Re: Re: Language Facilitator question

[Guest guest]

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

[Guest guest]

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

[Guest guest]

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

[Guest guest]

The term " language facilitator " would probably help in explaining to some

what our TOD does -- even though it is not really her job description. I find

the threads about our kids' language abilities to be fascinating.

We found over the years that it is very hard to explain to regular teachers

that D/HOH kids have issues with language and when we say that we don't mean

vocabulary tests or enunciation. In 4th grade discerning the meaning of a

passage was often hard for Ian because he didn't grasp the way the language was

being used to express abstract thoughts, to infer meaning. If asked the

meanings of the words, he knew them all, yet missed innuendo and tonal clues

that

the rest of the kids were picking up on. His use of language tended to be

very concrete and he needed to be taught to understand language use in a fuller

scope.

It really is hard to explain this to a regular teacher and have them grasp

the subtleties of what we're trying to get across.yet these are the very skills

that he would desperately need if he was going to succeed in high school and

then college. I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to teach it

to him.

Ian's hearing loss went undiagnosed until 2nd grade, by then he had missed

quite a lot of creative and expressive language use. Yet he spoke clearly, used

complex sentences and seemed to have a healthy vocabulary. But while he

would ace vocabulary tests, his written expressive vocabulary was much more

limited, his written sentence structure very simple. He would stare at you

blankly

when asked what commonly used idioms meant. When given the task of assigning

an appropriate title to a passage, he inevitably picked either the first or

last thing discussed, not the overall meaning of what he'd read.

This more subtle language use, often based on non-contextual learning, was

beyond him at that point. And none of the teachers could grasp the link between

what he understood and the fact that he couldn't hear what was being said

around him on an every day basis. It's amazing how much language we learn by

osmosis, and Ian hadn't been doing that.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it was to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a skill he'd

missed up to that point.

... and I'm beginning to ramble at this point. I guess my point here is

that language is so much more than speaking clearly and memorizing vocabulary

words. And it is/was just so hard to explain this to non D/HOH-experienced

people.

Best to all -- Jill

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 2/25/2006 10:55:48 A.M. Central Standard Time,

stromms@... writes:

At

the time, I wondered how he could understand literature and poetry

which referred to the sounds of the wind in many nuances and how much

he couldn't write about because given his experience, wouldn't occur to

him.

This reminds me of something that Henry Kisor (What's that Pig Outdoors)

shared about his experience writing books. When he finished a first draft of a

fiction book, he gave it to other professionals to critique before it was

finalized. What was missing was " sound. " So Henry had to ask people about

certain sounds, such as certain birds, waves, etc. and incorporate sound in the

finished product.

Putz

Illinois Families for Hands & Voices

_www.handsandvoices.org_ (http://www.handsandvoices.org/)

_www.ilhandsandvoices.org_ (http://www.ilhandsandvoices.org/)

Email: support@...

[Guest guest]

Also, the auditory experience of the D/HOH kid is fundamentally

different. When my son was about 12, I made a comment about how windy

it was. He disagreed with me. I told him to listen and he would hear

it. He thought I was teasing him because, " the wind doesn't make a

noise " . I actually had to take him outside to hear the wind howl. At

the time, I wondered how he could understand literature and poetry

which referred to the sounds of the wind in many nuances and how much

he couldn't write about because given his experience, wouldn't occur to

him.

Re: Re: Language Facilitator question

The term " language facilitator " would probably help in explaining to

some

what our TOD does -- even though it is not really her job description.

I find

the threads about our kids' language abilities to be fascinating.

We found over the years that it is very hard to explain to regular

teachers

that D/HOH kids have issues with language and when we say that we don't

mean

vocabulary tests or enunciation. In 4th grade discerning the meaning of

a

passage was often hard for Ian because he didn't grasp the way the

language was

being used to express abstract thoughts, to infer meaning. If asked the

meanings of the words, he knew them all, yet missed innuendo and tonal

clues

that

the rest of the kids were picking up on. His use of language tended to

be

very concrete and he needed to be taught to understand language use in

a fuller

scope.

