Preschool Support

Following diagnosis of a Hearing Impairment you will receive a phone call hopefully within 24 hours from the Education Support Service Manager. They will then pass your information to the Teacher of the Deaf who will aim to contact you as soon as possible and arrange to visit you at your home. The teacher of the deaf will support the family and child throughout the early years.

The teacher of the deaf will aim to:

Help you understand your child’s hearing loss and the implications for education and their wider life
Answer and question the family may have
Work with you and your child to develop effective communication skills, auditory awareness and language
Offer guidance in the management of hearing aids
Monitor your child’s development and help them reach their developmental potential
Give you information when facing medical and educational decisions
Offer ways of meeting other parents of deaf children

The teacher of the deaf will arrange to visit your family in your home. They will organise a time during the day that is suitable for you and your child. Initially visits are likely to be weekly or fortnightly in the first few months after diagnosis.

The home visit will consist of discussion with the parent and possibly activities with the child. The activities the teacher of the deaf does with your child will depend on the child’s age, concentration span, interest level and need. Most of the activities will be through play but the teacher will explain the specific aim of the particular activity.

These activities will develop skills in:

Early communication skills e.g. eye contact, turn taking, sharing, co operation and waiting
Auditory awareness e.g. responding to sound then discriminating between sound
Expressive and receptive language development – through either an oral/aural approach or through sign language as appropriate

It is hoped that parents will take part in activities to encourage them to develop their own skills in working with their child. A nursery nurse may also visit the home to implement the programme established by the teacher of the deaf.

Parents are invited to attend a weekly group that meets in the family room at Icknield Primary School. This group gives parents the opportunity to meet each other and provides opportunities for you to learn to interact with your child through playing with the resources provided.

Teacher of the deaf is Sandhya Rajani. Please contact us on the details provided.