone was born with LVAS (Large Vestibular Aqueduct Syndrome) and has used hearing aids since age 3. He grew up in Portland, Oregon where he participated annually in cross country, swim team and tennis at Grant High School. During his senior year of high school Stone was a member of the Grant Constitution Team, which was one of the top 10 teams in the nation that year. After high school, Stone attended Tulane University in New Orleans where he double majored in Political Economy and Political Science, minored in Spanish, studied abroad in Cuba, interned in Washington, D.C. with Congressman Earl Blumenauer, and took a course with political strategist James Carville. He is currently living in Portland and is planning on attending law school in the fall.

Susan V. Schmidberger is the parent of 21-year-old Paige, a college student majoring in Communication Sciences and Disorders who received her first cochlear implant at age 3 1/2 and her second implant at age 18.

Schmidberger serves as the president of the New Jersey chapter of AG Bell and is AG Bell’s national chapter advisor. In 1997, she founded a support group for parents of children with hearing loss at Long Island Jewish Hospital that still meets every month.

She has also served as a member of the parent advisory group for the Bergen County Special Services District. Currently, she helps with events for Clarke New York, works on the New Jersey Walk4Hearing committee and serves on the State of New Jersey Division of Deaf and Hard of Hearing Advisory Council. She has also taken on the role of the New Jersey parent representative for a federal program, pepnet2, to help improve the postsecondary outcomes for individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing.

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NEWS BITES AG Bell Board Welcomes New Members AG Bell is excited to announce that our association has recently chosen three new elected and appointed members who joined our board of directors in July! They will be contributing diverse strengths and talents as well as a rich background and connection to our mission.

Ivette Cejas, Ph.D., is currently the director of the Barton G. Kids Hear Now Cochlear Implant Family Resource Center in Miami, Florida, as well as an assistant professor at the University of Miami Ear Institute. She comes to our field from the vantage point of psychology, earning her master's and doctoral degrees in the field while enhancing our knowledge to promote language and academic success in children with cochlear implants and guiding families through the process of cochlear implantation.

A descendent of Dr. Alexander Graham Bell, Sara Grosvenor is dedicated to preserving and promoting his contributions and achievements as the founder of the Alexander and Mabel Bell Legacy Foundation where she serves as president. This charitable and educational organization celebrates the lives of Dr. Bell and the love of his life, Mabel Gardiner Hubbard Bell. She has worked to safeguard the Bells' possessions so that future generations can learn from them, and to provide grants that honor and further Dr. Bell's scientific and humanitarian causes.

Robert Bush, CPCU, CPIA, is an insurance executive and consultant who has contributed his leadership talents to the field of listening and spoken language in many capacities.

When his son Robert was born with severe hearing loss, he sought services at the renowned Helen Beebe Speech and Hearing Center then located in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, under the direction of the legendary Helen Beebe. He brings a depth of financial and business expertise to AG Bell, having served as an upper-level executive for Paul Hertel & Co. as well as Beneficial Bank of Philadelphia.

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AG Bell Member Receives Highest Presidential Honor President Obama recently named 14 individuals and one organization as the newest recipients of the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, photo courtesy of johns hopkins university and Engineering Mentoring (PAESMEM). This is the highest honor bestowed by the United States government for outstanding efforts in science, engineering and mathematics mentoring.

Among the recipients is Tilak Ratnanather, D.Phil., a longtime member and volunteer of AG Bell. He primarily works as an associate research professor at Johns Hopkins University’s Department of Biomedical Engineering. He is the chair of the AG Bell Research Symposium, held biennially as part of the AG Bell Convention.

Ratnanather has devoted himself to recruiting and mentoring an unprecedented number of individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing in the United States and abroad into science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields.

"My students are benefiting from my experiences as a deaf person and thus do not have any additional worries associated with their hearing loss. They have rewarded me and others by graduating with honors, getting doctorate degrees, doing postdoctoral work, completing medical school, and becoming professors," said Ratnanather.

He has a simple yet powerful objective for his mentoring programs: to provide opportunity in STEM for people with hearing loss who may not have otherwise been exposed to STEM. He achieves this objective through extensive and involved networking, allowing his protégés to serve as mentors in turn. Ratnanather's motivation to recruit and retain individuals with hearing loss in STEM is built on the certainty that these individuals can contribute a unique perspective in STEM. Ratnanather’s achievements were honored and celebrated at a special reception jointly organized by AG Bell and the Johns Hopkins Listening Center during the 2015 AG Bell Listening and Spoken Language Symposium in Baltimore in July.

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COMPILED BY: ANNA KARKOVSKA, M.A.

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In Memoriam: Stephen Epstein Stephen Epstein, M.D., passed away on May 27, 2015. Steve made many invaluable contributions to the field in many leadership capacities, as an advocate for early hearing detection and intervention, through service to the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and especially for the high-level treatment he provided to thousands of children and adults who are deaf and hard of hearing that he has cared for as an ENT physician.

Epstein served as president of the association from 1998-2000. He received the AG Bell Honors of the Association in 1994, one of the association's highest honors for those with outstanding service to people with hearing loss. On his retirement in 2013, the AG Bell Board of Directors passed a resolution to honor Epstein for his contributions during a career that spanned more than 43 years.

AG Bell Past President Donald M. Goldberg, Ph.D., CCC-SLP/A, FAAA, LSLS Cert. AVT, noted Epstein's tremendous contributions to the field. "For any family whose infant was detected with hearing loss as a newborn—do know that it was Steve Epstein and other pioneers on the Joint Committee on Infant Hearing who made Universal Newborn Hearing Screening a reality in the United States."

AG Bell Receives Two 2015 Communicator Awards The Volta Voices article "My Story, My Song" by Jeanette C. Hachmeister, M.E.D., LSLS Cert. AVEd, is a 2015 Communicator Award winner in the Print Feature Writing category! The article, which appeared in the Jul/Aug 2014 issue of Volta Voices, was selected by the Academy of Interactive & Visual Arts (AIVA) for a Gold Communicator Award (Award of Excellence). In a stunning first, the AG Bell 2013 Annual Report also won a Communicator Award, receiving a Silver Award of Distinction in the Association Annual Report category!

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AIVA is an invitation-only group consisting of top-tier professionals from acclaimed media, communications, advertising, creative and marketing firms. The Communicator Awards is the leading international awards program recognizing big ideas in marketing and communications. Founded two decades ago, The Communicator Awards receives over 6,000 entries from companies and agencies of all sizes, making it one of the largest awards of its kind in the world.

Volta Voices Receives Prestigious Award The Volta Voices magazine is the 2015 Excel Award winner in the Magazine Single Topic Issue category, which honors best focus on a single issue theme, featuring solid progression of ideas, thorough research and well-balanced copy. The award was given to the November/December 2014 issue, which focused on the psychosocial aspects of hearing loss such as self-concept, identity and self-esteem. The Excel Awards is the largest and most prestigious award program that exclusively recognizes excellence and leadership in nonprofit association media, publishing, marketing and communications. The Excel Awards are managed

by Association Media & Publishing (AM&P), the premier membership organization serving the needs of association publishers, business operation executives, communications professionals, designers and content generators and the media they create.

The Volta Review Now Online!

AG Bell's The Volta Review journal is now available online via one of the leading journal digital platforms IngentaConnect!

The Spring/Summer issue, volume 115, issue 1, is now published and available at agbell.publisher.ingentaconnect. com/content/agbell/vr. Going forward, articles will be published as they become available. Complete issues will be available online twice (2 times) each year at the end of May and November. Everyone can continue to access back issues of the journal dating back to 2006 as .PDFs at www.agbell. org/TVR-Archives. To learn more and activate your access to the journal, go to www.agbell.org/VoltaReviewOnline.

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Pathway to Success:

Managing the Preschool

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to Elementary School

By Jean Moores-Chadwick and Jenny Galloway

Transitioning to elementary or primary school from preschool is an important and exciting step for children with hearing loss and their families, but also a time of potential challenge and stress. It involves negotiating and adjusting to a number of changes that may include the physical environment, learning expectations, rules and routines, social status and identity, and relationships for children and families (Kidsmatter, 2008). Entering school from a preschool or day care setting requires careful planning, preparation and communication that leads to a shared understanding of each student (Brereton & Bull, 2010).

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Parent Input Research suggests that transition to school is smoother when parents and caregivers are actively involved (Gill, Winters, & Friedman, 2006). When families and schools work together during transitions, it is particularly beneficial for children experiencing social and emotional difficulties, as it can help to identify additional support such as parent and caregiver support groups (Stormont, Beckner, Mitchell, & Richter, 2005). Furthermore, when the views and knowledge of parents and caregivers about their child are valued and incorporated into transition practices, it can assist parents/caregivers and school staff to get to know each other and support the school’s understanding of a child’s prior experiences, strengths and needs (Pianta & Kraft-Sayre, 2003).

