Phonics with hearing loss

[souperb]

DD is in reception and has low frequency hearing loss. She can recognise and make the sounds but blending is a bit of a mission. We get words home to sound out and once she can do them, we get a new set. But, to be honest, she is generally remembering the whole word on the second round and then getting a new set. I have pointed this out to the teacher but the result was we now get a reading book as well. She enjoys the books, but again struggles to sound out new words but remembers ones she has encountered before. We have Jelly & Bean books with a word list at the back. If we look at the word list before reading the book, then she flies through the book with ease and intonation and enjoys the story. If we read the story first, she does ok, but we have to stop for any unfamiliar words to go through the blending dance and she doesn't enjoy the book and feeling of success so much.

We have parents evenings this week so I'd like to get my thoughts together beforehand if possible. Do we continue with our current "pseudo-phonics" approach, try harder or differently with phonics, or just give up and accept that she is currently learning by sight and hope that she gains phonic knowledge by osmosis? We have been allocated a "teacher of the deaf" and she will be going to visit DD at school next month, then doing a home visit a few weeks later. Hopefully this will be helpful, but again I'd like some ideas of what to aim for and what is feasible beforehand.

Sorry for essay. Any thoughts are much appreciated, but if the thread could avoid the usual phonics bunfight then that would be even more smashing. Thanks!

[awfulomission]

My ds is profoundly unilaterally deaf. He's 6 and we're slowly getting there with soundfield system and CROS aids.

I'm currently knackered and he has a chest infection but didn't want to read and run on this.

I will get back to you properly op.

[MMmomKK]

One more thought. You mention that blending is difficult for her. How is she with segmenting -ie breaking down the word into its sounds?

Can she hear/identify sounds that make, say, "dog" -- is made of "d", "o", "g"? You mentioned that she is OK with iSpy, so I am guessing she can identify the first sound. Helping her to focus on the last and the middle sounds may be helpful.

Segmenting is the opposite of blending and both skills are useful.

[Cloud2]

It is better to let her wearing hearing aid if the hearing aid is not broken. Although you may not notice the difference, it will help your DD to get the correct sounds. Without the hearing aids, she has to guess a lot. Just imagine what you can hear in a sentence if you take out some vowels. But please don’t let her wear not working hearing aids, as when it is not working, it block out the sounds. The first thing the deaf teacher ask you will be to let her to wearing the hearing aids. I think school should make sure no children laugh at your DD.
My DS started to using hearing aids in year 1, as we didn’t found out till then. Only some of his class mates asked what it is. Our deaf teacher does a brilliant job, she comes once every month, give advice to the teacher, talk to the children about hearing. As my DS’s hearing loss in high frequency is quite sever, he also has a radio system, with teacher wear a Radio and DS has receiver on his hearing aids. That makes great difference.
For phonics, even lots of normal hearing children are still struggling at reception year. So not sure if this is a problem due to hearing loss. I guess you have to let her practice a lot. My DS has a good memory, normally a word he sounds it out then he remembers it. His reading started to take off since the end of Reception year and is a free reader by now he is in year 2. As he remembers words quickly, so I was not sure if he managed phonics or simply remembers it. So it is a relief that he passed the phonics test whole mark. We borrowed lots of books from library alongside his reading book from school(similar level), so that means he practiced a lot. One of the game I recommend is using magnet letter to spell.When DS was in reception, hand writing is still a big task, so he is reluctant to wirte.But DS likes to spell using magnet letter. By doing spelling, he would remember the link between the sound and the letter.I can also see if he can using his phonics skill.

[McFarts]

Goodness dont feel bad, I too played down the hearing loss. Think its something that lots of us hearing people do in all honesty. Id badger the life out of the TOD!! i know that sounds awful, but when you have a child with additional needs it really is the only answer. I think your DD will come along amazingly with the correct aids ect. Its sounds like she is already doing fantastic.

[souperb]

Mrz Thank you again. I will definitely be working on the compound words and following your scheme - it seems really logical now you have laid it out.

McFarts Audiology want to wait for the TOD to go in and see what she needs - at the time we stopped the aids she was due within a few weeks. Then the visit was moved (twice). We've been back to audiology since, for routine monitoring and they said since DD appears to be managing they will wait for TOD assessment. Everyone appears to be waiting for this magical (and no doubt overworked) woman to come and tell them what to do.

