My Special Family

"God doesn't give children with special needs to strong people; He gives children with special needs to ordinary, weak people and then gives them strength. Raising a child with special needs doesn't TAKE a special family, it MAKES a family special." - found this on a friend's facebook status and love it!

Rhyming - Phonemic Awareness - Step 2

Play The Name Game
Just play with line one at first. You can begin with any name or word--but run it through your mind first, to eliminate words that result in unwanted rhymes.

Honey, honey, Bo-bunny Banana-Fanna-Fo-funny Fee-Fie-Mo-money --Honey!

Bear, Bear, Bo-ear Banana-Fanna-Fo-fair Fee-Fie-Mo-mare --Bear!

Jake, Jake Bo-Bake Banana-Fanna-Fo-fake Fee-Fie- Mo- Make -Jake!

Brooke, Brooke, Bo-rooke, Banana-Fanna-Fo-Frooke Fee-Fie-Mo-Mrooke- Brooke!

Kake, Kate, Bo-Bake, Banana-Fanna-Fo-Fate Fee-Fie-Mo-Mate-Kate!

Mommy, Mommy, Bo-Bommy Banana-Fanna-Fo-Fommy Fee-Fie Mo-Ommy- Mommy!

Stick, stick, Bo-bick, Bannana-Fanna Fo-fick, Fee-Fie Mo-mick --Stick!

Rhyme - Discern and supply rhyming words

Step 1: Rhyme - Discern and supply rhyming words

The first step in phonemic awareness is to recognize rhyming words. Brooke still doesn't completely grasp the concept of rhyming words so we continue to word on this skill in a variety of different ways. Today we played with some rhyming itsy-bitsy miniatures.

Lesson:

1. Set out 4 objects with 2 that rhyme. Set one on the rhyming objects at the top and the other three objects below.

2. Say: "This is a snake. Say snake."

3. "What word rhymes with snake?"

4. "Listen to the words: Does cake rhyme with snake? Does hat rhyme with snake? Does pan rhyme with snake?"

5. Brooke usually shakes her head yes or no so I have her repeat: "Yes, snake rhymes with cake."

6. Set out 4 new objects. Set one on the rhyming objects at the top and the other three objects below.
7 . Say: "This is a bug. Say bug."
8. "What word rhymes with bug?"
9. "Listen to the words: Does bug rhyme with rug? Does bug rhyme with van? Does bug rhyme with stone?"
10. Have her repeat: "Yes, bug rhymes with rug."

Modifications:

1. I notices that my rhyming pairs were the first choice in these pictures. Of course, move the rhyming object to the second or third choice as well.

2. Use picture cards from flash card decks or games to create some rhyming pairs.

Jake is home from school

Today is the first day of summer vacation for Jake. He is now a second grader and I need a plan for the summer!
I have purchased a few workbooks and his teacher has send home a few workbooks that they class didn't finish during the year. So....every time he annoys, aggravates, bothers, harasses, perturbs, provokes, teases, or troubles his sisters he has to do some pages in his workbooks!
It is 10:10am on the first day of summer vacation and the poor child is on his second page! These are pages he is capable of completing without any parental assistance! Maybe this summer he will become a genius!

S - ounds

Today we did a little phonemic practice my breaking words into 2 smaller phonemes and then saying it "fast" to get the words. Let me give you some example:

1. Lets go get in the \c\ .... \ar\. Say it fast: "car"
2. Would you like a \dough\....\nut\? Say it fast: "doughnut"
3. When Jake gets home from school we will \sw\....\im\. Say it fast: "swim"
4. Will you pick up that \st\...\ick\? Say it fast: "stick"

You get the point.

Kate was really great at this and often knew the word before I even said the last part. Brooke had a difficult time with saying the 2 sounds fast. She would still say to 2 separate sounds instead of the complete word. We will keep working at it: it is a great auditory and pre-read skill.

Hearing Loss

Hearing loss is one of the most common chronic health problems in this country.

But hearing loss often goes unnoticed and a child with the hearing problem is probably not aware of it. Why does hearing loss go undetected?

Frequently, hearing loss is:
Gradual.
Loss of hearing can develop so slowly that you're not aware of any change from year to year. A loss of one or two decibels per year is not noticeable, but after 10-20 years of such change, you can have a distinct-albeit unnoticed-problem.
Partial.
You can develop a hearing loss for high pitched sounds that affect the clarity of speech but still have normal hearing sensitivity for low pitched sound so you hear speech and background noises at a relatively normal loudness. That's why a person with such loss may say, "I can hear people talking-I just can't understand them."
Painless.
Usually, there is no feeling or sensation that alerts you to a change in hearing-especially if it is slowly progressive.
Invisible.
The person with a hearing loss doesn't look any different and you can't detect hearing loss by looking into someone's ears. Only an audiological evaluation can determine whether a hearing loss is present.

Because of these characteristics, it's easy for a child with gradual onset hearing loss to go undetected. If you suspect your child may have hearing loss, ask your pediatrician and request an evaluation by an audiologist. And remember, the first step is not to get hearing aids, but simply to have a professional hearing test by your audiologist.

I began noticing some language delays with Brooke around the age of 2. I never thought it would be hearing loss; I knew she wasn't deaf because she would respond to my voice, but didn't think about the spectrum of hearing loss. At the age of 2, I asked for a speech evaluation at her 2 year check-up. My pediatrician thought I should wait until she was 3, but I persisted. I went through the county's early intervention program for a speech evaluation and they were the first to mention a possible hearing loss.

Once she passed the newborn hearing screening, I didn't think that hearing loss could develop gradually. Now I know and want to share to help with early detection.

This article was originally submitted by
Dennis Hampton, Ph.D. and subsequently edited by AAC.