Successful transitions to school may result in children who like school, look forward to attending regularly and show steady growth in academic and social skills. Successful transitions are also more likely to lead to families being actively involved in their children’s education and in teachers and families valuing each other (Ramey & Ramey, 1994).

VDEI’s Transition Program The Victorian Deaf Education Institute of Australia (VDEI) developed a transition program, which aims to offer support and guidance to the family, the child who is deaf or hard of hearing and the school, helping to create an environment that encourages and builds connections between the family, school and local community. This transition program endeavors to build a bridge between the end of early intervention services and the beginning of primary/elementary school, setting the scene for the establishment of strong networks between family, school and local community.

The provision of specific school resources and information included in this school transition program helps to inform and guide the family along their transition pathway.

The VDEI school transition program recommends that a dedicated transition meeting be held at the receiving school attended by the classroom teacher, school principal, early education/intervention worker, specialist visiting/itinerant teacher, the family and child, and any other appropriate professionals (e.g. Listening and Spoken Language Specialist, speech-language pathologist, etc.). This meeting is best held in the term prior to the child commencing school and is founded on a strength-based approach, encouraging parents/caregivers to share their knowledge about their child’s experiences, strengths and needs, and identify strategies to develop appropriate advocacy skills. The meeting cultivates an environment for a positive transition experience.

During the meeting, VDEI staff share and provide everyone on the child’s team—family, early intervention and school staff, itinerant teachers and other professionals—with a transition to primary/elementary school resource kit. The materials in the kit are available at no cost on the Victorian Deaf Education Institute website: www.deafeducation.vic.edu.au.

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Transition to Primary/Elementary School Kit Resources

• Possible Timeline for School Transition and Blank Timeline for School Transition This document gives a visual plan of the child’s transition to school and can be used as a reference tool noting each step in the transition process and when it could occur.

• School Checklist The School Checklist is for families to use as a reference tool and provides careful points to consider when visiting potential schools for their child.

• Transitioning Student Details The Transitioning Student Details document is best completed by the family before they attend the Transition Meeting.

• Student Snapshot The Student Snapshot is a document that can be completed by the child with his/her family’s assistance.

• Student Support Group Meeting (SSG)/ Parent Support Group Meeting/IEP Meeting This document can be modified to suit the individual student’s needs more specifically if required.

• About Me Booklet/Template This handout can be used by families or in conjunction with early education/intervention workers to create a book about their child to share with the classroom teacher at the new school.

• Top Ten Transition Tips for Teachers This document gives some handy hints for teachers who are working in the classroom with a student who is deaf or hard of hearing.

• Top Ten Transition Tips for Families The top ten transition tips for families gives a range of suggestions to families to implement before their child commences school.

• Blue Bear Gets Ready for School This story book is presented as a “flapbook” giving the reader the opportunity to discover the story unfolding with each turn of the page.

• Blue Bear Goes to School This resource is an app and follows on from the initial story of Blue Bear Gets Ready for School.

In addition to the resource kit, the program includes a professional development resource which offers strategies to classroom teachers.

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Working in partnership and developing positive relationships between and among a range of stakeholders, including children, parents and caregivers, early childhood services, school staff and the wider community, provides a strong foundation for a successful transition to elementary/primary school. These early partnerships help the family and the child to foster a sense of belonging and connectedness to the school community.

Importantly, the transition to school should not be viewed as a point-in-time event, but as a pathway that commences well before school begins and continues into the first years of school.

Children’s long-term success in school derives from their learning experiences before school and the ongoing learning environment in the early school years (Rosier & McDonald, 2011).

REFERENCES Brereton, A., & Bull, K. (2010). Autism spectrum disorders: Planning successful transitions. Melbourne, Australia: Department of Education and Early Childhood Development.

Gill, S., Winters, D., & Friedman, D. S. (2006). Educators’ views of pre-kindergarten and kindergarten readiness and transition practices. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 7(3), 213-227. http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2006.7.3.213 Kidsmatter (2008). Starting school. Retrieved from www.kidsmatter.edu.au Pianta, R. C., & Kraft-Sayre, M. (2003). Successful kindergarten transition: Your guide to connecting children, families, and schools. Baltimore, Maryland: Paul H. Brookes.

Stormont, M., Beckner, R., Mitchell, B., & Richter, M. (2005). Supporting successful transition to kindergarten: General challenges and specific implications for students with problem behaviour. Psychology in the Schools, I, 765-778.

Ramey, S. L., & Ramey, C. T. (1994). The transition to school: Why the first few years matter for a lifetime. Phi Delta Kappa, 76(3), 194-198.

Rosier, K., & McDonald, M. (2011). Promoting positive education and care transitions for children. Melbourne, Australia: Australian Institute of Family Studies.

To access this article online as well as other helpful resources, visit www.agbell.org/VoltaVoices/Jul-Sep2015/PreschooltoElementary

Acknowledgement This project was completed at the Victorian Deaf Education Institute, which is part of the Department of Education and Training, Victoria, Australia. Funding for this project was provided by the More Support for Students with Disabilities National Partnership Program.

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Helping Your Child Make A Smooth Transition

By Krystyann Krywko, Ed. D.

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iddle school has a bad reputation. If you browse the young adult section at your local bookstore or library, you will see titles such as Middle School is Worse Than Meatloaf: A Year Told Through Stuff by Jennifer L. Holm, Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life by James Patterson, and The Diary of a Wimpy Kid by Jeff Kenney, among others. These books make it sound like middle school is a frightening battlefield that few children have any chance of surviving.

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The reality is that middle school arrives at a time when your child is going through rapid physical, social, emotional and cognitive changes. For many children it means they are leaving their cozy elementary school environment and heading to a larger middle school that is often comprised of two or more elementary schools coming together. Homework and academic demands increase. Extracurricular activities also become more serious as club/travel teams and school sports begin to fill the picture. Children become more self-aware and self-conscious and they just want to fit in. Middle school is also a time when parents begin to let go a little bit and allow their child to have some more independence.

Research findings suggest at least a moderate level of concern by most fifth graders and their parents regarding various issues associated with middle school transitions. These concerns ranged from anxiety about how they were going to open their lockers to how they would deal with older students (Bailey, Giles, & Rogers, 2015).

Based on this research, Bailey and colleagues (2015) identified three separate areas where students needed extra support to help transition successfully to middle school: social, academic and organizational.

THE MIDDLE SCHOOL SOCIAL SCENE The middle school social scene can be overwhelming. Many school transition programs focus primarily on academic and procedural issues that are associated with navigating middle school, but it is often the social piece that increases anxiety in most students.

Some of the biggest concerns come from shifting social groups. As your child and his/her friends change, so do their social groups. Cliques can form easily, and the friendships that your child had in elementary school can change due to different interests and the needs of each child involved. Your child might find it overwhelming at times as he/she tries to manage old friendships, and also find room for new friends. Talk to your child about his/her changing friendships. Let them know it is normal for friends to come and go in their life. Just make sure that there are still some other children that he/she feels a connection with.

“In reality, our daughter transitioned pretty well,” recalls Janet DesGeorges, mother of Sara, who is now 23 years old and wears bilateral hearing aids, “but her social life did experience a shift. At first, she was not as confident in her ability to selfadvocate, and she didn’t really 'put herself out there' socially in new situations. It took her some time to feel comfortable in approaching her teachers with her needs, as well as meeting new friends.”

Keeping that in mind, it’s important for young adolescents to sense they belong to a group in which they feel valued and useful (Jackson & Davis, 2000). “One way to help your child find a group is to encourage them to sign up for at least one team

"Emotional intelligence includes developing coping strategies, learning how to acquire and use information, work with others, and manage personal growth."

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or club,” says Dana Selznick, an itinerant teacher of the deaf in New York City. “Most middle schools have a variety of clubs based around different interests, and they tend to meet in smaller groups so communication is easier.”

THE NOISE FACTOR

A great deal of middle school socializing takes place in common areas—the hallways and the cafeteria become places where plans are made, homework is discussed and laughs are shared. This can be difficult for students with hearing loss simply because of the larger space, increased noise and fast-paced conversation.

“Places like the hallway and the cafeteria are some of the most overwhelming places for students with hearing loss,” says Suzanne Raschke, teacher consultant for deaf and hard of hearing students in Midland County, Michigan. “There are typically more students, larger hallways and more commotion, so it can be difficult for students to socialize, locate their next class, and pass off an FM transmitter without anyone noticing.”

One way to help your child thrive during these unstructured times is to have them connect to a buddy that can help them in the hallway who will be able to repeat information they missed in the hallway or during lunch. “Sometimes I miss what my friends are going to do after lunch,” says Henry, an eighth grade student, “so my friend Ben makes sure that I know where they decide to play at recess so I can meet them.”

BECOMING A SKILLED NAVIGATOR

One way to help your child be successful at dealing with “transition trauma” is to work on emotional intelligence.

