Amazing Megan Swanson Is Back Again!

Megan one of my AVT graduates, a 2018 Netflix's Nailed It contestant, and the 2017 Miss Amazing Miss National Winner will be speaking at the AG Bell Convention in Arizona this Saturday on the "Experiences in the Workplace" panel sharing stories, experiences, and tips about integrating hearing loss, work and career. Megan will be joined by Justin Osmond and Elena LaQuatra at the Experiences in the Workplace Panel.

After years of listening and spoken language intervention, I am looking forward to being in the audience listening to Megan speak and share her words of wisdom.

 Yes, Megan is AMAZING!

A Listening and Spoken Language Journey - 20 Years Later

Dear Skye Serena,

I have many wonderful memories of week after week and year after year together with you and your family as you learned to listen and talk. I am grateful your family trusted me to guide and come beside them as your auditory verbal therapist twenty years ago. Take pride in how far you have come and have faith in how far you can go.

You are amazing.

Love,

Lynn

Skye and Lynn  - June 2018

"One day our patients will be able to tell their own stories, and we will no longer have to convince naysayers that deaf children can listen and speak." Richard T. Miyamoto, M.D.

20 Years Ago

Your first long awaited cochlear implant surgery.

Children's Miracle Network - so fun to see you posted at Speedway stations!

It takes a village. Three generations of strong women!

Baby Ayla Can Learn To Listen and Talk

The beautiful story from an Auditory Verbal family the day after one-year-old Ayla hears with her cochlear implants for the first time. Dad and Mom talk about the power of hearing for children who are deaf or hard of hearing to learn to listen and talk. 

 At Hearing First, we want all children to benefit from the availability of newborn hearing screening and for parents to learn the status of their baby’s hearing first. Hearing is a foundational building block for children to learn to listen and talk, become healthy readers, and do well in school.

Today, children who are deaf or hard of hearing can learn to listen and talk and achieve learning and literacy outcomes on par with their hearing friends. The earlier a child with hearing loss is identified, amplified, and receiving help, the more opportunities that child will have. We want all children to have the opportunity to take advantage of access to sound
 – a critical building block for future success. 

Want to learn more? 

Click HERE

Kicking Off Summer Read Aloud

Summer by Alice Low

 is my kick off to the season read aloud in AVT. 

Listening to the rhyming text leads to prediction and auditory closure skills.

 “Oh, the wonderful things that summer brings—swimming at the beach, making sand castles, catching butterflies, eating watermelon, toasting marshmallows, watching fireworks!” 

Turtle Crossing and Auditory Verbal Therapy

I told a Little Listener and his Dad that I saw a big turtle in the middle of the road this morning.

 Hours later I received a text from their Nanny saying he told her the story about the turtle. This 3 year old listened, comprehended, remembered and retold the story later in the day! WooHoo! 

My turtle adventure turned into this language rich turtle craft.

Scripps National Spelling Bee 2018

Listen to Neil Maes spell and move on to Round Three at the 

Scripps National Spelling Bee 2018. 

Listening and spoken language skills lead to literacy in kids who are deaf and hard of hearing. #auditoryverbaltherapy, #HearSayLW,#cochlearimplants #deaf

Meaningful Counseling Narrative That Explains Hearing Loss and Technology for Families

Link: The Ears Are Doorways to the Brain

Phonak Insight in January 2018, published this article

 and included the  summary below,

 This paper has proposed a counseling narrative that explains hearing loss and technology in a way that is meaningful for families. Since approximately 95% of children with hearing loss are born to hearing and speaking families, listening and talking will likely be desired outcomes for the vast majority of families we serve. Families need support in understanding what it takes to attain their desired outcome. 

Below are summary bullets for professionals and caregivers regarding this counseling narrative: 

• The ears are the doorways to the brain 
• Hearing occurs in the brain because we listen and understand with the brain, not the ear 
• Sound = auditory information = knowledge 
• Hearing is a stepping stone to cognition 
• Hearing loss is often a fixable doorway problem 
• Modern hearing technologies are designed to break through the ear/doorway to deliver auditory information to the brain 
• Hearing technologies must be worn at least 10 hours per day 
• Better quality and greater quantity of information delivered to the brain means stronger neural pathways are developed and more knowledge is gained

This white paper is authored by my mentor and dear friend Carol Flexer.