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Speaking Deaf Babies.

Tips for interacting with family and friends

Humans are social animals. Many aspects of interacting with family, close relatives, and friends tend to be overlooked but these are very important to keep in mind for ensuring a healthy emotional development of the child, who can grow into a self-confident adult.

  1. Parents need to make effort to help their child find friends.
  2. The family members need to be inclusive. As it can be difficult for a child with hearing loss to learn a second language, the family members should encourage others to speak in a common language which the child can communicate in, so that the child does not feel isolated.
  3. Allow the child to speak instead of brushing them off or interrupting them.
  4. While playing games during family or friend gatherings, include a variety of games, especially games that rely more on visual input than audio (for example: pictionary, puzzles, board games, instead of antakshari). It helps the child to feel included.
  5. Avoid being overprotective and underestimating. Don’t praise the child for every little thing.
  6. Expect the child to perform on par with a child of same age but with typical hearing