Emotional intelligence can be nurtured, and you are most likely already helping your child to develop these skills at home.

Emotional intelligence includes developing coping strategies, learning how to acquire and use information, work with others, and manage personal growth. Students with greater emotional intelligence skills are able to cope and adapt more easily, resulting in stronger abilities to succeed both academically and socially (Richardson, 2002).

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“Our daughter had grown up with a lot of the same kids year to year, and we felt like we had a handle on her educational needs,” says DesGeorges, “but she describes her entry to middle school as the first time she really faced other students who didn't know her, and thought of her as ‘different,’ leading to her own need to grow in her self-identity and confidence.”

ADJUSTING TO ACADEMIC CHALLENGES Along with a changing social scene comes an entirely new set of expectations in the classroom. Students need to develop relationships and decode what the classroom expectations are with numerous teachers. They are also expected to take responsibility for their own learning as classes are academically more rigorous and focus on performance rather than on tasks.

REASSESS FOR SUCCESS

Your child’s Individualized Education Program (IEP) or 504 plan will follow them to middle school, but it is important to really think through what your child will need prior to them leaving elementary school. Your child’s needs will most likely change once they hit middle school and there is a possibility that the therapeutic gap may widen due to a more complex curricula or increased demand for skills such as more flexible thinking, greater working memory, and the need to plan and prioritize school work.

“The transition meeting is one of the most important meetings that your child will have,” says Raschke. “It’s really about taking the time to figure out what accommodations your child will need in the classroom. And in some cases even to overthink their needs just to make sure that no gaps arise in services and that the schools and teachers are prepared.”

WHO’S IN CHARGE?

Along with increased independence come increased responsibilities. No matter how skilled of an advocate you have become for your child, middle school is the time when your child needs to begin to advocate for his/herself.

At this age your child should know what his/her IEP goals are and should be in attendance at the IEP transition meeting.

That way they can begin to own their IEP goals and to

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understand why certain supports are needed. “Kids always think they know what they need and are fine without the supports,” says Kristina English, Ph.D., professor of speech-language pathology and audiology at the University of Akron, “but there is a need to talk through concerns and your child at this age is able to have some more adult conversations about their needs.”

“I think the most important thing for me as Sara's mom,” says DesGeorges, “was to really listen to what Sara was saying about her accessibility—whether I really agreed with it or not, and then to respect her right to make decisions. Of course, we had some conditions on those decisions, such as if she didn’t want to use the FM we would respect that decision as long as her grades didn’t fall, but once that happened then we revisited her needs.”

FILLING IN THE BLANKS ABOUT YOUR NEEDS

Meeting with the new team of teachers is also important, and the earlier your child is able to do this the better. Nicole Turano, mother to Sam, a 14-year-old who wears bilateral cochlear implants, said that “Sam tells them things from his perspective, what’s helpful for him and what they need to know. This really helps to demystify what kids with hearing loss are like and that not all kids with hearing loss are the same.”

Another way to have your child become more responsible for his/her needs is to have him/her write a letter or put together a presentation for the new middle school staff before the start of the year. “I have my transitioning students write the information they feel is important for their new teachers to know,” says Raschke, “what helps them access the curriculum and what their needs are. I really feel they are ready to transition when they are confident in their self-knowledge and self-advocacy.”

CLASSROOM COMMUNICATION

Even though parents are encouraged to be more hands-off in middle school, you know your child’s unique challenges, and it is important to keep that in mind when communicating with classroom teachers. Take the time to meet with the teaching team early in the year. It’s important to know all your child’s teachers, not only their homeroom teacher. This way when you have concerns about your child you can give the appropriate teacher a heads up.

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“There is stuff you can prepare for and then there is the stuff that you just need to figure out on the fly,” says Turano. “But one thing I always do, because my son has so many teachers, is that I put together a two-page rundown about his IEP and his needs. I add my own comments about what the goals and accommodations mean, and Sam adds some ideas about what helps him to be more successful in the classroom.”

A NEW LEVEL OF ORGANIZATION When you think of all the new things your child has to deal with—juggling classrooms, subject materials and different teacher personalities, following rules, navigating around a new building, figuring out new procedures, and learning how to open and use a locker—it’s no wonder students can become overwhelmed.

One of the best things to do with your child before they transition to middle school is to have lots of discussions about how he/she is going to make the transition and to begin working on how to come up with a strategy.

Most schools have visits for the new students so they are able to see the building layout where their classes might be, where their lockers are, etc. Having an idea of the physical space of the school is important to coming up with a strategy and also can help reduce anxiety as your child is able to get a better sense of what they need to do and where they need to go.

DESIGNATE A BASE CAMP

Your child will be moving between classes so it is important to establish some sort of a base camp where the FM, extra batteries, and someone who knows how to troubleshoot will be located. It can also be helpful to have someone in the building who your child can go to when he/she is overwhelmed with noise in the cafeteria, or is worn out from listening.

“After a couple of weeks of having the FM be in the wrong classroom for my son, we finally decided to keep it in the nurse’s office,” says Turano, “it’s located right by the front door, so it’s the first place he passes in the morning and the last place on the way out.”

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THE GREAT FM HAND-OFF

Having multiple teachers means that there are multiple handoffs of the FM transmitter. This can be one of the most anxiety producing parts of transitioning to middle school. Some students are completely comfortable with carrying the transmitter out in the open and don’t make a big deal of passing it to the teacher.

Others feel embarrassed and clip it to the cover of their binder and pass it to the teacher when no one is looking. Talk to your child about what his/her comfort level might be and help him/ her make a plan. Communicate the plan to all of your child’s teachers so they know what to expect and can support your child’s decisions.

DEVICE REJECTION

Device rejection is common in this age group, it’s just part of the characteristics of not wanting to stand out. Children don’t want to be different from their peers. “I always tell my students that they can’t make the decision not to use the FM until they are able to have a conversation with me that uses data on how they can perform both with the FM and without,” Raschke said.

“They need to show me things like the grades they received using the FM and when they didn’t, or how they are interacting and accessing classroom learning with and without their FM before that is even an option.”

The transition to middle school can be difficult, but it doesn’t have to be. When you take the time to prepare your child the transition should be a natural next step for him/her. Part of making the transition to middle school is understanding that while your child can’t control his/her diagnosis, he/she can “grow” the courage to live with it. And it does take courage to be the one to walk into a new room and hand the teacher the FM system, or to ask another student for help taking notes, but that’s what needs to be done.

“The middle school transition is really about beginning to relinquish some control as a parent,” says DesGeorges, “but it’s also about keeping your integrity as a parent and keeping your child on the right path in the classroom and with their friends.”

SPEECH-TO-TEXT SERVICES IN MIDDLE SCHOOL Speech-to-text services are an additional accommodation that can help improve communication access in the classroom. Middle school classrooms are often more focused on classroom conversations and discussions, and can be difficult for some children to follow.

Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) provides a word-for-word (verbatim) translation. Services such as C-Print and TypeWell provide a meaning-to-meaning translation, similar to a summary of what the speaker is saying.

Both services can be provided either on location, where the transcriber sits close to the student, or remotely. As the transcriber types, the text can either be shown on a screen for the entire class, or on an individual student’s computer monitor or tablet.

“I have had a few middle school kids get CART but not often,” says Jane Madell, Ph.D., a pediatric audiologist in New York City. “I find more high school student typically apply for this. But, if reading levels are good, I think it is a great thing to recommend.”

REFERENCES: Bailey, G., Giles, R., & Rogers, S. (2015). An investigation of the concerns of fifth graders transitioning to middle school. Research in Middle Level Education, 38(5), 1-12.

Jackson, A., & Davis, G. (2000). Turning Points 2000: Educating adolescents in the 21st century. New York, NY: Teachers College Press.

Richardson, T. (2002). The importance of emotional intelligence during transition into middle school. Middle School Journal, 33(3), 55-58.

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Isn't this shade of red so vibrant?

This is the title of this article.

VOCABULARY LEARNING

A LIFELONG ADVENTURE

BY MELISSA MCDONALD, M.Ed., LSLS Cert. AVT

Melissa McDonald is the name of the author.

She wrote this article.

This number indicates where this article is located within the magazine.

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This is a website link.

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This is a dropcap.

ocabulary is one of the most important indicators of students' success in school, on standardized tests and in life. The knowledge that students possess about a topic is based on the vocabulary of that information (Marzano & Pickering, 2005). Research has shown that the receptive vocabulary of children who are deaf and hard of hearing lags behind that of their age-matched peers with typical hearing (Pittman, Lewis, Hoover, & Stelmachowicz, 2005). Early identification and early intervention services have helped to close this gap (Yoshinaga-Itano, 2003), but the gap remains.

