Concerns about a child’s hearing should be raised with parents/carers and a referral should be made to the local Audiologist and Vision and Hearing/Deaf Education Service SEND Support Services - Bury Council.
Information for staff and parents/carers can be found at NDCS and RNID - National hearing loss charity.
Awareness of the child’s needs and how key developmental milestones are affected by hearing loss, particularly communication, language acquisition and play and fine and gross motor skills. N.B. Some forms of hearing loss are associated with balance and delayed milestones e.g. late to walk, sit, balance issues.
Creation of a One-Page Profile which is shared with all staff.
Assessment by Qualified Teacher of the Deaf (QToD) and report distributed to key staff.
Recommendations of the report implemented in the setting to enable full inclusion within the setting.
The Early Years setting must monitor progress in this respect.
Make basic adaptations to activities and materials to facilitate access for a hearing-impaired child. Follow advice about how to support and include young children who are deaf or hearing impaired in the EY setting.
Repeat instructions to check understanding and reinforce messages. Use of multisensory approaches to all teaching across all curriculum areas such as the use of visual resources.
Use appropriate language when asking direct questions and allow additional time to respond. Repeat contributions from other children if needed.
Seek advice from the Vision and Hearing/Deaf Education Service SEND Support Services - Bury Council on effects of hearing loss and classroom strategies.
Where appropriate the child may receive a short-term intervention:
- Model suggested strategies
- Trained staff at the setting
- Or direct work from either a Qualified Teacher of the Deaf or Specialist Teaching Assistant, including Assessment and obtaining the child’s voice.
Gather the views of the child where possible using person-centred approaches regarding their opinions and preferred strategies.
Carry out an assessment of room acoustics and make reasonable adjustments by adapting the physical environment and reducing background noise. Use of soft furnishing and fabric backed boards to minimise echo/vibration.
Pay attention to the position of the adult when speaking to the child – ensure they are always face to face with the child (e.g. to enable lip reading), lighting and acoustics including background noise e.g. close windows and doors.
Staff awareness of areas of potential risk associated with childhood hearing impairment e.g. social and emotional impact, reduced opportunity for incidental learning.
Involvement of parents/carers and provision of information relevant to them.
Considerations for good transitions between rooms, and how to plan and prepare for these e.g. allowing the child to have extra visits to the new setting and ensure transfer of information.
Development of a transition plan for children starting pre-school or moving between Nursery and Reception. An example plan can be found at twinkl.
Vision and Hearing/Deaf Education Service SEND Support Services - Bury Council provides transition support visits to new educational placements as required.