It really is hard to explain this to a regular teacher and have them

grasp

the subtleties of what we're trying to get across.yet these are the

very skills

that he would desperately need if he was going to succeed in high

school and

then college. I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to

teach it

to him.

Ian's hearing loss went undiagnosed until 2nd grade, by then he had

missed

quite a lot of creative and expressive language use. Yet he spoke

clearly, used

complex sentences and seemed to have a healthy vocabulary. But while

he

would ace vocabulary tests, his written expressive vocabulary was much

more

limited, his written sentence structure very simple. He would stare at

you

blankly

when asked what commonly used idioms meant. When given the task of

assigning

an appropriate title to a passage, he inevitably picked either the

first or

last thing discussed, not the overall meaning of what he'd read.

This more subtle language use, often based on non-contextual learning,

was

beyond him at that point. And none of the teachers could grasp the link

between

what he understood and the fact that he couldn't hear what was being

said

around him on an every day basis. It's amazing how much language we

learn by

osmosis, and Ian hadn't been doing that.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that

wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it

was to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it

and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a

skill he'd

missed up to that point.

... and I'm beginning to ramble at this point. I guess my point here

is

that language is so much more than speaking clearly and memorizing

vocabulary

words. And it is/was just so hard to explain this to non

D/HOH-experienced

people.

Best to all -- Jill

[Guest guest]

Thanks for sharing that story. I've never thought about the impact of D/HOH on

literary concepts. Makes perfect sense to me.

Edith

Re: Re: Language Facilitator question

The term " language facilitator " would probably help in explaining to

some

what our TOD does -- even though it is not really her job description.

I find

the threads about our kids' language abilities to be fascinating.

We found over the years that it is very hard to explain to regular

teachers

that D/HOH kids have issues with language and when we say that we don't

mean

vocabulary tests or enunciation. In 4th grade discerning the meaning of

a

passage was often hard for Ian because he didn't grasp the way the

language was

being used to express abstract thoughts, to infer meaning. If asked the

meanings of the words, he knew them all, yet missed innuendo and tonal

clues

that

the rest of the kids were picking up on. His use of language tended to

be

very concrete and he needed to be taught to understand language use in

a fuller

scope.

It really is hard to explain this to a regular teacher and have them

grasp

the subtleties of what we're trying to get across.yet these are the

very skills

that he would desperately need if he was going to succeed in high

school and

then college. I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to

teach it

to him.

Ian's hearing loss went undiagnosed until 2nd grade, by then he had

missed

quite a lot of creative and expressive language use. Yet he spoke

clearly, used

complex sentences and seemed to have a healthy vocabulary. But while

he

would ace vocabulary tests, his written expressive vocabulary was much

more

limited, his written sentence structure very simple. He would stare at

you

blankly

when asked what commonly used idioms meant. When given the task of

assigning

an appropriate title to a passage, he inevitably picked either the

first or

last thing discussed, not the overall meaning of what he'd read.

This more subtle language use, often based on non-contextual learning,

was

beyond him at that point. And none of the teachers could grasp the link

between

what he understood and the fact that he couldn't hear what was being

said

around him on an every day basis. It's amazing how much language we

learn by

osmosis, and Ian hadn't been doing that.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that

wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it

was to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it

and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a

skill he'd

missed up to that point.

... and I'm beginning to ramble at this point. I guess my point here

is

that language is so much more than speaking clearly and memorizing

vocabulary

words. And it is/was just so hard to explain this to non

D/HOH-experienced

people.

Best to all -- Jill

[Guest guest]

Our HI does the pre and post teaching, but it would be great to have someone to

make sure that interacts with her peers and someone to keep her on track.