Furthermore, new words and definitions are frequently added to our vernacular. Merriam-Webster.com estimated that about 150 words were added to its dictionary in 2014 (Merriam-Webster, 2014). The Oxford English Dictionary is updated four times a year to add new words, sub-entries and senses (Oxford English Dictionary, 2015). Examples of words added in the past 5 years include selfie, unfriend, hater, jeggings, binge-watch, cray and crowdfunding. At first glance, these newly recognized words might seem less important.

However, these are the words that are being used so often by the general population that they have met the requirements to be added to the dictionary.

Research also suggests that every literate person has a vocabulary consisting of three levels or tiers (Beck, McKeown, & Kucan, 2002).

• T ier 1 is comprised of basic words that do not have multiple meanings. Examples of Tier 1 words are dog, orange, sad, and baby.

• T ier 2 words are high-frequency words that are descriptive, have multiple meanings, and are essential for reading comprehension. Examples of Tier 2 words are analyze, disagree, estimate, and benevolent.

• T ier 3 words are low-frequency words that are contextspecific. These words are essential to building knowledge and understanding in various academic areas. Examples of Tier 3 words include apostrophe, fairy tale, idiom, and economics.

Words in Tier 2 and Tier 3 can be especially challenging for children with a hearing loss. The good news is that semantic skills—the capacity to add vocabulary—remains with us for life (Denworth, 2015).

1. Introduce and highlight the new word in context.

“Oh wow! Look. I see a convertible. See it.”

2. Describe and explain what it is or does and point out an example of it, if possible.

“A convertible is a car that does NOT have a top.”

3. Elaborate and use the new word in context again.

“That convertible is red with a white stripe.”

4. Ask your child to do something with the word.

“Let’s look for more convertibles.”

5. Label different examples of the word.

“Yes. You are right. That is a blue convertible.”

Five Steps for Introducing New Vocabulary There are numerous opportunities each day that can be used to work on vocabulary. By embracing teachable moments, children can learn new words and concepts in their natural environment and practice them frequently. One way to introduce new words is by using these five steps:

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These are columns.

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Use the Everyday

Trip to the Grocery Store Now let’s focus on the task of grocery shopping, for example. Instead of doing everything yourself, include your child in the process. Tell them that you need to go to the store to get food, but you need their help. Put them to work by asking for their assistance.

Ask them to help you figure out what to write on the list. If they are able, have them write the list or type it into your phone. It might sound something like this:

Bananas Milk Eg gs

“Oh no. That was the last banana. We need to go to the grocery store. Let’s make a list of what we need. Please write down bananas. Go see how many juice boxes are in the pantry. Is the milk jug full or empty? I see an egg carton in the trash. Do you think we need eggs?”

Continue to include them once you get to the store. Try to avoid yes/no questions as much as possible. Use questions where you offer some choices or open-ended questions. These types of questions help keep the conversation going. When making selections, describe your thought process and bring your child into the discussion. You could even “assign” some items from the grocery list to be their responsibility to find while at the store.

An example could sound like this: “Do you think we need a basket or a shopping cart? Let’s find the bananas first. Do you remember where they are? These bananas are a little green but these are turning brown. I don’t like brown bananas because they are old and mushy. The green bananas aren’t ready to eat because they haven’t ripened yet, but I think they are close. Which bananas do you think we should get? Don’t forget to be looking for the items on your list. We are in the produce section. Is there anything on your list that might be here with the fruits and vegetables? We need to get one more healthy snack for this week. What would you like?”

Once you have successfully purchased your groceries, let your child know how much you appreciated their help. You could even ask them to tell you about their favorite part of the trip. When unloading the groceries, continue the conversation by describing your thought process, using vivid descriptions and asking questions that will allow your child to think through the answer.

Finally, have you child tell someone about their trip to the store.

This exchange might sound like this:

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“Thanks for your assistance today. I really liked how you helped me find everything on our grocery list. What was your favorite part about going to the store? I’m so happy that you enjoyed picking out a healthy snack for this week. It’s time to unload the groceries. This bag is too heavy for you to carry because it has the milk, bananas and yogurt. Let’s find a light bag for you.

You can carry the bag that has the bread in it. Please be careful and don’t squish the bread. Where should we put the milk and yogurt? Do you think they go in the pantry or the refrigerator?

Now that we are done, let’s go tell someone about our trip to the store. Who do you want to tell?”

Discover Synonyms A simple way to work on vocabulary is to purposely use synonyms in everyday conversations. If your child already knows the words “big” and “small,” make a point of using more complex words like huge, massive, ginormous, tiny, minute or microscopic that show shades of meaning. Challenge yourself to think of synonyms that better explain the world around you. Children who are deaf and hard of hearing will benefit from exposure to new and different ways to describe their world. For example, “Ugh. Something stinks. What is that awful smell? Oh no…it’s the trash. This is disgusting. We have to get this foul smell out of the house because it is nauseating!”

There are numerous names for the colors we see every day.

Can he/she get a mental picture of some of the more popular colors like turquoise, chartreuse, fuchsia, or neon green? Does your child know the difference between magenta and teal? Does he/she have a favorite shade of blue? “I know you want to paint your room blue, but what shade? Do you like darker blues like navy or royal blue? Or would you like something lighter like sky blue or robin’s egg blue?”

turquoise fuchsia blue chartreuse

royal blue

Household Chores Even mundane tasks around the house, like cleaning the kitchen, can become language-rich activities. While unloading the dishwasher, you could name the dishes (saucer, dinner plate, platter, bowl, etc.) and utensils (spoon, fork, knife, spatula, whisk, etc.). Discuss where the clean dishes and utensils need to go (in the top or bottom cabinet, in the drawer by the fridge, beside the coffee maker, etc.). When it’s time to load the dirty dishes, discuss where it goes and why (“this plastic bowl has to go on the top shelf because it will melt if we put it on the bottom shelf”).

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There is another opportunity to practice the names of the dishes and utensils when loading the dishwasher. “Could you put the ladle in next?” Use words such as filthy, crusty, disgusting, smelly, gross, and slimy to describe the dirty dishes.

Is the dishwasher full and ready to start or is there room for more dishes and utensils? Talk about the soap that is used in the dishwasher and how it is different from the soap used when washing dishes in the sink. What do the different buttons on the dishwasher do? Where is the start button? There are various

on/off butt on

light/medium/heavy wash butt on

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vocabulary words that you can target, and you can tailor the vocabulary to what’s appropriate for your child.

All children regardless of hearing status can benefit from enriching their vocabulary in order to not only succeed in school but to live and experience life in all its colors, nuances and subtleties. New words are constantly being added to the English language. As parents, teachers and professionals, we need to be intentional about the words we use so that children can attain a broad and diverse vocabulary.

To access this article online and to download lesson plans which show vocabulary building in action, go to www.agbell.org/ VoltaVoices/Jul-Sep2015/Vocabulary REFERENCES: Beck, I. L., McKeown, M. G., & Kucan, L. (2002). Bringing words to life: Robust vocabulary instruction. New York: Guilford Press.

Denworth, L. (2015). Ears are just the beginning. Volta Voices, 22(1), 10-14.

Marzano, R. R., & Pickering, D. J. (2005). Building academic vocabulary: Teacher’s manual. Alexandria, VA: ASCD. Merriam-Webster (2014). A sample of new dictionary words for 2014. Retrieved from http://www.merriam-webster.com/new-words/2014-update.htm Oxford English Dictionary (2015). Recent updates to the OED. Retrieved from http://public.oed.com/the-oed-today/recent-updates-to-the-oed/ Pittman, A. L., Lewis, D. E., Hoover, B. M., & Stelmachowicz, P. G. (2005). Rapid word-learning in normal-hearing and hearing-impaired children: Effects of age, receptive vocabulary, and high-frequency amplification. Ear and Hearing, 26(6), 619–629.

Yoshinaga-Itano, C. (2003). From screening to early identification and intervention: discovering predictors to successful outcomes for children with significant hearing loss.

Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education, 8(1), 11-30.

Let's visit this link!

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Speech Audiometry Testing: A Guide for Parents and Teachers

By Donald M. Goldberg, Ph.D., CCC-SLP/A, FAAA, LSLS Cert. AVT

KEY TERMS speech audiometry

audiogram, the hearing testing process,

speech recognition threshold

and types and degrees of hearing loss.

spondees

We’ll now take a look at additional testing

word recognition score (WRS)

in the category of speech audiometry.

phonetically-balanced (PB) carrier phrase "aided" testing electroacoustic analysis signal-to-noise ratio acoustic immitance (AI) otoscope tympanic membrane within normal limits (WNL)

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In the last issue, we looked at the

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n addition to air conduction (AC) and bone conduction (BC) threshold testing, most comprehensive audiologic evaluations would also include speech audiometry, which typically includes the measurement of a speech recognition threshold (SRT)—the “softest” level at which a patient can point to or repeat back two-syllable words with equal stress on each syllable (called spondees or spondaic/spondee words), such as “baseball,” “ice cream,” and “cowboy.” The SRT number reported is in xx dB HL. For children unable to repeat back the word or whose articulation/speech production might make scoring the accuracy of the words repeated problematic, one can use spondee objects/toys and ask the child to pick up the toy named or to point to an item on a picture spondee card. The SRT is “acoustically” more closely matched to low frequency hearing levels (e.g., 500 Hz) and the suprasegmental or melodic

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information of the stimuli. The SRT is often compared to the pure tone average (PTA), as an inter-test reliability check (the SRT value should be within ± 6 to 10 dB of the PTA) and is used to help determine the internal reliability by the patient for each ear being tested. The SRT was developed to be an auditory-only threshold test or task, so that information obtained reflects the ability to perceive auditory versus auditory and visual cues.

