52 what can your child hear?
• Keep the checking relaxed and enjoyable.
• Use a variety of small toys to keep the child from getting bored.
• Keep the sessions short. You can check hearing in more than one
session.
Check for loudness and pitch of sounds
One helper sits in front of a
parent and child. He will get the
child’s attention by showing her
a small toy.
tester
The other person stays
1 meter (3 feet) behind the
parent, out of sight of the
child. This person is the
tester. He will make the
sounds to each side of the
child, for the child to hear.
If the child turns to look at
the tester, the tester should
not interact with the child
by smiling or looking at
her.
helper
What you will need to check hearing
In this test you will use simple sound makers made from
3 identical empty tin cans.
1. Put a piece of wood 2. Put a handful of large
in the
uncooked dry beans
first tin can
in the second tin can
(low-pitch sound)
(middle-pitch sound)
3. Put a handful of
uncooked rice in the
third tin can (high-
pitch sound)
Shake the can gently for a quiet sound. Shake it harder for a medium
sound. Shake it very hard for a loud sound. The tester should practice
shaking each of the cans until he can control the loudness.
Helping Children Who Are Deaf (2004)