[Title slide appears with the following text: “For Families with Deaf & Hard of Hearing Children Building a Foundation of Language Conclusion (State of Minnesota logo) Minnesota Department of Health, Minnesota Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing”]
[Leala Holcomb appears and begins to sign.]
>> Leala: Hello! I hope you’ve had the chance to watch all the videos, from playtime, to snacktime, literacy, mindfulness, encouraging a positive identity, and so on. If you have not, I strongly encourage you to watch them all. Feel free to watch them again and again to help you remember and reinforce the different strategies shared in these videos. The most important thing to remember from these videos, is the goal to build a strong foundation in language acquisition. I have shown you different ways to promote language and literacy learning for your deaf or hard of hearing child. Remember, you do not have to be fluent in sign language; you can utilize different strategies in communication - through pictures, through gestures, pointing, acting it out, fingerspelling, mouthing the word, among other different ways of communicating with your child. For example, if your child has access to sound through hearing, or can use their voice to speak, you can chain it together by linking meaning of words to sign, fingerspelling, spoken word, or pointing.
[Text briefly appears next to Leala:
“ Who to Ask for Additional Support:
[Leala continues to sign.]
>> Leala (continued): Here are six different types of strategies to try. In reality, there are many more strategies out there. I suggest connecting with your child’s teachers, they can help you learn the strategies. You can use different strategies all day during different activities, during playtime, mealtimes, going to the store, playing outside, bathtime, reading, just to name a few. The most important activity to do is to read with your child - everyday. Sit with your child and read everyday. I know that raising a child, whether they are deaf or not, is a challenge on its own. Don’t forget, you have the entire community at your disposal. Organizations, service agencies and so on - they are all ready to support you through your journey raising a deaf child. You will have fun watching your child’s progress as their language and literacy takes off.
[End credits:
“Created by
Debbie Golos, PhD
Associate Professor & Coordinator of the Deaf Education Teacher Preparation Program
University of Minnesota
Leala Holcomb, PhD
Early Childhood Education Specialist
Brynn Roemen, MEd
Instructor in the Department of Educational Psychology
University of Minnesota
Damon Timm
Video Production
Featuring
Leala Holcomb
Narrator”]
[End credits:
(State of Minnesota logo)
“This webinar series was supported by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of an award totaling $360,725 with zero percentage financed with non-governmental sources. The content are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by HRSA, HHS, or the U.S. Government. For more information, please visit HRSA.gov.
“Produced by the Minnesota Department of Health, and the Minnesota Commission of the Deaf, DeafBlind & Hard of Hearing.”]