The other commonly administered “speech test” is a word recognition measurement or word recognition score (WRS), often involving phonetically–balanced (PB) words. PB words are made up of sounds that are reportedly reflective of the frequency of occurrence of various phonemes used in spoken English.

The most commonly used speech sounds are predominant in the sounds that make up monosyllabic PB words. An infrequent sound (such as the “zh” in pleasure), however, would not be a common sound in the words on the PB list. This testing is completed at the patient’s most comfortable loudness level and reported as a percent correct at its specific presentation level.

That intensity level must be reported and should be “interpreted” for the family (e.g., a presentation level of 45 to 50 dB HL approximates the loudness of conversational speech). Like the SRT protocol outlined above, word recognition testing should be based on auditory-only word presentation, so that information reflects auditory abilities, versus one’s access to both auditory and visual cues.

For younger children a word recognition task might involve asking the child to point to his belly, touch her nose, and point to his/her shoulder. For older infants and preschoolers, picture books (e.g., Northwestern University - CHIldren's Perception of Speech [NU-CHIPS] or the Word Intelligibility by Picture Identification [WIPI]) are used, and the child scans the four (or six) pictures on a page and is asked to “Point to the dress.” For older children and most adults, the prompt is for the individual to repeat back the last word in the carrier phrase, “Say the word ” from an open set of possible word choices. A score on a 0 percent to 100 percent scale is calculated. As noted above, the intensity of the stimuli for the presentation level must be reported or the utility of this score would be minimal (again, 45-50 dB HL would be an “average loudness” level, however, numbers such as 65-70 dB HL reflect quite “loud” levels).

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An example of a “Picture Spondee Card” with two-syllable words with equal stress on each syllable. credit: don goldberg

Several other additional measures may be made by the audiologist. If appropriate, hearing testing for tones and/or speech stimuli may be made with hearing aids or cochlear implants on.

This would be referred to as “aided” testing. Ideally the hearing aids will also have been subjected to a listening check and an electroacoustic analysis (EAA). For patients with one or two cochlear implants, an integrity test may first be conducted, and some tone and/or speech test measures may occur, ideally in all conditions possible (for bimodal users, one cochlear implant and one hearing aid, testing with both, testing with cochlear implant only and hearing aid only should be completed; for bilateral cochlear implant users and binaural hearing aid wearers, testing should include tests with both devices on, with right cochlear implant or hearing aid only and with left cochlear implant or hearing aid only). Should the patient also use FM technology, it is similarly important for the equipment to be cleaned, maintained and tested. Testing ideally needs to include both electroacoustic analysis and some soundfield-based and ecologically valid testing—in the actual classroom space, for example.

Finally, although most testing is administered in quiet in a sound-treated (versus sound-proof) hearing test booth, some measures in noise are also recommended. The concept of signal-to-noise ratio (S/N ratio or SNR) is based on the intensity level of the speaker in contrast to the intensity level of the noise (such as competing messages). If the speech stimuli are approximately 10-15 dB “louder” than the competing messages, most children with hearing loss can do well. The important role of an FM or infrared (IR) system should be a

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non-negotiable requirement (in preschool through graduate school teaching environments).

One last type of testing should be briefly mentioned in this guide—specifically acoustic immittance (AI). AI primarily addresses the middle ear space and its functioning. Prior to the completion of acoustic immittance testing, most audiologists will have examined the outer ear and, with the use of an otoscope, have completed a visual inspection of the ear canal (the EAM), along with the tympanic membrane (TM or eardrum). Tympanometry is a specific AI measurement that involves varying the pressure in the ear canal, and evaluating the middle ear peak pressure point (or point of maximum compliance) and the “degree of flexibility” of the TM. A Type A tympanogram is within normal limits (WNL) and reflects a point of maximum compliance or peak pressure value, considered normal in relation to the degree of “mobility” of the TM. A Type B tympanogram reflects the absence of a maximum peak pressure point and minimal to no TM mobility. These tympanograms often reflect the presence of middle ear fluid behind the TM and are referred to as “flat” tympanograms, typically necessitating a medical referral. A Type C tympanogram is typically found with problems with Eustachian

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tube function, with the findings of a negative peak pressure point and mobility of the TM that is WNL (a “negative pressure” tympanogram).

For more, please see AG Bell’s Recommended Protocol for Audiological Assessment, Hearing Aid and Cochlear Implant Evaluation, and Follow-up at www.agbell.org/Protocol.Audiological.Assessment/, which provides a “gold standard” of testing for children and other patients. An important mantra to follow is that excellence in audiology is the foundation of any intervention program that emphasizes listening for the development of spoken language in children who are deaf and hard of hearing.

To access this article online as well as other helpful resources, including a Glossary of Terms, visit www.agbell.org/VoltaVoices/ Jul-Sep2015/HearingTestingGuide2.

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Glossary of Terms/Acronyms AABR: automated auditory brainstem response testing ABR: auditory brainstem response testing ASSR: auditory steady-state response testing AC: air conduction Acoustic Immittance (AI): middle ear testing including tympanometry and acoustic reflex testing Aided testing: audiologic testing with amplification (hearing aids and/or cochlear implants) being worn Au.D.: Doctor of Audiology (the clinical professional doctoral degree for audiologists) Audiogram: graphic representation of hearing testing BC: bone conduction BOA: behavioral observation audiometry CPA: conditioned play audiometry Cochlea: sense organ of hearing located in the inner ear dB (plus HL, SPL, SL): an “intensity” level of sound EAA: electroacoustic analysis EAM: external auditory meatus or ear canal Hz: Hertz (referent for frequency) OAE: otoacoustic emissions Otoscope: light source used for visual inspection of the outer ear NU-CHIPS: Northwestern University - Children’s Perception of Speech

PB words: phonetically-balanced words used in word recognition measurements PTA: pure tone average (average of thresholds at 500, 1000, and 2000 Hz; calculated for each ear separately) SNHL: sensorineural hearing loss SRT: speech recognition threshold S/N ratio or SNR: signal-to-noise ratio Spondees: two syllable words with equal stress on each syllable TM: tympanic membrane or eardrum Type A Tympanogram: reflects middle ear WNL (pressure and compliance WNL) Type B tympanogram: “flat” tympanogram suggestive of middle ear fluid (reduced or no pressure or compliance measures) Type C tympanogram: “negative pressure” tympanogram suggestive of abnormal Eustachian tube function (negative pressure and compliance WNL) Threshold (Greek letter “theta”): 50% response criterion Eighth cranial nerve: auditory or auditory-vestibular nerve VRA: visual reinforcement audiometry WIPI: word intelligibility by picture identification WNL: within normal limits WRS: word recognition score

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HEAR OUR VOICES

The Parable of the Flood One of my favorite short stories is the Parable of the Flood. In the contemporary version of the parable, a man prays to God asking to be saved from a flood.

Subsequently, the man receives several offers for help by car, boat and helicopter from people around him. The man turns down each offer for help stating that he is waiting for God to save him, but the man eventually drowns. After drowning, the man asks God why he was not saved and God says he tried to save the man by sending a car, a boat and a helicopter.

Often I wondered if my hearing loss would get the best of me: would I meet my challenges in life with success despite the added difficulty of struggling with hearing loss? With floodwaters rising, I couldn’t help but wonder if I would drown.

Thankfully, if my hearing loss is the “flood” in the parable, then I have also been fortunate to be granted three gifts to keep me from “drowning.”

the challenge of my hearing loss had made me a stronger person overall: I am probably more empathetic to others and more willing to persevere in the face of challenges than I would be if I did not know what it was like to face the daily challenge of a hearing loss.

LOFT also taught me the importance of being a self-advocate. Unlike the man in the parable, I learned that my ability to succeed would be dependent upon my ability to take advantage of the opportunities around me.

The Flood: My Hearing Loss

Community

Technology

In my life’s version of the parable, the flood is my hearing loss: I was diagnosed with a bilateral, progressive hearing loss at age 4 when I first lost a significant amount of hearing due to a head injury. Much like the floodwaters rising over time, my hearing loss has progressively gotten worse.

For me, the term community encompasses all of those who have supported me in dealing with the challenges presented by my hearing loss. The term includes (but is not limited to) my family, friends, neighbors, teachers/professors, coaches, AG Bell and the deaf/hard of hearing community more generally. Although each of these parts of community has helped me in dealing with my hearing loss, two stand out.

First, my family has played the most important role in supporting me through the challenges I’ve faced with hearing loss. Without my family’s support I may not have gotten the attention I needed as a young child for things like speech therapy, hearing aids, or my 504 plan. Without my mother finding the LOFT program, I may never have heard of the program and therefore never applied.

Second, attending LOFT in high school was a turning point for me in how I viewed my hearing loss. As a teenager, I was focused on being “normal” and I tried to minimize any association with my hearing loss. After LOFT, I was proud of my hearing loss for the first time in my life. I was no longer shy when strangers asked me to tell them about my hearing aids and I realized that facing

I know that without hearing aids, I would not be able to function the way I do now and that my life would be entirely different today. In addition to hearing aids, other incredible assistive hearing technology exists today, such as FM systems, which have helped me significantly with succeeding in school.

When I was younger I was embarrassed to use an FM system because it was so noticeable. Now, with Bluetooth technology, the system hardly stands out. However, it was not until LOFT when I finally came to accept my hearing loss and learned the importance of self-advocacy that I started using an FM system. The technology had always been there for me to use, but like the man in the parable, it was up to me whether or not I would take advantage of the technology available.

When I finally decided to use the FM system, the results were astounding.

One example I often like to use is when I studied abroad in Cuba. In order to cope with the challenge of taking difficult classes such as Bioethics in Spanish, I knew I would have to take full advantage of my FM system.

The University of Havana does not have an office of disabilities like most universities have in the United States.

Nick and Representative Earl Blumenauer on the steps of the Capitol building in Washington, D.C., during Nick's 2014 summer internship on the Hill. Credit: kelsey aulakh

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BY NICK STONE

The Three Gifts: Community, Technology and Education

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I had to work closely with the Tulane Resident Professor in Cuba to gain approval for use of my FM system by the head of the Department of Philosophy and History at the University of Havana. To make matters more difficult, my Tulane professor and I had to meet with each of my University of Havana professors in order to assure them that my FM system was not a secret recording device.

I made it clear from the outset that my academic success was dependent on my use of the FM system. In fact, my FM system proved to be so useful that some of the other American students in my program asked to use my notes because I could hear things through the FM system that nobody else could!

Education During my senior year of high school I participated in Constitution Team, which consists of countless hours of researching and debating constitutional issues. Constitution Team sparked my interest in the U.S. legal system and my passion for debate. I gained a preliminary understanding of the important difference laws and policies can make in ensuring peoples’ rights are protected. Constitution Team also raised my awareness of the value of public service. When I entered as a freshman at Tulane University the following year, I was determined to pursue a degree in political science.

Throughout my years as an undergraduate at Tulane, I resolved to take advantage of every opportunity available to me to learn more about law and public policy in both academic and professional settings. I applied for an internship with the Congressman from my district, Earl Blumenauer. I was able to make living in Washington, D.C. affordable by simultaneously applying for internship grant money through Tulane. While working on Capitol Hill, I realized I could have an impact lasting beyond my term of employment when I read about the newly created bipartisan Congressional Deaf Caucus. The caucus seeks to increase representation of the deaf and hard of hearing in Congress by educating members about relevant issues and encouraging congressional

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Out front of the National Park Service Office of International Affairs building in Washington, D.C., where Nick interned during the summer of 2013. Credit: Linda stone

offices to hire more staff who are deaf and hard of hearing.

Soon after concluding my internship, I learned I was one of 20 students out of over 400 applicants to be selected for a seminar with political strategist and Tulane professor James Carville. I had applied to be in the class once a year since my freshman year at Tulane and I finally succeeded on my fourth try.

The class is intellectually demanding of students because we have to show up ready to vigorously debate current events. The class was also incredibly rewarding. We often had class in Carville’s home over dinner and at one point, we traveled to Baton Rouge to meet President Bill Clinton at a campaign rally.

The Lesson: Take Action As I reflect on what has worked for me to achieve success in my life so far, I reflect again on the parable of the flood.

The man in the parable does nothing to take advantage of the opportunities given to him to save himself from drowning.

The man is in every way capable of saving himself, but he chooses not to because he believes himself to be incapable.

When I think of the lessons to take from the parable and how these lessons are reflected in my own life I realize that the

Nick receiving his diploma from Tulane University at the 2015 Commencement in the Superdome. Credit: larry stone

biggest mistake I could have made would have been to think of myself as incapable because of my hearing loss.

Instead, my ability to succeed has been defined by my ability to take action.

Whether it’s active listening, practicing self-advocacy, advocating for others or achieving a goal, we each have the ability to succeed as long as we continue to take advantage of the opportunities around us by having the will to act.

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FOCUS ON CHAPTERS

A New Jersey Partnership that Works!

The New Jersey Bergen County Special Services Program, C.H.A.T.S. and the New Jersey Chapter of AG Bell

BY SUE SCHMIDBERGER

Now in its 18th year, the New Jersey chapter of AG Bell is a volunteer-led organization that provides opportunities to help all its members use listening and spoken language and thrive with hearing loss. As president of the chapter and mother of a daughter with hearing loss, I always look for partnerships with other organizations in order to provide these opportunities to our members in New Jersey. One of our most successful endeavors is the partnership we have with the New Jersey Bergen County Special Services School District Program for the Hearing Impaired and C.H.A.T.S. (Conversation – Hearing Loss – Advocacy – Teen – Social).

The New Jersey Bergen County Special Services School District Program for the Hearing Impaired demonstrates best practices in the education of the deaf and hard of hearing.

It offers a continuum of communication support services including listening and spoken language.

The program's principal, Kathleen Treni, past president of AG Bell, heads a professional staff of audiologists, speech-language pathologists, teachers of the deaf, interpreters, CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation) providers and itinerant teachers, many of whom are certified Listening and Spoken Language Specialists (LSLS®). There is also a social worker on staff to support the students.

About half of the students in the program are completely mainstreamed and receive support in their home districts.

The remainder are served at one of four locations, depending on their grade level and chosen communication method.

When a child enters the program, he or she is assessed to determine the most appropriate placement. A wide range of

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children come into the program with varying needs. The program assesses and places each student as individuals based on his or her unique circumstances and in consultation with their family. Factors such as age at identification, use and type of hearing assistive devices, family involvement and parental choice are all considerations in determining placement.

Sue Schmidberger with AG Bell CEO Emilio Alonso-Mendoza at the 2014 AG Bell Convention in Orlando, Florida, showcasing the Program Chapter Award given to the New Jersey chapter for its partnership with Bergen County Special Services’ C.H.A.T.S. Credit: AG B ell

Once the student has been placed, he or she and the family are provided with services to support the language and communication outcomes(s) best suited for that child. That may include audiological evaluation, FM amplification, speech therapy, sign language classes for parents and/or Spanish translation. Each child is continually monitored and evaluated

on his or her progress and is reassessed for placement as his or her language skills improve.

Treni often credits her dedication to the listening and spoken language services in her program to her own experience in 1992 when she received her first cochlear implant. “I myself was born with a profound hearing loss and when I was a child, it was a long and laborious process to learn to talk.

I had very dedicated parents and I learned to speechread and rely on visual and tactile cues to develop language,” said Treni. “When I received my first cochlear implant, I was stunned by how much hearing I gained from it. It was this awesome experience that reframed my entire teaching philosophy with children who are deaf.”

The success of this program can be demonstrated in two ways: (1) the number of students who have “graduated” from the program and are attending school in their own home districts, and (2) the high school graduation rate of this particular student population.

“I am very proud to point out that since beginning this program, I have never had a student who did not graduate from high school,” said Treni. She notes that this is quite an achievement when compared to average public high school dropout rates for any major metropolitan area.

One of the 2014 graduates of this program is my daughter Paige Arbeiter, who has bilateral cochlear implants, and is a seven-time AG Bell convention attendee, Leadership Opportunities for Teens (LOFT) alumna, a Volta Voices “Hear Our Voices” contributor and Communications Sciences and Disorders major at Adelphi University in Garden City, New York.

At first, she was placed in a self-contained classroom taught by a teacher of the deaf

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Left: Jeanine Gleba, recipient of the 2013 AG Bell Award of Distinction for her grassroots advocacy effort for insurance coverage for hearing aids in New Jersey and the passage of "Grace's Law," is introduced at a C.H.A.T.S. meeting by Debbie Kochajki, founder of C.H.A.T.S. Credit: Sue Schmidberger Below: Sue Schmidberger welcomes a professional at the 2014 AG Bell Convention in Orlando, Florida. Credit: AG Bell

with five or six other students where she benefited from a more focused listening and spoken language environment. By first grade, she spent half her day studying math and science in an inclusive classroom with six students with hearing loss and 16 with typical hearing. By the third grade, she spent the full day in an inclusive class. Her classes were team-taught by both a general education teacher and a teacher of the deaf; every classroom was outfitted with soundfield systems. Unless you could see the student’s devices, you could never tell who had a hearing loss. Speech-language and audiological services were provided right down the hall from her classrooms.