DD is shattered, but I assumed it was mostly just normal in reception. DS was a wreck for most of the first school year. It makes sense though that maintaining concentration and working hard to follow the teacher would be more tiring for her than many others. Another thing to raise at parents evening tomoz. I'm starting to feel a bit ashamed that I have been so laid back about the whole thing - I've largely assumed the hearing loss is not a big issue.

geogteach Thanks for your son's story - it's good to hear about people doing well. It must have been hard watching his hearing deteriorate. I will definitely give the subtitles a go, particularly on the things she watches repeatedly! It's encouraging to hear that like others upthread, it took a bit longer but they got the hang of it in the end.

[McFarts]

Id get back on to audiology to sort her aids out, the TOD will be reluctant to set up radio aids if she isnt currently using aids at all, she must be getting by mainly by lip reading, do you not find she get really tired?

My 6yo DS has a similar hearing loss to your DD, but he also has ASD and some learning difficulties so we're not yet at blending phonics.

I pimp my sons aids and keep things fun for him, the kids in his class all are all jealous of his aids . There are loads are fabulous stickers ect that you can get for girls! have a look at this page on FB.

here

[geogteach]

DS is deaf, he had a mild loss in reception but it progressed and at 13 he is now profound and wears implants. I would reiterate what cathip says about the aids, school should be addressing this and one of the things the teacher of the deaf (TOD) can do is deaf awareness for staff , her classmates and the wider school. As far as blending goes I would say your experience is fairly common for deaf kids I know. DS definitely knew his phonics in reception but he was into year 1 before he 'got' blending. One of the things we were recommended to do is to keep the subtitles on the telly. This definitely helped although at the start he couldn't read he was exposed to the text all the time and as he couldn't hear the telly he began to take more notice of them. Radio aids can definitely be helpful but she will need to wear the aids to use one. DS had one all through primary but is reluctant to use it at secondary. It is definitely possible for school to support without a statement, DS did fine in primary with in school support (he is a high achieving student). He got a statement at the time he was being implanted because of the support needed while he got used to the new sound. He still has some support but this is basically note taking. Like all services TOD seem quite stretched at the moment but they are a useful source of information and I have definitely used them when I needed something 'explained' to the school. I think ours only visits about once a term now. NDCS also have local groups which can be useful to meet other local deaf children and their parents, who often know how to access local services and provide good role models of people wearing hearing aids.

[mrz]

I would start with blending compound words (you saying the whole word with slight pause between parts) see if she can put the parts together. Then I would try aural blending (you saying the sounds ) and see if she can hear the word. Once she is confident with thus move onto her saying the sounds and saying the word. Try to encourage her to say the sounds without too long a pause between sounds as it helps to hear the word.

[souperb]

mrz Understood now. I have just tried 20 words, split into syllables without elongating the sounds and she managed to get 11 of them. It was bedtime though and she was tired, so I will try again another time. I had never thought of trying that before. It seemed promising to me - do you think if I focus on syllables for a while it would be a good training for sounds?

I will definitely be asking for more support regardless of the Teacher of the Dead - thanks for reassurance. I doubt that hearing troubles are that unusual to cater for, so they should be capable of coming up wtih something.

cathpip I'm glad to hear your DS has caught up with his reading. We're really hoping to get the aids thing sorted. The ones we had just didn't seem to make a difference - when they broke, I kept her wearing them while waiting for the replacements (just to keep the habit up) and the teacher didn't realise they were not working. I think we wouldn't have such a problem with other kids when/if we get new ones, as the main instigator of "aids-gate" now has a 1-2-1 ta. The glasses have ceased to be an issue, especially as a few more children have them now.

[mrz]

It's estimated that on any day in reception/KS1 there will be 3-5 children suffering from some degree of hearing loss.

[Justahardworkingmum]

Thanks Mrz, that is actually really helpful. I had not realised it was not unusual for children with "normal" hearing not to be able to distinguish some sounds at this age. My older DCs had no problems with it, so I assumed DS's problem was hearing related, not developmental.

[mrz]

It isn't unusual for children this age (with "normal" hearing) to struggle to hear some sounds or to be unable to distinguish between two similar sounds. The problem quite often resolves (never had a child where more action was required) but for profoundly deaf children the visual phonics programme seems to offer additional cues to help. Sorry can't be more helpful.

