50 what can your child hear?
What sounds can your child hear?
If your child can hear a little, finding out which sounds she can hear will
help you. The more you know about your child’s hearing, the better you
can communicate in a way she can understand.
Notice how your child responds to sound
It can be difficult to know if and when a child hears a sound,
especially with very young children. You will know if your child hears
a sound because she may:
• move her arms and legs.
• change the look on her face.
Ba!
• become very still.
• make a sound herself.
• smile or laugh.
• turn toward the sound, or tilt her head to listen.
• be startled, open her eyes wider, or blink.
Does your child seem to hear some sounds?
To find out more about what a child can hear, watch him closely
throughout the day and ask yourself:
• Does he seem to hear mostly high-pitch sounds? Or mostly
low-pitch sounds? Or a mixture of both?
• Does he hear a sound some of the time but not all the time?
• Can he only hear sounds when the room is quiet?
• Does the sound have to be very loud for him to hear it?
When the room is quiet, Kofi
can hear the blocks fall down.
Kofi may not hear the blocks fall down when
there is other noise in the room.
Helping Children Who Are Deaf (2004)