What Are the 

Communication 

Considerations for Parents 

of Deaf and Hard-ofHearing Children?

Deafness or hearing impairment affects not only a child who is deaf or has a 

hearing loss, but also the child’s family, friends, and teachers. For hundreds of 

years, people have debated the best ways to develop communication skills and 

provide education for deaf and hard-of-hearing children.

Here are a few points upon which scientific and health professionals, educators, 

and experienced parents commonly agree:

1. The earlier that deafness or hearing loss is identified, the better the 

chances a child will acquire language, whether spoken or signed. A hearing 

screening can be an important indicator of deafness or hearing loss in a 

child. For this reason, all infants should be screened while still in the hospital 

or within the first month of life. Children who do not pass their screening 

need to go for a follow-up examination. The follow-up examination includes 

precise audiological testing that confirms the extent and type of hearing loss. 

It also allows parents, health professionals, and teachers to determine the 

best intervention strategy for the child. The term “intervention” refers to the 

different steps that families can take to overcome communication barriers 

caused by a hearing loss. When intervention is introduced early, the child can 

take advantage of the unique window of opportunity during the first few years 

of life when a child acquires language, whether spoken or signed.

2. Each child is unique. It is important to understand the full nature and extent of a child’s 

hearing loss or deafness. It also is important to understand how each family member and 

caregiver will communicate with the child. Get to know the services that are provided in your 

community for children in preschool and elementary school.

3. Optimizing residual hearing may be advantageous. Children may benefit from hearing aids 

or cochlear implants. This is a decision that you should discuss with your child’s healthcare 

providers and other professionals who work with deaf children and language development. 

4. Exploring the options and, if possible, working with professionals in teams can be beneficial.

Your child may visit a pediatrician, an otolaryngologist (ear, nose, and throat doctor), an 
audiologist (hearing specialist), and a speech-language pathologist 

(specialist in speech and language disorders). Some otolaryngologists and 

audiologists are specially trained to work with infants and children. They 

are referred to as pediatric otolaryngologists and pediatric audiologists. 

Ask each professional to inform other professionals who work with your 

child about your child’s visits. Coordinated care can be a help to you and 

your child. Many parents find it useful to include educational and social 

service professionals on the team.

5. Parents should interact often with a deaf or hard-of-hearing infant.

All of the caregivers in your child’s life should interact with him or her 

as much as possible. You can do this by holding, facing, smiling at, and 

responding to your infant from the very beginning. Children need love, 

encouragement, and care from their families and caregivers.

6. Teachers who are experienced in working with deaf and hard-ofhearing children can help parents understand how to improve longterm outcomes for a child. Talk to your child’s teachers. Get to know 

the educational system your child will be entering and the services it 

provides for children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing.

7. Organizations and federal agencies can provide helpful information 

to families of deaf or hard-of-hearing children. Consult the following 

resources and see what information they can provide. Several offer 

differing perspectives on the best way to develop the skills and talents of your deaf or hard-ofhearing child. Many of these Web sites are updated frequently, so you may want to bookmark 

them on your Web browser.

Where can I find more information?

Other organizations you can contact for more information about this topic follow:

Alexander Graham Bell Association for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing

3417 Volta Place, NW

Washington, DC 20007-2778

Voice: (202) 337-5220

Toll-free Voice: (866) 337-5220

TTY: (202) 337-5221

Fax: (202) 337-8314

E-mail: info@agbell.org

Internet: www.agbell.org

For hundreds 

of years, people 

have debated 

the best ways 

to develop 

communication 

skills and 

provide 

education for 

deaf and hardof-hearing 

children.
AG Bell publications or Web sites for parents 

of children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing:

• Facts About Hearing Loss in Children

www.agbell.org/docs/FAHL.pdf

• Something To Talk About: Spoken Language 

Approaches for Children With Hearing Loss

www.agbell.org/docs/something.pdf

• Speech and Hearing Checklist

www.agbell.org/docs/SHchecklist.pdf

• So Your Child Has a Hearing Loss: Next Steps 

for Parents

www.agbell.org/docs/soyourchild.pdf

American Academy of Audiology

11730 Plaza America Drive, Suite 300

Reston, VA 20190

Voice/TTY: (703) 790-8466

Toll-free Voice: (800) 222-2336

Fax: (703) 790-8631

E-mail: info@audiology.org

Internet: www.audiology.org

www.audiologynow.org

American Academy of Otolaryngology—

Head and Neck Surgery

One Prince Street

Alexandria, VA 22314-3357

Voice: (703) 836-4444

TTY: (703) 519-1585

Fax: (703) 638-5100

E-mail: webmaster@entnet.org

Internet: www.entnet.org

AAO-HNS publications or Web sites for 

parents of children who are deaf or hard-ofhearing:

• Hearing Health Center

www.entnet.org/healthinfo/hearing/hearing_

health.cfm

American Academy of Pediatrics

141 Northwest Point Blvd.

Elk Grove Village, IL 60007-1098

Voice: (847) 434-4000

Fax: (847) 434-8000

E-mail: kidsdocs@aap.org

Internet: www.aap.org

American Society for Deaf Children

3820 Hartzdale Drive

Camp Hill, PA 17011

Voice: (717) 703-0073

Toll-free Voice: (866) 895-4206

TTY: (717) 703-0073

E-mail: ASDC4U@aol.com

Internet: www.deafchildren.org

American Speech-Language-Hearing 

Association

10801 Rockville Pike

Rockville, MD 20852

Voice: (301) 897-5700

Toll-free Voice: (800) 638-8255

TTY: (301) 897-0157

Fax: (301) 571-0457

E-mail: actioncenter@asha.org

Internet: www.asha.org

ASHA publications or Web sites for parents of 

children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing:

• How Hearing and Balance Work

www.asha.org/public/hearing/anatomy/

BEGINNINGS for Parents of Children Who 

Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing, Inc. 