Debbie

JillcWood@... wrote:

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were

and ask why not. G.B Shaw

---------------------------------

Yahoo! Mail

Bring photos to life! New PhotoMail makes sharing a breeze.

[Guest guest]

Our HI does the pre and post teaching, but it would be great to have someone to

make sure that interacts with her peers and someone to keep her on track.

Debbie

JillcWood@... wrote:

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were

and ask why not. G.B Shaw

---------------------------------

Yahoo! Mail

Bring photos to life! New PhotoMail makes sharing a breeze.

[Guest guest]

Our HI does the pre and post teaching, but it would be great to have someone to

make sure that interacts with her peers and someone to keep her on track.

Debbie

JillcWood@... wrote:

Interesting ... this describes what our TOD handles with Ian. I think the

term " language facilitator " would totally confuse our district. But I like the

term and plan to remember it so I can use when needed.

Thanks -- Jill

Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were

and ask why not. G.B Shaw

---------------------------------

Yahoo! Mail

Bring photos to life! New PhotoMail makes sharing a breeze.

[Guest guest]

From: JillcWood@...

I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to teach it

to him.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it was

to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a skill he

d

missed up to that point.

Jill it was great reading your post..can you tell me what if any visual or

auditory education materials were used for your son Ian to get the concept?

Or maybe what approach orally? do you know what I am trying to ask? Am I

making it sound difficult for you to understand what I am saying?

Since you have been there done that ..you can tell me what I should be

including in Dakotas everyday training?

Thank you ..

~Cathy~

[Guest guest]

From: JillcWood@...

I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to teach it

to him.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it was

to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a skill he

d

missed up to that point.

Jill it was great reading your post..can you tell me what if any visual or

auditory education materials were used for your son Ian to get the concept?

Or maybe what approach orally? do you know what I am trying to ask? Am I

making it sound difficult for you to understand what I am saying?

Since you have been there done that ..you can tell me what I should be

including in Dakotas everyday training?

Thank you ..

~Cathy~

[Guest guest]

From: JillcWood@...

I knew what he needed, but was clueless as to how to teach it

to him.

The Spec Ed teachers didn't get it. They thought he needed to read and

re-read the passages, that repetition was going to do it. Nope, that wasn't

cutting it at all.

Thanks goodness the TOD got it. Ian literally needed to learn what it was

to

infer meaning, how something could hint at a meaning without saying it and

how to recognize the clues as to what was really meant. This was a skill he

d

missed up to that point.

Jill it was great reading your post..can you tell me what if any visual or

auditory education materials were used for your son Ian to get the concept?

Or maybe what approach orally? do you know what I am trying to ask? Am I

making it sound difficult for you to understand what I am saying?

Since you have been there done that ..you can tell me what I should be

including in Dakotas everyday training?

Thank you ..

~Cathy~

[Guest guest]

In a message dated 2/25/2006 9:38:14 P.M. Eastern Standard Time,

guidish_family@... writes:

Jill it was great reading your post..can you tell me what if any visual or

auditory education materials were used for your son Ian to get the concept?

Or maybe what approach orally? do you know what I am trying to ask? Am I

making it sound difficult for you to understand what I am saying?

Since you have been there done that ..you can tell me what I should be

including in Dakotas everyday training?

Thank you ..

~Cathy~

I know exactly what you're asking, but it's a hard thing to answer. Ian

was/is so very verbal. We never really added in visual clues for helping with

language development. I know what Ian's issues were, and that doesn't mean that

other D/HOH kids are going to miss the same stuff. He was so-o-o-o very late

in having his hearing loss identified that it makes him a bit of an oddity.

Our TOD had specific things she worked on. One was idioms ... she had a book

of them and they would chose one a week and learn about it: where it came

from, where it's used and he'd have to ask people (grandparents, parents) about

idioms they use that are similar in meaning. For instance " let the cat out of

the bag. " The idiom we use for that meaning is " slip of the tongue. "

Which, if you think about it literally, is really just as strange a thing to

say

as " let the cat out of the bag. " :Learning about idioms seemed to unlock the

concept for Ian that language is not concrete, that it can be very nuanced.

