The news scimitar. (Memphis, Tenn.) 1907-1926, 1920-02-25
THE HASKINLETTE
TEACHING DEAF CHILDREN
BY FREDERIC J. HASKIN.

KENSINGTON. Md.--1n this suburb
are being taught to read, write, talk
and do all the other things that nor
NAL girls and boys learn. When they
leave the school here these children
will be able to take their places in col
leges, offices and in social life on a
practically equal basis with people who
| have all their faculties,
| 1t is not so long since a deaf person
was always set down as deaf and dumb
He could not hear, and therefore how
| could he be expected to talk? Sign
language or pad and pencil were his
means of communicating with the
world. Then Hip reading and reproduc-
tion of positions of lips and teeth to
! make the sounds were developed, and
now in this little Kensngton home
school, and several other progressive
schools for the deaf, the sign language
is barred entirely.
Miss Anna Reinhardt, principal OF the
kensington school, says that the most
important phase of teaching deaf chill
dren is to talk to them.
You must talk, talk, and then talk
to the deaf child, no matter how dis
couraged or tired you may be. ! have
repeated a sentence to a child until
II had no meaning to me. But the
child finally got it, and that was a vic
tory for us both.
Consider how difficult it is some
times for hearing child to reproduce
certain sounds and then think of the
deaf child who must get them by mere
y watching the position Of the lips.
naturally this requires greater pa
thence on the part of both teacher and
pupil.
Miss Reinhardt regards the teaching
| of deaf children as her life work. She
| AnI oftar
she had studied methods teaching the
| deaf. and had done some teaching in
| Philadelphia. Her school is not in the
least like an ordinary day or boarding
! school, She believes that to get the
| best results with deaf children the
| school must be a home first Of all.
4 The home atmosphere is what i'm
presses the visitor most about the
| Reinhardt school,
The school is a large, old fashioned
! country house with broad porChes and
surrounded by sloping lawns. Inside,
| it is exactly like the home of large
| family. There are no school rooms
with desks screwed into the floor The
older children, Of about II or II years,
! have small movable desks set up in a
| living rooms at lesson time. The young
er ones OF kindergarten and primary
| ages are taught in cottage annex
| This cottage had to be added for school
rooms and dormtnres when the school
grew so rapidly There are four teach
ers and an assistant for the 16 chill
dren. for deaf children need great
deal Of individual instruction.
Many Of the children who came to a
school for the deaf have been mis-
understood or neglected at home be
cause of their defect. a child normally
begins to talk at two years and when
| speeCh is retarded long after that time
the cause should be investigated for
possible deafness. Often parents think
! that a baby who does not talk is only
| slow in learning, and sometimes sew
eral years elapse before they really
understand that the child is deaf BY
this time the child may have become
veloped a terrible temper due to Its
! being continually expected to react as
a normal child would.
A child of this sort placed in a schOo
for the deaf at seven or eight years
may not advance so rapidly as a muct
Younger pupil, Miss Reinhardt has il
her school half dozen pupils Of fror
three to six years. some Of whom tall
more plainly than the older children.
In the kindergarten room these lit
tlest nupils were being taught to un-
| derstand and interpret lip reading a:
they AIMED pictures with coloret
squares Of paper. As a sample OF the
! progress OF llllS CldSN, lIlt AtrN wv iVi'
one little boy on her knee and asked
him. SHOW me your noso?' "ShoN
me vour coat?" and so on, speaking
distirctlv but with ordinary rapdity
The boy in each case pointed TO thu
object mentioned and repeated nose
or coat" smiling all the while, anC
keeping his eyes fixed on the teach
er'S face to catch every word. only
in one case did he fail to understand
and respond correctly, and that wa
when ear and hair were confused
These two words the teacher explained
look similar and are difficult for hin
to distinguish.
Some Of these deaf children talk II
raturaI tones. while others, especial,
thos, deaf from birth speak withou
/ EXPRESSION or with queer accent Al
Of them who have had special train
ing for three or four years are easi
understood As they grow older the,
seem to lose some Of the strain notice
ahle in the voices Of the smaller ones
and the effect is remarkably natural
TX" and other sounds made IN tn
back Of the mouth are most duticul
for the deaf 20 CRAPS and reproduce
but even these are mastered after re
heated illustrations and much practice
These children are starting out II
life without the ability to hear and with
such a handicap in the way OF learnint
TO speak. and yet when you look in oi