This is just a short note of something that made me smile. In music class Peter stole all of my sticks we were supposed to be using to produce different sounds. Instead he proceeds to make a square with the sticks on the floor, then tell me it's a bath, then pretend to wash his foot in it.
Yes, it was cute. Yes, he wasn't doing what the rest of the class was doing. But, to create an image in one's head and then a representation in reality, and communicate what is being represented, all of that requires the brain to plan, remember, and execute. All of that requires higher thinking skills that go beyond echoing a sentence, all of that requires that a brain have language. So this little action made me smile and showed me there is plenty going on in that head.
Monday, March 9, 2015
Saturday, November 29, 2014
Transition to IEP, or what on earth will I do?
We have officially started the process of moving from county services to school district services. The process starts at a child's age of about 2.5years, and is complete by age 3. I have had a pretty clear mental map of the last two years. I had my binge of research when Peter was first identified as profoundly deaf, and plotted our path through hearing aids, CI surgery, and the first year of hearing. I had decided that the best option was to send Peter to a specialized school two days a week for at least two years. I never planned beyond that because I didn't know where Peter would be with his language.
Now I have to figure out what happens next. All this talk of IEP teams, and decisions, and what qualifies and what doesn't qualify for services. What do I want? What will the district offer? Will I even want what they offer?
My home school district is small. They have managed their budgets as well as could be expected with the state funding cuts over the last few years, but when they don't have the money to pay for classrooms to be cleaned every night I don't think they have oodles of money to spare. So how will money affect decision-making? Their SLP is very nice, but has only worked with one CI kid, and that was more than eight years ago. How will that play into things? I want to visit the public options for deaf preschools, and they would be less of a commute, but what if they are filled with kids with limited language, and are places where Peter would not be taught to think and speak his thoughts. What if the "least restrictive" environment is determined to be the one that we have to keep paying for?
So I am feeling a bit apprehensive. And while Peter is doing really well. I don't think I could JUST do regular preschool. I think we need some kind of continuing support. Maybe that means the school or us paying for AVT once a week, and a regular preschool, and Music Together. Then there is all the drama about finding the right regular preschool!
Here is the latest video!
Now I have to figure out what happens next. All this talk of IEP teams, and decisions, and what qualifies and what doesn't qualify for services. What do I want? What will the district offer? Will I even want what they offer?
My home school district is small. They have managed their budgets as well as could be expected with the state funding cuts over the last few years, but when they don't have the money to pay for classrooms to be cleaned every night I don't think they have oodles of money to spare. So how will money affect decision-making? Their SLP is very nice, but has only worked with one CI kid, and that was more than eight years ago. How will that play into things? I want to visit the public options for deaf preschools, and they would be less of a commute, but what if they are filled with kids with limited language, and are places where Peter would not be taught to think and speak his thoughts. What if the "least restrictive" environment is determined to be the one that we have to keep paying for?
So I am feeling a bit apprehensive. And while Peter is doing really well. I don't think I could JUST do regular preschool. I think we need some kind of continuing support. Maybe that means the school or us paying for AVT once a week, and a regular preschool, and Music Together. Then there is all the drama about finding the right regular preschool!
Here is the latest video!
Monday, July 28, 2014
Not a cow!
I haven't been writing as much lately as I have been busy enjoying summer! I am loving the lack of driving, being able to do some gardening, and going on a family trip!
But there have been a couple things that I wanted to note as milestones. First, Peter can now put his headpieces back on himself! This is huge, as it gives him more control over his technology and how he uses it. He sometimes wears his Naidas (behind the ear processors), but usually my feisty, active, rough housing guy is sporting his Neptunes in pockets on his shirt. The cables are threaded through a buttonhole I made in each side of the collar, so if he knocks the headpiece off, it just dangles. Now he can get it and stick it back on, though usually with the cable pointed up, and his hair extra crazy ;)
Also, Peter has been asking for his ears (or the shirt with the CI's in it) in the morning and after nap! Now, it isn't 100%, and there are still plenty of times during tantrums when he takes his ears off, but in general he is great about wearing them, and I am so happy he is asking for them!
Finally, a glimpse of how much CI kids really can overhear and learn naturally: yesterday we walked to the dog park with my mom, and Peter was walking with me, at least 10 feet back (outside, with freeway and other car noise nearby). My mom told her dog to stop eating grass, that he wasn't a cow. Today, on a hike, Peter looked down at Guiness (my mom's dog), who was eating grass and blocking the trail, and yelled "Not a cow!" At first I was confused, then I realized why he was saying it, and I just laughed! So much speech therapy is focused on auditory memory, so it makes me worried I don't work on that enough, but when he overhears an expression one day and uses it correctly the next it makes me feel like he is on the right track, and will do just fine.
I will leave you with a short clip I filmed before the end of of school. We obviously watched Frozen a few times!