As for the meaning of passages, we'd give names to thinks we read. We'd talk

about the " big idea " of something he was reading or watching on TV, as

opposed to the " little details. " For instance, what was the lesson we were

suppose to learn in an episode of the Cosby Show -- (there was usually a lesson

of

some sort.) We'd ask " why " questions and discuss the " hints " they'd used to

show/teach us the lesson.

When reading, we talked about the passages/chapters like a there was a

mystery happening with hints being given that are part of the story, but tell

us

more than just the simple storyline. The book that seemed to really help Ian

get this concept is called " The War With Grandpa. " It's about a boy whose

grandfather has to come live with them. The boy has to give up his bedroom

because Grandpa can't handle the stairs to the guest room. The boy tries to

drive

his Grandfather out of HIS room, and in the end comes to a greater understand

of the whole situation. It's not a really subtle story for us grownups, but

it is the one that had the " Aha " moment for Ian about " hints and clues. " Ian

empathized with both the boy and the Grandpa.

Ian also carried on a journal with his TOD. She referred to it as a Dialog

Journal. It was like a series of informal letters in a notebook. He would write

a couple paragraphs about what he'd done over the weekend. She would then

respond and in her answer to him, model correct language usage for things he

was telling her about. No red pencil or correcting him, she'd tell about

similar things her son had done, or ask him questions to draw out more details.

He

was not directly graded on it, but he could earn points. She would attach

vocabulary sheets to the inner covers. In the younger grades it was things like

lists of alternative choice for " nice " or " fun " or " hard. " He'd earn points

when he used the vocabulary from the lists. The points would add up and he'd

get to pick a " reward. "

Those rewards were things we had established to be done at home. Things like

going to the movies alone with dad, an afternoon of shooting rockets at the

park, an afternoon of mountain biking ... things he likes to do but we often

don't have time to do. Or things he like that his little sister couldn't keep

up with back then (mountain biking). These treats were never expensive or

food/candy/toys.

When they started this journal, it was like pulling teeth to get 3

paragraphs out of Ian. By the time he'd outgrown it (during 8th grade) he could

write

3 pages in a sitting. But then they'd moved on to other goals within that

writing, like overall structure and organization for telling/relating a story.

The journal enabled him to feel relaxed, more casual in his approach to

writing. It was no longer a formal writing assignment, it was more of a fun

exchange of letters between friends. The TOD would very intentionally direct the

topics, but the approach was informal. Ian's overall language improved

amazingly through this process. And, it didn't work for several of her other

D/HOH

kids.

As for what we did around the home .. mostly we became aware of how Ian was

missing language. We started to play more word games, especially in the car

as we drove. We've always done this in some form, now we did it more

intentionally. We'd find all the alternatives for " lazy " or " ugly " or whatever

someone

said. For instance ... " that was the ugliest dog I've ever seen " would cause

someone else to say it was the most hideous dog in the world ... no, the

most revolting ... which could then move onto why the dog was starting a

revolution and the play would move onto alternatives for " revolt " like uprising,

insurgency, or perhaps he was part of a band of canine freedom fighters ...

pure

silliness with a point.

Or we'd intentionally mis-hear what someone said. This is still a favorite

game! We then come up with all the rhyming alternatives we could think of.

Freedom fighters could have been fire fighters ... uprising could be surprising

..... we can keep this up for a half hour or more if the kids are in the

right mood.

It's hard to remember just what we did - Ian is now 15 and he was 8-9 at

that time. What I do know is that we simply became aware and so we started

intentionally exploring and explaining the meaning of things. We'd talk about

song

lyrics, and ask " why " an awful lot. Once I understood the source of the

problem, the solutions seemed obvious. For us a big part was word games.

Sorry to have rambled on ... dinner is calling.

Best -- Jill