Simple Strategies to Boost Language Skills in Children With Hearing Loss

By Christina Rodriguez

When I was a child, I distinctly remember running around in the local park having a blast. Nothing like the good old days, but it all took a turn when I went home repeating what I heard in the park to my cousin and sister. 

Boy, was I in trouble with my mother! It was definitely a word we did not use at home. No one in the park taught me the word or explained the definition. It wasn’t like anyone sat with me in the park with a dictionary (this was the ’90s way before Google). I didn’t even know the children I learned the word from! 

The Power of Our Ears 

I learned the troublesome word without any effort, incidentally, running and playing in proximity to other kids. To my mother’s dismay, she knew this was out of her control because children with typical hearing effortlessly pick up language around them. We worked on what was not worth repeating from that moment on. 

Now as a teacher of the deaf in New York City, I can see that as easy as it was for me to “pick up” language, for our children with hearing loss this is not the case. It’s quite the opposite. Children with hearing loss miss out on learning language incidentally on a daily basis, even with their hearing devices. 

They are not overhearing what is being said around them and absorbing language passively like those with typical hearing. For them, listening, learning, and processing takes time and effort. 

How Can We Help?

The images shown here were projects done with deaf and hard of hearing students ages 8 to 11. Art, literacy, and movies are all awesome ways to inspire and motivate our children to learn new concepts and words, and easily applicable to do at home, too.

Inspired by the book “Stella Luna," a hands-on activity had the children build a bird nest to understand where Stella Luna lived as a bat who was raised by birds (above). Children with hearing loss benefit from multisensory activities and read-alouds. We watched the read-aloud online twice with closed captions.

Here are suggestions for how we, as instructors, parents, and caregivers, can optimize our students’ success.

Utilize the child’s medical and educational team. They are Team You. Don’t be afraid to ask how much language is being missed and what can be done for them in school (via services, accommodations, and educational supports) and at home. 

Have all who interact with your child repeat themselves or rephrase statements and questions as needed. Ask your child’s audiologist if their hearing is stable in both ears (if their hearing level has remained the same); any changes to their access to sounds can be detected through annual audiological testing. 

To check the child’s ability to hear with assistive equipment, the Ling sound test can be performed. Have the hearing specialist and or audiologist demonstrate this to you and your family. I also personally ask questions to get responses from the child to make sure they are hearing and the equipment is functioning. 

Use closed captions for all videos at home and at school. Play videos twice.  

Have you and your child understand which is their “better ear.” Know where and how close adults and peers need to be (which side? an arm’s length away? closer?), and teach your child how to ask if something needs to be repeated and when to speak up if an environment is too noisy for them to listen. 

Noise can contribute to children with hearing loss feeling overwhelmed, overstimulated, and interfere with comprehension. It is best to speak to the child when the TV or radio is lowered, speak to them face to face, not with your back turned to them, and allow them to take listening breaks as needed. If outside shopping or in a crowded place, speaking closer is more effective than yelling louder and louder. 

For a spring project we introduced the word “bloom” after recess outside. Making connections between language and their experiences is meaningful. 

Have your child know how to use their equipment and know how to report any issues to adults promptly, such as if anything needs to be repaired or charged, or if there is static, intermittence, or if anything is lost or missing. 

Use the experiences of the child to build language with them. 

One of my fondest memories of using this strategy occurred when a child in my care with a hearing loss said to me, “Someone came to my house.” I used this interaction to give the explicit definition asking, “Did you know when someone comes to your house, the word is ‘visit’?” 

I then persisted with other questions: “Your friend visited you? What was the visitor’s name? When did your friend visit? What was fun about them visiting?” 

In one simple conversation I was able to teach a new vocabulary word while exposing the child to multiple verb tenses. By discussing a memorable experience, the new word became meaningful to the child. 

The following week, we had a special guest for an activity and the child grabbed my hand and excitedly shouted, “We have a visitor!” Seeing the child apply what they learned to express their excitement was truly rewarding. 

Another fun experience was making slime! I read the list of what was needed to a student and taught the new word “ingredients.” When learning about camels, students were introduced to the word “store” when talking about camels store/keep/retain fat in their hump, and different from the word used in the context of groceries.

By taking advantage of opportunities that present itself, we can optimize language acquisition in conjunction with the school curriculum and specialized instruction. 

Be direct in explaining  definitions and check for understanding. Also, work with your child. Have them repeat back to you what they think they heard. Assist them with recall and memory as needed. 

Positive, Supportive Interactions

Our Kakamora Coconut bulletin board was inspired by the movie “Moana,” which became an opportunity to teach vocabulary words such as “quest,” “rescue,” and “bravery” as well as to link language to describing the film’s themes and Moana’s actions. For example, “Moana left her home on a quest to rescue her village. She was very brave.”

Building language will improve daily living, helping our children engage and communicate meaningfully with adults and peers. Parents and families have even shared testimonials with me after I worked with their child, saying they saw the benefit of clear, concise language in the areas of self-awareness and advocacy as well. 

One parent shared at times she would feel overwhelmed at having to explain over and over on behalf of her child at their local park what the child’s cochlear implant was, but after working with me the child was bold, confident, and explained knowledgeably, “It helps me hear. Without it I can’t hear you.” She shared that she was amazed at how calm, collected, and clear he was. Her child having the language he needed led to positive, supportive interactions. 

Each child is unique and has different needs, strengths, weaknesses, abilities, personalities, and different levels of comfort with adults and peers. It benefits everyone involved in the child’s life to work collaboratively to gather information, tips, and resources that are tailored to the child’s specific areas of need. 

Reach out to specialists for more information, visit websites of organizations that support children with hearing loss, sign up for family workshops, find free downloadable resources, and search for ways to get connected to other families. 

A quote I loved and read in Hearing Health magazine is, "Our hearing ability is truly a marvel, and while modern technology is spectacular, no device can completely replace the human ear," from Jonathan Mikhail, Au.D., who has a hearing loss himself. With this in mind and inspired by our children’s abilities, we can work together to support our children’s health and language development. 

Christina Rodriguez is an itinerant teacher for deaf and hard of hearing students in grades K–12 for the New York City Department of Education and holds an Master of Science in Education from Hunter College’s School of Education specializing in deaf and hard of hearing studies. Please note that the views expressed do not necessarily represent the views of the New York City Department of Education or the City.

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