Can you imagine not understanding what people are saying to you; yet, you need to follow instructions in class? This was the reality of a little girl at A to Z Preschool in Kingsley.
With a severe hearing loss in both ears,
the child received hearing aids last December. However, she tried her best to understand teachers and classmates but would get frustrated and she wasn’t playing much with others. Her teachers knew something more was needed. One teacher, Ann Bowman, and Nichole Fettig, itinerant teacher of the hard of hearing at Northwest AEA, decided to access an amplifier for the girl. She can now hear those speaking to her.
According to Ms. Bowman, “She is so much more active in our singing, playing with all the kids, working on the computer because we can plug the amplifier into the speaker of the computer, and reading books. She can answer questions and is so much more involved with everything we do. We have seen huge strides in her since we have gotten the amplifier to use with her.”
In addition, the child is picking up on things much easier now, her speech is so much clearer, and she doesn’t get frustrated easily anymore.
“The first time she heard my voice through the amplifier her eyes lit up, and we sat and just talked to one another. This amplifier was the best technology invented,” exclaimed Ms. Bowman.
Original post: http://www.nwaea.k12.ia.us/en/about/publications/connections/?action=viewArticle&articleID=22434&issueID=4617&newsletterID=94
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