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ST. LOUIS, Jan., 2002 - A new book
with hands-on advice and tips for parents raising a
hearing-impaired child is now available: Baby Talk:
Helping Your Hearing-Impaired Baby Listen and Talk.
Designed for parents of children birth through four,
"Baby Talk" starts with the moment a parent
learns his or her child has a hearing impairment-a moment
that is coming sooner in many states as a result of
new laws requiring newborn hearing screening. The book
addresses everything from understanding audiograms,
tympanograms, hearing aids and cochlear implants to
helping the child develop attention and listening ability
through everyday activities like getting dressed and
cleaning up the kitchen.
Co-authored by Victoria J. Kozak, M.A.Ed., director
of deaf education and school principal at Central Institute
for the Deaf (CID), and Betsy Moog Brooks, M.S., coordinator
of the Family School at the Moog Center for Deaf Education,
this book fills a growing need for a comprehensive and
easy-to-use resource. "Baby Talk" presents
a wealth of practical information based on the authors'
45 combined years of experience helping families and
their hearing-impaired children.
The authors' recommendations include:
* Teach a child to take care of his or her own listening
device at a young age.
* Make use of everyday opportunities to help a child
begin to learn language.
* Let a child know that communication is fun.
* Create associations in a child's mind by pointing
out environmental sounds such as vehicles, the telephone
and thunder.
* Encourage pre-reading skills.
According to Kozak, parents often receive misinformation
about their child's hearing impairment, and "Baby
Talk" seeks to correct this problem by covering
both the technical and emotional aspects of helping
a hearing-impaired child learn to listen and talk.
"The goal of 'Baby Talk' is to make parents self-confident
and optimistic so they can help their child," said
Kozak. "It focuses on the young hearing-impaired
child and covers a variety of challenges parents typically
encounter, including communicating with the child, understanding
and maintaining hearing aids, dealing with relatives,
managing behavior and other issues."
The book is divided into six sections: "First
Things First"-causes of hearing impairment, ways
of coping emotionally and methods of communication;
"Technical Matters"-anatomy of the ear, types
of hearing tests and measurement of hearing impairment;
"Listening Devices"-types of listening devices,
introducing a listening device to a child and teaching
a child to maintain it; "Mommy Talk, Daddy Talk
and Baby Talk"-how babies learn to talk, how a
hearing-impaired child learns to talk, and step-by-step
instructions on teaching a hearing-impaired child to
speak; "Some Talk About Behavior"-the three
R's of behavior management: routine, responsibility
and reinforcement; and "Last But Not Least"-related
topics, what the future holds and additional resources.
In her preface, Karen Rossi, M.A., principal of Omaha
Hearing School, states, "'Baby Talk' is the instruction
manual parents of children with hearing loss have been
waiting for...It is also the book that will become worn
and 'dog-eared' as parents refer to it again and again,
when new questions arise. Written in an easy-to-understand
style, 'Baby Talk' is a reference that should be placed
in the hands of every family with a young child who
is deaf or hard of hearing."
Editor's Notes: "Baby Talk is published by
and available for purchase from CID, 4560 Clayton Ave.,
St. Louis, MO 63110. The cost is $29.95 plus $3 shipping
and handling (U.S. and Canada). Call toll-free at 877.444.4574
(ext. 133).
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