Our team run sessions across Hertfordshire for deaf babies, toddlers, children and their families. The sessions, called Chicks, helps to develop children's communication skills through a range of fun activities.
Chicks:
- Provides free play activities, including arts and crafts, imaginative play, puzzles and games, and sensory play. This supports deaf children to understand communication through play and social interaction.
- Supports listening and signing skills with song, rhyme and story times.
- Provides a weekly programme of activities to improve language, literacy and numeracy skills.
- Provides support for parents and carers, who can discuss their concerns with an expert. Our team can also give parents and carers resources and ideas to support their child at home.
- An Educational Audiologist, Deaf Communication Specialist and Cued Speech Family Support Practitioner attend these sessions to support discussion around communication choices.
If you'd like to get in touch with the Chicks team, please email dhssreferrals@hertfordshire.gov.uk.
Home visits
ToDs carry out home visits for pre-school age children. The range of support we offer includes:
- Management of hearing equipment
- Introduction to language and listening activities
- Support to create a positive communication environment within the home
- Signposting families to charities, organisations and funding that support deaf children and families
- Talking to/meeting the audiology team and attendance at clinic when appropriate
- Monitoring language and listening development, including referrals to the Speech and Language Team if appropriate.
Our Deaf Communication Specialist also supports families and children with language development at home, in early years settings, or school. This may include:
- a block of regular sessions for family sign classes at home
- improving communication, interaction and understanding of deaf culture
- introduction to a positive deaf role model
- developing deaf identities to improve self-confidence and self-esteem
- introduction of deaf children and their families to deaf culture, deaf community and deaf events
- providing resources to support your child’s learning needs - for example:
Our ToDs provide staff at preschools and schools with practical ways to support deaf pupils to learn and progress. This includes:
- Visits to support reasonable adjustments
- Use strategies to support pupils learning with the class, including providing visual aids in lessons and supporting pupils to contribute in group discussions.
- Support deaf pupils during lunch and break times, which can often be challenging times for them
- Support staff to use technology such as Assistive Listening Devices
- Deliver training to key members of staff or the wider provision
- Attending meetings with the deaf child, parents/carers, audiology centres and other professionals as appropriate
- Writing reports to support transition or to focus on outcomes
- Attendance at EHCP meetings or submission of a report
- Helping with transitions from school to post-16 provision
Sometimes our ToDs will work directly with a pupil on a regular basis, or may give 1 to 1 support in the classroom. This is for pupils with the most severe needs (they may be in a special school or have an Education, Health and Care Plan).
Our Deaf Communication Specialist also supports families and children with language development at home, in early years settings, or school. This may include:
- a block of regular sessions for family sign classes at home
- improving communication, interaction and understanding of deaf culture
- introduction to a positive deaf role model
- developing deaf identities to improve self-confidence and self-esteem
- introduction of deaf children and their families to deaf culture, deaf community and deaf events
- provision of resources to support your child’s learning needs
Our ToDs support the needs of deaf young people in Sixth Forms and Colleges. This may include: