Tips for the Holidays

We've all been there. We find ourselves this time of year walking into a family member's house to celebrate the holidays with children who have hearing loss, a crowd of people chatting (often loudly) catching up on a year's worth of history, Christmas music blaring in the background...

It can be stressful for adults, let alone the children who struggle to hear basic conversation at times like these. Here are some tips from expert Paula Rosenthal at Hearing Exchange to make these situations easier.

"1.  Include Your Child in the Planning

 2.  Arrange Strategic Seating Assignments

 3.  Consider Using an FM Listening Device

 4.  Keep the Music Down

 5.  Develop a Signal"

To read her complete article, visit her website.

Usually family is very understanding and will accommodate you much more willingly with prior notice. Walking in and turning the music down in their home or rearranging seating can seem rude but a quick phone call or email a few days prior to the visit will be appreciated. Not only will the hostess thank you, your child with hearing loss will too, and everyone should be more comfortable.

PEEPs to visit Imagination Place (N & Central AL)

If you are in North or Central Alabama and have a hearing impaired child, please come out to Imagination Place in downtown Gadsden on Sunday Nov 7 from 2-3:30 p.m. Imagination Place has a neat children's museum and guests will be treated to some fun and crafty activities. Email Val to RSVP by October 28 and be sure to include how many tickets you'll need and ages of the children. For more information click here.

Two PEEPs Bounce and Play Events set for South Alabama

Come bounce and play Saturday, November 6 from 11:30-1:30 at Pump It Up in Mobile. Pump it Up is located at 741-A Hillcrest Road. Socks are required. There is no charge for deaf children. If siblings want to bounce there is a $6 fee per child. Space is limited! Reservations must be made by Friday, November 4 to ashley.peeps@yahoo.com

Our second event will be held Saturday, December 4 from 1:00-3:00pm at The Little Gym of the Eastern Shore in Daphne. The Little Gym is located at 6900 U.S. Highway 90, Suite 11, next to the Rave Movie Theater. Reservations are required and spots are limited. Reservations must be made by Friday, December 3 to ashley.peeps@yahoo.com

Refreshments and snacks will be provided at both events. To reserve you spot email ashley.peeps@yahoo.com with the number of spots you need!

HEAR Center Pumpkin Patch 2010

Many families from the HEAR Center gathered Saturday at Bennett Farms in Heflin, to enjoy a beautiful day at the pumpkin patch. There was a hay ride, pumpkin paiting, a hay maze and more! The petting zoo seemed to be a big hit with the children.

PEEPs in the Park-Daphne 2010

We had such a great visit to Daphne, AL. If you missed this PEEPs in the Park, check out the pictures from this event. We had lots of children and the scenery could not have been more beautiful.

HEAR Center families: Pumpkin Patch in October

Call 205-939-5816 by 4:30 p.m. on 9/27/10 if you would like to reserve your family's tickets. Be sure to leave the number of adults and children on the message. HEAR Center will buy the first 3 tickets per family. Additional tickets are $5 each with reservations. This event is for HEAR Center patients only.

Come out to the pumpkin patch

Date: October 2, 2010

Time: 10:30 a.m.

Place: Bennet Farms

Address: 1073 Co Rd 13, Heflin 35264

RSVP required: 205-939-5816 or email

Click here for more info about Bennet Farms

PEEPs in the Park-Daphne

PEEPs IN THE PARK

Saturday, September 25

10 a.m. -12 noon

May Day Pier & Park

Daphne, Alabama

Please RSVP Ashley.peeps@yahoo.com by Sept. 24

PEEPs IN THE PARK allows children with hearing loss and

their families to meet, play and share their experiences.

We want all the families from South Alabama to come out

and meet each other. Refreshments will be provided, so

come out and play!

Journey to Adulthood Workshop

Free workshop Saturday Aug. 14 from 9am-12pm at Central United Methodist Church (library)

616 Jackson St SE  in Decatur 

presented by Alabama Parent Education Center

for parents with children ages 9-22 with disabilities

Topics include rights, social relationships and much more!

PEEPs in the Park-Decatur

Our next PEEPs in the Park will be Aug. 14 from 10-12 in Decatur at Adventure Park. Click here for more info about the park.

We will serve refershments as usual and hope many of our Central and North Alabama families can come. Many of our new families would love to see you there so even if you came to the last park event try to make plans to visit this large and exciting park also!

Please email (click here) to RSVP by Aug. 11 and we look forward to seeing you all there. In the event of undesirable weather, this event will be rescheduled.

PEEP This! Magazines

Parent tested and approved! Before you throw out your discarded reading materials, such as magazines, think about how much at-home therapy you could squeeze out of them. From hunting to fashion magazines you could drain these items for lots of vocabulary. Then get creative. If age appropriate, ask your child to point to or cut out pics of things that begin (or end) with the /s/ sound. Ask for things that belong in the kitchen or items that keep us warm. The possibilities are endless!

These therapy tips may or may not have come directly from a speech-language pathologist or auditory verbal therapist, nor is it meant to replace any current therapy. Should you have questions, ask your child's therapist!

Girls Just Gotta Have Funds

(all info posted directly from a Children's HEAR Center email alert)
Come shop with us at Inverness Corners (on the corner of Valleydale Road and Hwy 280)

Early Bird Sale: Thursday, July 15 5:00-8:00 p.m. (Admission $5.00)

Friday, July 16: 7:00 a.m. - 1:00 p.m., 3:00 - 7:00 pm

Saturday, July 17: 7:00 am-1:00 pm

(All merchandise 1/2 price after 12:00 pm on Saturday)

Adult clothing, furniture, household items, kitchen appliances, baby and children's toys and clothing, holiday décor, and more!!

Brought to you by The Charity League
All proceeds from the annual Girls Just Gotta Have Funds Garage Sale go to Charity League benefactors, including the Children's HEAR Center. Did you know the Charity League gave over $61,200 in 2010 to the Hearing and Speech Department at CHS? These funds include scholarships for HEAR Center families with financial need purchase hearing aids or cochlear implant equipment. Another scholarship provides a set of hearing aids at no cost to children who have hearing loss as a result of cancer treatment. They also provide initial earmolds for every HEAR Center patient and care kits for those fit with loaner hearing aids. Every family at the HEAR Center has benefitted from TCL's generosity to some degree!
 

PEEP This! Social Security/Hearing Loss

ASHA posted this info on Facebook and it could affect many Alabamians in regards to pediatric hearing loss (families and professionals). Read what took place during their amendments to determining if a child is disabled. Click here.

PEEP This! Let the music play

Parent tested and approved. When listening to music, point to your ear to acknowledge that a sound is present, then begin to dance around. Encourage your child to do the same. Then, secretly turn it off and freeze. The idea is to acknowledge not only sound, but the absence of it as well. This could help a small child bring attention to a hearing device when batteries run down or other disruptions occur in their accessing sound. Repeat this activity daily or weekly, making sure the child doesn't visibly see you turn it off or may not get a true auditory-only response.




These therapy tips may or may not have come directly from a speech-language pathologist or auditory verbal therapist, nor is it meant to replace any current therapy. Should you have questions, ask your child's therapist!

PEEP This! Hide & Seek

Parent tested and approved! Did you know, playing hide-and-go-seek with children, in doors or out, can be a fun listening game and build language. We don't recommend the old fashioned silent game of hide and seek anymore. Instead, ask your child to count while you go hide. Give your child verbal cues to come find you. You can make noises of varying pitches and volumes, or you can shout hints to build language. "I'm inside something green" or "I'm near something you can wear." You can change up your hints to compliment your therapy as well from rooms of the house, to things found outside. You'll be helping your hearing impaired child build language, localize sounds, and verbalize instruction as well so be sure you take turns!

These therapy tips may or may not have come directly from a speech-language pathologist or auditory verbal therapist, nor is it meant to replace any current therapy. Should you have questions, ask your child's therapist!

PEEP This! Fast Fact on CRS & EI

Did you know, children under the age of three who qualify for early intervention (EI) services can receive therapies such as (OT) Occupational Therapy, (PT) Physical Therapy, Speech Therapy (just to name a few), or even a combination of therapies, from their natural environments such as home, daycare, etc.?
Click here to find out more

Did you know, CRS (Children's Rehab Services) can serve any Alabama child younger than 21 who has special health care needs? According to their booklet,

"Families participate in the cost of services for their child based on a sliding fee schedule and by using any Medicaid or insurance coverage."

Some families, according to their household income, may not be required to pay any portion of certain medical care when provided through CRS. To find out more click here.

PEEP This! Show & Tell

When describing your child's hearing loss to their school or childcare provider, having a copy of an audiogram such as this or the one found here (click link for another example) , may help them to visually see what your child can and cannot hear. A copy of their personal audiogram from the audiologist (if you can provide one) paired with one displaying where speech sounds fall like this chart, may help provide a better understanding of your child's hearing loss. Keep in mind, classrooms and daycares are much noisier than the sound proof booths that the audiologists use for testing so remind them that background noises can certainly lesson what they may see on paper as the amount of hearing your child has with his or her hearing device(s).

PEEP's Survey

Please take a moment to complete our parent survey for those who live in Alabama, to help PEEPs better serve you! This is a nine question survey and takes approximately 3 minutes. Thank You!
Click here to take survey

PEEPS at the Park

PEEPs would like to thank Christie Rather Photography for donating her time to come out to the PEEPs picnic and take photos of the event. The Charity League ladies were also out volunteering as well. The temperatures soared but the children had fun, and the parents did as well. Events like these give parents a chance to talk to other parents in similar situations. PEEPs hopes to have more events like this in the future around the state for those who may not live in the Birmingham area. Again, thank you for coming out, we had a blast, and we can't wait to see you all again real soon!

A.G.Bell offers free membership

Click Here to take advantage of AG Bell's temporary free 6 month membership offer for parents!

PEEP This! Fast Fact on Letter Writing

According to ADAP on letter writing (click here, see page 85)...
Contacting your school is best done through letter writing. Although emails also leave paper trails, they can get lost or overlooked or get filed under spam mail. Phone calls should always be documented and beginning on page 85 of link above, they give you examples of not only letter writing, but of how to document phone calls as well. They recommend letter writing because you can write it, set it aside for a day, reread it and have others read and make recommendations before you send it to the school. If you are unsure who to direct your concerns with, ADAP recommends sending letter to the principal so he/she can send to the appropriate party. I highly recommend you look at these examples so you can give clear messages, and get clear responses. Always date your letters, even notes to your teacher, remembering they sometimes have substitute teachers on days you may send a letter with your child. Also recommended is stating concerns in fact, rather than emotion. I prefer to use statements such as "He needs ....." rather than "We feel like he...." for example. More Fast Facts to come. Check out ADAP's website for more info.

PEEP This! Fast Fact

According to ADAP's publication "A Right NOT A FAVOR" (click here, see page 6), if you choose to place your child in a private school, religious school or in AL, even home school your children, IDEA requires the school district to create a Services Plan rather than an IEP. Child Find first determines if the child is eligible. ADAP also notes that parents and teachers have very little say in determining the services which will be provided under a Services Plan. Visit ADAP's (Alabama Disabilities Advocacy Program) site here.

Facebook Fan Page

Click on the Facebook badge in the right-hand column to connect with PEEPs on Facebook. Receive even more information about what's going on in Alabama about children with hearing loss.

Picnic at the Park

Children's Hear Center

May 22nd from 11:00 to 2:00 p.m.

Homewood Park

1632 Oxmoor Rd

Homewood, Alabama

 

R.S.V.P. required - email or call 205-939-5816 to specify the number of children and adults in your family who will attend

*Meet other HEAR Center families and make new friends

*Enjoy games, crafts, and other entertainment just for our kids

*Explore the awesome playground

*Refuel with a complimentary barbeque lunch for all that RSVP

*Meet our PEEPs - a new parent mentoring group here to serve the needs of families all over the state of Alabama!

'New Resource for Families'

'New Resource for Families'

Announcement from the Children's HEAR Center
(click link to view)

SHAA Convention

PEEPs will be represented at the SHAA Convention

March 11-13 at The Wynfrey Hotel in Birmingham

at the Riverchase Galleria

Come by our booth and pick up some information

about Alabama's new parent mentoring program

for families who have children with hearing loss