46 basic communication skills
Encourage your child to make sounds by praising her as soon as she
makes a sound or says a word. Small praise is enough — you can use a
smile as praise. Or point to your ear and say, “I heard you.” Or nod or
say, “Yes.” Remember, it is very difficult
for her to learn how to
speak clearly and to
communicate using
Wa?
Yes, Emilia!
You want
some water?
spoken words.
Here are 3 ways to show your child you are paying attention to his
sounds:
• You can imitate him, showing that you enjoy imitating him. For
example, if your child says “ooo” then you do that too, and wait to
see if he does it again.
• You can respond to his sound like it is the beginning of a
conversation. Try to understand what your child is communicating
and answer it.
Aaaa?
Bird. That’s a bird
in the tree.
• You can ask him questions about what he is communicating. It will
encourage him to start a conversation. Besides, asking questions is a
good way to encourage him to ask you questions.
When your child has developed basic communication skills, he
is ready to learn a language. For more information on learning
a language, see Chapter 7. See Chapter 8 for information on
learning sign language, and see Chapter 9 for information
on learning a spoken language.
Helping Children Who Are Deaf (2004)