[Justahardworkingmum]

I've been reading this thread with interest. My DS has similar profile of hearing loss to cathpip's DS: Mild loss at low frequencies and moderate loss at the higher frequencies. He has worn hearing aids since loss was diagnosed at around 2.5, and his speech has so far been within the normal range for his age. It is only now he is learning to read that we are actually finding out which sounds he can and cannot distinguish. For example, he was taught "th". At a later date, when asked how he would write "th" his answer was that it is sometimes written "th" and sometimes written "v",which made me realise that even with hearing aids he is unable to distinguish between the two sounds. I would be interested in Mrz views on how you teach phonics in this situation where the child cannot hear the difference between the sounds? Do we have to introduce some sort of visual cueing system and if so, which one and how given that it has not been used to date?

[mrz]

School action plus no longer exists I'm afraid. The new SEND code of practice has school support and EHCP only

[cathpip]

You could ask for her to go on school action plus, specifically for dealing with phonics and reading. My ds is in year 1 and has a 45db loss in the mid and very high frequencies, he is aided and has radio aids, the radio aids help tremendously. He also struggled with phonics and reading and lost confidence in his ability but since starting year 1 this has vastly improved and he is now at an age appropriate reading level, it's just the spellings tests now........I would also ask for the unpleasantness from other children regarding her aids to be addressed quickly, my ds also wears glasses and has not encountered a problem to my knowledge. Good luck at parents evening tomorrow!

[mrz]

School should be meeting her needs regardless of external support.

[mrz]

I'm not suggesting she blend f-oo-t I'm asking if you say foot (pause) then ball can she hear the word football?

[souperb]

In DDs case, it appears to me that soft-furnished rooms are easier for her than hard surfaces. But it's one of the things we are waiting for the Teacher of the Deaf to assess in the classroom. We do seem to be on hold waiting for this visit - the school are reluctant to commit to anything without the visit, especially as DD appears to manage ok. I don't think she is their biggest issue. They acknowledge that they need to get her attention before giving her instructions and talk about sitting on the righthand side of the classroom - but it's mostly freeflow so not that relevant in reception I suppose.

She can't blend compound words because she can't blend the components! So she can't blend "foot" or "ball". When we get multi-syllable words on the cards, I break them up and cover half to sound out. So, she sounds out f-oo-t, we do our blending dance until I say "foot". Then we do the same with "ball". She gets that foot and ball go together to make football, in the same way that train and station make train station. But getting to the foot and ball appears to be the trouble.

DD doesn't have a statement or anything like that. Do you know if there is any requirement for the school to crack on with or without the Teacher of the Deaf visit? I would like to get firm at parents evening tomorrow!

[mrz]

Can she blend compound words "foot" (pause) "ball" and syllables "dis"(pause) "app"(pause) "ear" ...

[mrz]

One of the problems we have is sound is absorbed by carpets and curtains which the radio aids have improved greatly

[souperb]

maizieD Not preachy at all! I'm really grateful for your input. She can't make out the words if I blend slowly. She doesn't grasp it until I say it normally. There seems to be no connection between succesfully sounding out the letters/sounds and saying the whole word. And I've tried using elongated-sounding out for words in general about the house as well (eg "Let's get in the c-ar" or "would you like some mm-i-l-k") as that was a suggestion I read on here some time ago, but she doesn't seem to get the elongated word except through context (eg I am holding car keys or bottle of milk at the same time). She can manage i-spy though (by initial sound, not name of letter). It seems to be joining the sounds up that is the trouble. I will try the progressive blending you mentioned, but she struggles with two sound words anyway (i-n, c-ar, a-t etc.). We will persist and hope it clicks. Thanks!

[maizieD]

@souperb,

Sorry if I sounded a bit preachy.

Re the blending. Can she make out what word you are saying when you say its sounds separately; before you get to the saying the whole word stage?

Have you tried getting her to blend the word progressively? Just blend the first two sounds until absolutely secure, then add the next one and practise until secure, and so on. This is often easier for children who find blending difficult and is a perfectly valid method for learning.

[souperb]

Soz "mrZ*...

[souperb]

mrs Thanks, that's really helpful. Knowing what your "best practice" is makes me more confident to make requests for the school to do more. She doesn't have aids at the moment. She had them at the start of the academic year, but they didn't appear make any difference and children were being silly, so we have "paused" them. We are waiting for the teacher of the deaf to come in and assess for radio aids/classroom strategies etc., but she has had to cancel her first two arranged visits. Now waiting for a visit in April. But DD seems to cope apart from the blending issue. Reading around the NCDS website, I am encouraged that she can read the sounds out and will persist with the blending as well as pushing for some targeted help at school. Thanks again.

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

Thanks for the posts, my DD who has dyslexic traits (she's 9) and has always struggled with phonics is awaiting further hearing tests as an initial screening has shown some low frequency loss.