Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1920-02-11
Frederic Haskin's Letter
TEACHING DEAF CHILDREN
tspseId Correspondents Of The Argns,.

Al ar b OF Washington is deaf chill
dftR are being taught to read,
Nv rite, talk and do all the other
IL Engs that normal girls and boys
III nu.n.' When they leave the
S, boot here. these children will be
a ", b, take their places in col
Il b s, Df1ces, and in social life on
a pi a ct ically equal basis With peo-
pie ihts have all their faculties.
1t is not SO long since deaf
LIP h-son was always set down as
d, n and dumb. He could not hear,
al d therefore how could he be ex-
pc = led, to talk? Sign language or
n ID and pencil were his means of
&C an 7. Anicating with the world.
tt 1.n lip reading and reproduction
of positions of lips and teeth to
M als e the sounds were developed,
ar d now in this little kensington
he N school. and several other
pr 81 .ressive schools for the deaf,
tn Z Sign language is barred en-
Hiss Anna Reinhardt. principal
Of th Kensington school, says that
tn : most important phase of teach
I'M deaf children is to talk to
til Fiji.
! n on must talk, talk, and then
ia pe, ID the deaf child, no matter
he ~ discouraged or tired you may
be I have repeated a sentence to
cb lid until had no meaning to
m {. But the child finally got it,
al I'd that was victory for US both. =
Co lsider how difficult it is some
tlhaa for a hearing child to repro
dBc~4-,~~ertain sounds, and then think
of TIE deaf child who must get
them by merely watching the posi-
ton { the lips. Naturally this re-
quira, ( greater patience on the part
OF To ii teacher and pupil.
| M IS Reinhardt regards the teach
ing of deaf children as her life
VOL q She founded her school II
yea n lao, after she had studied
me III d IS of teaching the deaf. and
had !s;.sae some teaching in Phila-
del PHI D.. Her school is not in the
lea st he an ordinary day or board
ing s. Il Va oil. She believes that to gel
the b esE results with deaf children
the 81 h { ol must be home first Of
Tall. Aa'as home atmosphere is what
imp re- $50 the visitor most about
the ReiII lardt school,
10 7 Ae g hool is a large, old-fash-
Toned &C !ntry house, with broad
porches, and surrounded by slop.
ir.g 'r4swhr;. Inside, it is exactly like
the horne ola large family. There
are 10 school rooms with desks
sore V'ad into the floor The Older
child ren, of about II or II years
havei SIN Il movable desks set W
in Irwin z room at lesson time. The
younger O. hes of kindergarten ant
iprim.yy y es are taught in a cot
tage al inc x. This cottage had t
he Id ed for school rooms an(
dorm i1or:s when the school grew
SO "a M ill There are four teach
ers ant an assistant for the II
chlldiGs, ! Or deaf children need I
lgreat de al of individual instruction
| Mally, Cf the children who come
to a clio ! | for the deaf have beer
misun ters God or neglected a
| home be e use of their defect.
child A>akd ally begins to talk at
years, a nd when speech is retarded
llong nc Ter that time the cause
jshould ibe Investigated for possible
ldeafne S.. a. ften parents think tina
a baby WI O does not talk is onl!
slow in Il a ming, and sometime:
several We IN elapse before the,
really IND " stand that the child i:
deaf. BY this time the child ma,
have b, .con u, habitually irritable o.
may have I veloped a terrible tenn
per due to L being continually ex
pected, to "a vet as normal chilt
would,
A cfixS~.1f this sort placed in I;
school fU the deaf at or year,
may not advance so rapidly as ;
much 20 IL Lger pupil. Miss Rein
hardt has in her school half ;
. dozen pup rs of from 8 to years
some of L ON talk more plainl,
than the -1H1er children.
In the, ii ndergarten room thes
, littlest plIL s were being taught t.
understand and interpret lip read
ing as the, made pictures witt
, colored SO 4 ares of paper. AS
sample of b. progress of this class
the teacbe,sf leld one little boy o.
her knee I'snd asked him, "Show m
your no e. "Show me your coat,
, and so oil, speaking distinctly bu
with orr llla.v rapidity. The boy il
each case pc t tied to the object men
toned and repeated nose" o
coat" -sahiiP zig all the while, an
keeping his yes fixed on the teach
er's face Il, atch every word Onl
in one fAss did he fail to under
stand nd e,espond correctly, an
that VIZ. S WI IN ear and hair wer
confuse d. 4. nese two words, tn
teacher EN- aimed. look simila
:, and are "A iftft ,ult for him to dis
tinguish.