In sixth grade, Paige was introduced to CART, which she continued to use in all her subjects, including honor classes, through 12th grade. In her graduating class of 77, there were 11 students with hearing loss, each one moving on to college.

The various programs offered through Bergen County are successful because of the highly trained staff and the outstanding support they provide. One method of support was developed by the program’s social worker, Debbie Kochajki, along with Kathleen Treni. They saw a need for greater support for the teens across all their programs. Together, they came up with the idea of a social/ educational meeting that would take place after school hours, held at the high school, to which both students and parents were invited. They named it C.H.A.T.S. (Conversation – Hearing Loss – Advocacy – Teen – Social).

The C.H.A.T.S. program offered an opportunity for collaboration and outreach

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for the New Jersey chapter of AG Bell for the benefit of local students and parents.

By co-sponsoring the events, AG Bell New Jersey could help develop the topics for the meetings, provide widespread communication about upcoming meetings to the listening and spoken language community in the state, help run the meetings, and provide information about AG Bell and its services.

The New Jersey chapter and C.H.A.T.S. began a formal partnership in 2012. Today, the goal is to reach a specific audience of third graders (necessitating a slight change in the name from the original “Teens” to “Teeny-boppers”) through seniors in high school, along with their parents, at least two or three times a year. Every C.H.A.T.S. event has a different presentation focus, but the gatherings always have a casual, social element that fosters topical discussions while sharing snacks and drinks provided by the attendees.

Each event is attended by approximately 40-50 participants, including parents, professionals and students. The younger

students look up to the high schoolers and some informal mentoring goes on when they just sit and talk together.

At each C.H.A.T.S. event, we place AG Bell information on a large table and give a brief talk about membership, services and events. We promote the free parent membership option and attending board members are on hand to answer questions.

This successful partnership between Bergen County Special Services’ C.H.A.T.S. and the New Jersey chapter of AG Bell garnered the Special Activity or Program Chapter Award at the 2014 AG Bell Convention.

“I am very proud of the program we have developed in New Jersey and with our state and local districts we are able to serve a wide range of needs—and that is really the ideal situation for a positive outcome for children with hearing loss in the public system,” says Kathleen Treni. The addition of the C.H.A.T.S./New Jersey chapter partnership is definitely another reason for Treni to be proud of her program.

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AG BELL WEBSITE AT YOUR FINGERTIPS

Online Resources for Parents and Professionals to Ensure Students' Success in School and Beyond SUPPORTING STUDENTS WHO ARE DEAF AND HARD OF HEARING IN RURAL AND REMOTE COMMUNITIES

Tips for itinerant teachers help integrate and engage children with hearing loss and their families within the close-knit communities of small rural towns. www.agbell.org/TeachinginRuralorRemoteCommunities/

WAYS TO MAKE SURE YOUR CHILD’S THERAPY KEEPS PACE WITH CLASSROOM DEMANDS

GET SCHOOL SYSTEM SUPPORT Thanks to support from her school district, Lila now attends a mainstream school and won't stop talking! www.agbell.org/Video__Get_School _System_Support/

As children advance in school, parents need to understand the realities of increasing academic demands in the classroom, so the supports are in place to preempt or overcome academic challenges. www.agbell.org/ChildTherapyPace/

DEFYING THE ODDS Veronica was diagnosed late and most educators predicted she wouldn't learn to speak. Now she speaks, reads at grade level, and plans to go to college one day. www.agbell.org/Document.aspx?id=991

THE COMMON CORE STANDARDS: WHY THEY MATTER TO TEACHERS AND PARENTS OF CHILDREN WITH HEARING LOSS

The Common Core Standards in English language arts and mathematics needed to graduate high school are redefining expectations for students at every grade level and focus on core conceptual understandings and procedures starting in early grades. Regardless of hearing status, the Common Core Standards require an adjustment for all stakeholders involved: students, teachers and parents. www.agbell.org/CommonCoreStandards/

BECOME AN ITINERANT TEACHER Itinerant teachers assist children with hearing loss who attend mainstream schools and help ensure the child's continuing success in both school and life. www.agbell.org/Document.aspx?id=670

LET’S KEEP THE CONVERSATION GOING:

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES

Directory of Services

The 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.

California

Echo Center/Echo Horizon School, 3430 McManus Avenue, Culver City, CA 90232 • 310-838-2442 (voice) • 310-838-0479 (fax) • 310-202-7201 (tty) • vishida@echohorizon. org (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) • info@hearcenter.org (e-mail) • www.hearcenter.org (website) • Ellen S. Simon, Executive Director • Nonprofit 501c3 since 1954. Provides high quality Speech, Hearing, and Hearing Aid Services. Licensed Audiologists conduct hearing evaluations and dispense HEARING AIDS for all ages (newbornsseniors) with state of the art equipment. Licensed Speech Language Pathologists conduct speech evaluations and therapy for ages 6 months -18 years. HEAR Center also provides free outreach services such as free hearing and speech screenings, health fairs, and educational sessions.

HEAR to Talk, 547 North June Street, Los Angeles, CA 90004 • 323-464-3040 (voice) • Sylvia@hear2talk.com (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 • jwposd@jwposd.org (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)

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• 800-522-4582 · PALS@JTC.org • 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 Theater Program and Educational Centers, No Limits Headquarters: 9801 Washington Blvd., 2nd Floor, Culver City, CA 90232 (310) 280- 0878, www.nolimitsfordeafchildren.org. Individual auditory, speech, and language therapy for DHH children between the ages of 3-18 as well as a literacy program, weekly parent workshops, leadership and mentoring for teens, and a national theater 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 • tagkids@aol.com • 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. 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. winter@med.usc.edu or call 213-764-2801.

Connecticut

CREC 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 • 860-4551404 (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. AuditoryVerbal 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.

Florida

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech / Jacksonville, 9803 Old St. Augustine Road, Suite 7, Jacksonville, FL 32257 • 904-880-9001 • info@clarkeschools.org • 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,

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES 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.

Georgia

Atlanta Speech School—Katherine Hamm Center, 3160 Northside Parkway, NW Atlanta, GA 30327 • 404-233-5332 ext. 3119 (voice/ TTY) • 404-266-2175 (fax) • scarr@atlspsch. org (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

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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: Listen@avchears. org • 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 (LSLS®) 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)

Illinois

Alexander Graham Bell Montessori School (AGBMS) and Alternatives In Education for the Hearing Impaired (AEHI), www.agbms.org (website) • info@agbms.org (email) • 847-850-5490 (phone) • 847-150-5493 (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) • info@childsvoice.org (email) • www.childsvoice.org (website). Michele Wilkins, Ed.D., LSLS Cert. AVEd., Executive Director. A Listening and Spoken Language program for

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES 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.

Maryland

The 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) 410318-6759 • Email: hasa@hasa.org • 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.

Massachusetts

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/ Boston, 1 Whitman Road, Canton, MA 02021 • 781-821-3499 (voice) • 781-821-3904 • info@ clarkeschools.org • 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 • info@clarkeschools.org • 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.

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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.

Mississippi

DuBard School for Language Disorders, The University of Southern Mississippi, 118 College Drive #5215, Hattiesburg, MS 394060001 • 601-266-5223 (voice) • dubard@usm.edu (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)– anne.sullivan@ magnoliaspeechschool.org–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.

Missouri

CID–Central Institute for the Deaf, 825 S. Taylor Avenue, St. Louis, MO 63110 314-977-0132 (voice) • 314-977-0037 (tty) • lberkowitz@cid.edu (email) • www.cid.edu (website) Lynda Berkowitz/Barb Lanfer, coprincipals. 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 • 314692-7172 (voice) • 314-692-8544 (fax) • www. moogcenter.org (website) • Betsy Moog Brooks, Executive Director, bbrooks@moogcenter.org.

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 Jersey

HIP of Bergen County Special Services, Midland Park School District, 41 E. Center Street, Midland Park, NJ 07432. • Contact Kathleen Treni, Principal (201) 343-8982, kattre@bergen.org.

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.

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:

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES 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) • 908508-0012 (fax) • info@summitspeech.org (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 York

Anne Kearney, M.S., LSLS Cert. AVT, CCC-SLP, 401 Littleworth Lane • Sea Cliff, Long Island, NY 11579 • 516-671-9057 (Voice) • Kearney@ optonline.net. Family-centered auditoryverbal 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 • 718-5311800 (voice) • 718-421-5395 (fax) • info@ auditoryoral.org (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 (centerbased 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

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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 • info@ clarkeschools.org • 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 • 866-283-8810 (videophone) • info@RSDeaf. org • www.RSDeaf.org • Antony A. L. McLetchie, 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.

