DD asking for ear defenders at school?

[pinkponie]

DD is neurotypical but doesn’t like very loud noises like fireworks- neither do I. However, lately at school she said the teachers have been offering ear defenders to children if they’re watching or doing something with loud noises and she’s been taking them when offered/ asking for them. Is this normal? My second child is younger and isn’t bothered but I know that every child is different and as I said, I don’t like fireworks either but DD seems to apparently not be able to tolerate any loud kind of loud sound at school although she’s never asked me to get some for home. For clarification, she doesn’t need them or ask for them when she’s doing her work/playing with her friends/ eating lunch etc. She’s nearly 9 for context.

Perhaps it's just a bit of a novelty?

Either way, I don't see any problem with it.

Common at DD1’s school. They have them for free use in classrooms so any of the kids can use them when they want. DD1 and her friends are NT but sometimes use them if the classroom is particularly loud and they want to concentrate. Some of the teachers wear Loop headphones too, as it’s a noisy old environment and a different kind of noise from at home and about I think!

very common, my DD17 now wears noise cancelling headphones much of the time as she’s ND and can’t tolerate much noise - godsend! DS13 is also ASD and ADHD and wears Flares ear buds at school

This is really interesting, my 7 year old neurotypical daughter has also asked for them. I feel a bit strange about it, not sure why; maybe because I think she needs to get used to everyday noise, not hide from it?

Really interested to hear others opinions.

Be careful of her over using them or getting used to them if she doesn't actually need them.
There are reports of children going on to develop hearing problems in their teens and early adulthood because they lose the ability to filter out noise and find it hard to concentrate on voices due to the over use of such headphones.
University students have been found to have problems listening to lectures etc.

It's worth googling and reading up on it.

For some ND children and adults they are a lifesaver but be cautious if your child doesn't really need them.

You say she doesn’t like loud noises (like lots of people) so when offered something to ease that discomfort she is taking it. Why does this concern you?

If the school environment is so loud that teachers and NT children require ear defenders surely the school needs to work on changing that environment.

My daughter is ND and had ear defenders for a while. We actually were referred to audiology as her reactions we so extreme an they said she should work on only using them for short amounts of time where it was really overwhelmingly loud or surprising noise as otherwise she’d possibly get even more sensitive. Totally different for children who have a more challenging time but she did manage to reduce her use. Now as a teenager she uses earplugs (loop knockoffs) for specific situations - live music, airports, school hallways (her school has a lot of exciting times in between class).

anyway that was long but just to say totally fine for really sporadic use but think you wouldn’t want it to get to be super often as then they can rely on it more and more. (Of course entirely different if you have a child who needs this support)

I think it's good they are offered to everyone. It makes the ND kids feel less singled out.

Exactly but I suspect the OP’s issue is that people will think their child is ND and they don’t want that.

This. When I was teaching I never let it get that loud.

I find this all a bit odd. Very rarely have the children I teach been subjected to a noise level that would require ear defenders. Some children do use them perhaps during theatre shows that come in and perform etc but never in the day to day classroom. We also don’t offer them out to anyone that wants them, also because (possible like your child?) everyone would want to use them due to the novelty!
My child (year 2) has said he wants a chewie necklace because a few in the class (who need them) have them. He doesn’t so won’t be having one for school!

I can't see any issue with your DD using them now and again at school.

How do you know she is NT though? I only realised when she was age 19 that DD2 is ND. I knew all through secondary school that she had a problem but I didn't know what it was. When she started university, it became obvious that her problem was ADHD. Her consultant psychiatrist with decades of experience of diagnosing ADHD and autism has also said that she is "quite obviously autistic" and was surprised I hadn't noticed.

They are freely available in my NT DD's classroom - primarily to help the kids block out the sounds from their ND classmates.

They are such a pain! There are very few children who need them in a class. What is your daughters class like?

I feel like this is what that Reform MP was talking about. I’m anti Reform btw. But this is the second thread I have seen today about ear defenders

I think it's totally fine and great to normalise for everyone but it is probably good to have times where we practice being able to filter out background noises ourselves (not necessarily super loud noise like fireworks) and I say that as someone who is ND and has an auditory processing disorder and does now at times now wear loop earplugs in busy places. I suppose I liken it to me really struggling now much more being around other people because of noise and overwhelm since I've been single, living alone and WFH and not having to practice it anywhere near as much, it's a good thing to a point but can be limiting.

And when they leave school and have to interact with the world, what then? Find this bizarre tbh.

I’m a bit with this. I would rather they found coping strategies so that as they grow up in society it’s not too overwhelming.

I genuinely didn’t know that this was the second thread today @pforpigas I don’t give Reform a second of my attention, they are the last party I’d vote for.

Thank you for your replies. I just don’t know how it’ll affect her long term both hearing wise but also coping with the world’s everyday noises.

This.
I would not be at all happy with this. I do not want a zombie child who disappear into their own little world.

I don’t think anybody should be encouraged to shut out noise. It’s a way of preventing communication which shouldn’t be encouraged. If a child has a disability, that’s fair enough.

If she didn't like being cold and they offered her a spare jumper- you'd be fine with it

If she didn't like the taste of the main lunch option and is offered a sandwich- you'd be fine with it

If she didn't like a smell and they offered to open the window- you'd be fine with it

Why would it be ok to take steps to ease discomfort related to some senses and not others.

Yeah but that’s not the same thing at all (although to be honest with some of those examples I’d give short shrift to - I’m not going to be offering to be opening windows in December for someone’s ’bad smell’)

It’s more akin to someone being offered a wheelchair because they are tired, or given a large print text because they don’t want to read the normal print. Reasonable adaptations for someone’s disability don’t tend to be given as routine.