P.O. Box 17646

Raleigh, NC 27619

Voice/TTY: (919) 850-2746

Toll-free Voice: (800) 541-4327 (In-state only)

TTY: (919) 850-2746

Fax: (919) 850-2804

E-mail: info@ncbegin.org

Internet: www.ncbegin.org
Boys Town National Research Hospital

555 North 30th Street

Omaha, NE 68131

Voice: (402) 498-6511

TTY: (402) 498-6543

Fax: (402) 452-5027

E-mail: moeller@boystown.org

Internet: www.boystownhospital.org 

www.babyhearing.org

www.audiciondelbebe.org

Boys Town publications or Web sites for 

parents of children who are deaf or hard-ofhearing:

• Boys Town Pediatrics

www.boystownpediatrics.org

Clearinghouse on Disability Information,

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative 

Services

550 12th Street, SW, Room 5133

Washington, DC 20004

Voice: (202) 245-7303

TTY: (202) 205-5637

Fax: (202) 245-7636

Internet: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/

index.html

Conference of Educational Administrators of 

Schools and Programs for the Deaf 

P.O. Box 1778

St. Augustine, FL 32085-1778

Voice/TTY: (904) 810-5200

Fax: (904) 810-5525

E-mail: nationaloffice@ceasd.org

Internet: www.ceasd.org

Council for Exceptional Children

1110 North Glebe Road, Suite 300

Arlington, VA 22201

Voice: (703) 620-3660

Toll-free Voice: (800) 224-6830

Toll-free TTY: (866) 915-5000

Fax: (703) 264-9494

E-mail: service@cec.sped.org

Internet: www.cec.sped.org

Council of American Instructors of the Deaf

P.O. Box 377

Bedford, TX 76095-0377

Voice/TTY: (817) 354-8414

E-mail: caid@swbell.net

Internet: www.caid.org

Council on Education of the Deaf

Gallaudet University

P.O. Box 2094

800 Florida Avenue, NE

Washington, DC 20002

Fax: (202) 651-5749

E-mail: roz.rosen@gallaudet.edu

Internet: www.deafed.net

Early Hearing Detection and Intervention 

Program

National Center on Birth Defects and 

Developmental Disabilities 

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Mail Stop E-88

1600 Clifton Road

Atlanta, GA 30333

Voice/TTY: (404) 498-3032 

Toll-free Voice: (888) 232-4636

Fax: (404) 498-3060

E-mail: ehdi@cdc.gov

Internet: www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/ehdi
Gallaudet University and the Laurent Clerc 

National Deaf Education Center

Circulation and Inventory

800 Florida Avenue, NE

KDES PAS-6

Washington, DC 20002

Voice/TTY: (202) 651-5051

Fax: (202) 651-5708

E-mail: clearinghouse.infotogo@gallaudet.edu

Internet: http://clerccenter.gallaudet.edu/ 

infotogo

Harvard Medical School Center for Hereditary 

Deafness

Laboratory for Molecular Medicine

65 Landsdowne Street

Cambridge, MA 02139

Voice: (617) 768-8291

Fax: (617) 768-8513

E-mail: hearing@hms.harvard.edu

Internet: http://hearing.harvard.edu

Harvard Medical School Center for Hereditary 

Deafness publications or Web sites for parents 

of children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing:

• Understanding the Genetics of Deafness: A 

Guide for Patients and Families

http://hearing.harvard.edu/info/

GeneticDeafnessBookletV2.pdf

National Association of the Deaf

814 Thayer Avenue, Suite 250

Silver Spring, MD 20910-4500

Voice: (301) 587-1788

TTY: (301) 587-1789

Fax: (301) 587-1791

Internet: www.nad.org

National Association of State Directors of 

Special Education, Inc. 

1800 Diagonal Road, Suite 320

Alexandria, VA 22314

Voice: (703) 519-3800

TTY: (703) 519-7008

Fax: (703) 519-3808

Internet: www.nasdse.org

National Black Association for SpeechLanguage and Hearing

P.O. Box 61328

Charleston, SC 29419

Voice: (843) 574-6441

Fax: (843) 820-5026

E-mail: nbaslh2@aol.com

Internet: www.nbaslh.org

National Cued Speech Association 

23970 Hermitage Road

Cleveland, OH 44122

Voice: (216) 292-6213

Toll-free Voice/TTY: (800) 459-3529

Fax: Call for number

E-mail: info@cuedspeech.org

Internet: www.cuedspeech.org 

National Institute on Disability and 

Rehabilitation Research, Office of Special 

Education and Rehabilitation Services

550 12th Street, SW, Room 6056

Washington, DC 20024-6122

Voice: (202) 245-7549

Fax: (202) 245-7630

E-mail: Steven.Tingus@ed.gov

Internet: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/ 

nidrr/index.html
Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP)

Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative 

Services

550 12th Street, SW, Room 4109

Washington, DC 20202-2600

Voice: (202) 245-7426

Fax: (202) 245-7616

Internet: www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/osers/ 

osep/index.html

OSEP publications or Web sites for parents of 

children who are deaf or hard-of-hearing:

• Parent Training and Information Centers and 

Community Parent Resource Centers

www.taalliance.org

NIH Pub. No. 00–4393

Contact information updated November 2006