North Carolina

CASTLE- 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 hearingrelated professionals/university students.

OHIO

Ohio Valley Voices, 6642 Branch Hill-Guinea Pike, Cincinnati, OH 45140 • 513-791-1458 (voice) • 513-791-4326 (fax) • mainoffice@ ohiovalleyvoices.org (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

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES 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.

Millridge Center/Mayfield AuditoryOral Program, 950 Millridge Road, Highland Heights, OH 44143-3113 • Phone 440/995-7300 • Fax 440/995-7305 • www.mayfieldschools.org • Mrs. Elizabeth A. Scully, Principal. Auditory/oral program with a full continuum of services, birth to 22 years of age. Serving 31+ public school districts in northeast Ohio. Parent-Infant-Toddler Program; preschool with typically developing peers; parent support; individual speech, language, and listening therapy; audiological services; cochlear implant habilitation; and mainstreaming in the general education classrooms of Mayfield City School District.

Oklahoma

Hearts for Hearing, 3525 NW 56th Street, Suite A-150, Oklahoma City, OK 73112 • 405-5484300 • 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.

OREGON

Butte 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.

Tucker Maxon School, 2860 SE Holgate Blvd. Portland, OR 97202(503) 235-6551 • info@tuckermaxon.org • www.tuckermaxon. org • Glen Gilbert, Executive Director • Linda Goodwin, Principal • Founded in 1947, Tucker Maxon offers early intervention, tele-intervention, LSL pre-school, and K-5 education for deaf, hard of hearing and typical hearing children.

Since 2013, we have exceeded the OPTION

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schools Standards of Excellence in Listening and Spoken Language Education. On-site audiology and speech-language pathology provide assistance to children with cochlear implants and hearing aids. Our average 8:1 student-teacher/EA ratio and co-enrollment with hearing children results in improved listening and speaking skills and inspires a language-rich environment at home. Art, Music, and PE augment our focus on communication, academics, and emotional intelligence. Tucker Maxon: Where every child has a voice.

Pennsylvania

Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech/ Pennsylvania, 455 South Roberts Road, Bryn Mawr, PA 19010 • 610-525-9600 • info@ clarkeschools.org • 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.

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

South Carolina

The University of South Carolina Speech & Hearing Research Center, 1224 Sumter Street Suite 300, Columbia SC 29201. (803) 7772614 (Voice). (803) 253-4153 (Fax). Sph.sc.edu/ shc/. 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 programming. The University also provides a training program for AV therapy and cochlear implant management for professional/university students. Contacts for the AVT or CI programs include Rebecca Brashears (803-777-1698), Jason Wigand (803-777-2642), Gina Crosby-Quinatoa (803-777-2671), Jamy Claire Archer (803-7771734). Appointment’s (803-777-2630). Additional information contact Danielle Varnedoe-Center Director (803-777-2629) daniell@mailbox.sc.edu.

Tennessee

Child Hearing Services (CHS) - University of Tennessee Health Science Center,

Avenue, Morton, PA 19070 • 610-938-9000, ext.

2277, 610-938-9886 (fax) • sdoyle@dciu.org • 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.

578 South Stadium Hall • Knoxville, TN 37996 • 865-974-5451 (voice) • 865-974-1793 (fax) • www.uthsc.edu/allied/asp/hsc/chs.php (website) • Eclark1@uthsc.edu (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.

DePaul School for Hearing and Speech,

Memphis Oral School for the Deaf, 7901

6202 Alder Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15206 • 412-924-1012 (voice) • 412-924-1036 (fax) • www.depaulhearingandspeech.org (website) • nl@depaulhearingandspeech.org (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

Poplar Avenue, Germantown, TN 38138 • 901-758-2228 (voice) • 901-531-6735 (fax) • www.mosdkids.org (website) • tschwarz@ mosdkids.org (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, SpeechLanguage Therapy, Mainstream Service.

Delaware County Intermediate Unit # 25 Hearing and Language Programs, 200 Yale

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES Vanderbilt Bill Wilkerson Center - National Center for Childhood Deafness and Family Communication, Medical Center EastSouth Tower, 1215 21st Avenue South, Nashville, TN 37232-8718 • www.mc.vanderbilt. edu/VanderbiltBillWilkersonCenter (web). Fred Bess, Ph.D., Director NCCDFC, fred.h.bess@ vanderbilt.edu; Michael Douglas, M.S., Principal, Mama Lere Hearing School, William.m.douglas@ vanderbilt.edu; Lynn Hayes, Ed.D., Director, Master’s in Education of the Deaf Program, lynn.hayes@vanderbilt.edu; Anne Marie Tharpe, Ph.D., Associate Director of Education, NCCDFC, anne.m.tharpe@vanderbilt.edu.

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.

Texas

Callier 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 • calliercenter@utdallas.edu (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

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Child Development Program serves children developing typically and allows for the inclusive education of children with hearing impairments.

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Sunshine Cottage School for Deaf Children, 603 E. Hildebrand Ave., San

Atlanta Speech School............................................................................ 32

Antonio, TX 78212 • 210/824-0579 • fax 210/8260436. 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, OPTION Schools International, and is a Texas Education Agency approved non-public school.

For more information visit www.sunshinecottage.org.

The Center for Hearing and Speech, 3636 West Dallas, Houston, TX 77019 • 713-523-3633 (voice) • 713-874-1173 (TTY) • 713-523-8399 (fax) • info@centerhearingandspeech.org (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.

Utah

Sound 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. Nicole Martin, M.S., CCC-SLP, Sound Beginnings Program Director, nicole.martin@usu.edu. Lauri Nelson, Ph.D., lauri.nelson@usu.edu; Listening and Spoken Language Graduate Program. A comprehensive listening and spoken language program serving children with hearing loss and their families. Services include early intervention, parent training, toddler and preschool classrooms, pediatric audiology, tele-intervention and individual therapy. The Department of Communication Disorders offers an interdisciplinary Listening and Spoken Language graduate training program in Speech-Language Pathology, Audiology, and Deaf Education.

Wisconsin

Center for Communication Hearing & Deafness, 10243 W. National Avenue • West Allis, WI 53227 • 414-604-2200 • 414-604-

LIST OF ADVERTISERS Advanced Bionics Corporation..........................Inside Front Cover CapTel..............................................................................Inside Back Cover Central Institute for the Deaf................................................................26 Clarke Schools for Hearing and Speech..........................................35 Cochlear Americas.......................................................................................6 Ear Technology Corp. (Dry & Store)................................................. 27 MED-EL Corporation............................................................. Back Cover National Technical Institute for the Deaf—RIT.............................23 Oticon.................................................................................................................4 St. Joseph Institute for the Deaf.........................................................13 Weingarten Children's Center..............................................................36 AG Bell Ling e-Book..................................................................................40 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- and 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 Canada

Children’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, jweil@childrenshearing.ca. 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) • info@montrealoralschool. com (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, psychosocial and other support services.

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DIRECTORY OF SERVICES

BACK BY POPULAR DEMAND!

Now available through Amazon and the AG Bell Bookstore at www.agbell.org/bookstore

Recommended for reading by the AG Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language

This best-selling book is used by professionals and students all over the world!

It incorporates informal strategies appropriate for use with modern technology to promote spoken language development, such as digital hearing aids and cochlear implants. The book also provides descriptions of techniques for developing speech in children for whom digital hearing aids and cochlear implants do not or cannot compensate adequately for particular levels of hearing loss.

• • • •

User-friendly format assisting with the ongoing evaluation of speech in the context of spoken language Chapters on speech production, the sense modalities in speech reception and production, multisensory speech reception, and levels of speech acquisition and automaticity, among other topics Used as the basis for speech development programs in schools and clinics Used in university programs in speech-language pathology, audiology, and education of the deaf

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DANIEL LING, 1926-2003,

was a professor emeritus and a consultant in early childhood hearing loss.

Over his lifetime, he contributed more than 200 articles and several books to the literature on education of the deaf and hard of hearing. Born in England, Ling received his doctorate from McGill University in Montreal, Canada, where he subsequently became director of the aural habilitation program. He also served for several years as the dean of science at the University of Western Ontario in London, Canada. An accomplished musician, Ling received many major awards for his outstanding contributions to children with hearing loss and their families and to the education of professionals in the field of hearing health care and related sciences. He served as president of the Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing in the early 1980s and was a founding member of Auditory-Verbal International Inc. His best known book, Speech and the Hearing-Impaired Child: Theory and Practice (2002), has been distributed around the world as one of the finest sources in the field.

W W W. A G B E L L . O R G

AG Bell Publication Sales 3417 Volta Place, NW • Washington, DC 20007 Phone: (202) 337-5220 • Fax: (202) 337-8314 Email: publications@agbell.org

W W W. AG B E LL .O RG

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