But there have been a couple things that I wanted to note as milestones. First, Peter can now put his headpieces back on himself! This is huge, as it gives him more control over his technology and how he uses it. He sometimes wears his Naidas (behind the ear processors), but usually my feisty, active, rough housing guy is sporting his Neptunes in pockets on his shirt. The cables are threaded through a buttonhole I made in each side of the collar, so if he knocks the headpiece off, it just dangles. Now he can get it and stick it back on, though usually with the cable pointed up, and his hair extra crazy ;)
Also, Peter has been asking for his ears (or the shirt with the CI's in it) in the morning and after nap! Now, it isn't 100%, and there are still plenty of times during tantrums when he takes his ears off, but in general he is great about wearing them, and I am so happy he is asking for them!
Finally, a glimpse of how much CI kids really can overhear and learn naturally: yesterday we walked to the dog park with my mom, and Peter was walking with me, at least 10 feet back (outside, with freeway and other car noise nearby). My mom told her dog to stop eating grass, that he wasn't a cow. Today, on a hike, Peter looked down at Guiness (my mom's dog), who was eating grass and blocking the trail, and yelled "Not a cow!" At first I was confused, then I realized why he was saying it, and I just laughed! So much speech therapy is focused on auditory memory, so it makes me worried I don't work on that enough, but when he overhears an expression one day and uses it correctly the next it makes me feel like he is on the right track, and will do just fine.
I will leave you with a short clip I filmed before the end of of school. We obviously watched Frozen a few times!
Friday, May 16, 2014
ASL moments
Today was our last Playgroup at the School for the Deaf for the school year. While we are there Peter watches a lot, but doesn't really engage others in conversations, well, except for MORE CRACKER ;). So I am going out of my way to give him all this ASL input- is he getting anything out of it?
At the end of Playgroup we had time to take part in another research study, this one by ASL BabyLab, which tracked eye movements to judge response to ASL. Two pictures were shown on a tv screen, then a signer in the video asked about one of the items using only sign, and a video camera mounted above the tv tracked where Peter looked. I could also tell where he was looking, as he was sitting my lap. I am proud to say he pretty much nailed every one! AND he even learned the sign for DOLL, which I didn't know (so didn't use) and he figured it out by process of elimination the first time he saw it, and was quick to identify it the next times he saw it. Peter was a rock star, and got a red t-shirt proclaiming him a Jr. Scientist for his efforts :)
While Peter and I were in the video booth Sam even got into the ASL mood by asking to watch the Signed Stories app (so great BTW) with the spoken narration turned off! I was a bit surprised the ASL BabyLab guy had never seen the app before, but he was quite impressed with Samantha :)
Then it was some errands and home for an attempted nap. The nap never happened, but this cute interaction did. Peter started in ASL, then when I turned on the camera, it was mostly me signing, and Peter talking, though he does use some signs in the video, too:
At the end of Playgroup we had time to take part in another research study, this one by ASL BabyLab, which tracked eye movements to judge response to ASL. Two pictures were shown on a tv screen, then a signer in the video asked about one of the items using only sign, and a video camera mounted above the tv tracked where Peter looked. I could also tell where he was looking, as he was sitting my lap. I am proud to say he pretty much nailed every one! AND he even learned the sign for DOLL, which I didn't know (so didn't use) and he figured it out by process of elimination the first time he saw it, and was quick to identify it the next times he saw it. Peter was a rock star, and got a red t-shirt proclaiming him a Jr. Scientist for his efforts :)
While Peter and I were in the video booth Sam even got into the ASL mood by asking to watch the Signed Stories app (so great BTW) with the spoken narration turned off! I was a bit surprised the ASL BabyLab guy had never seen the app before, but he was quite impressed with Samantha :)
Then it was some errands and home for an attempted nap. The nap never happened, but this cute interaction did. Peter started in ASL, then when I turned on the camera, it was mostly me signing, and Peter talking, though he does use some signs in the video, too:
Thursday, May 15, 2014
One Year of Hearing!
Today is the first anniversary of Peter's first activation. I am hoping to film him and add that, but unfortunately he seems to have come down with a cold and is not feeling great, so we will see.
This last year has been intense, to say the least. Peter is doing so well, even better then predicted, so I can't complain. As much as I hate being so busy and driving so much each week, I am overjoyed about the results. Right now we have 2 mornings of Oral school (class is 9:00-11:30, with 30 minutes of that time with a speech therapist), one morning with a 45 minute Music Together class followed a 60 minutes AVT session, and occasional play dates at the School for the Deaf to see ASL in action. I had given up on the county services because they were so depressing, but they are revamping the program starting with summer session, so I might see if it's any better. I don't think you have to do as much as we do to be as successful, but I don't want to cut back on what seems to be working for us.
Peter's vocabulary continues to grow weekly, if not daily, so it's impossible to keep an accurate list! I will add a document showing signed and spoken vocab growth over the last six months, but since I did it for his birthday it is already out of date ;)
Two-word combos are frequent, three words are coming along nicely ("Where mama car?" Or "Where red vacuum?" for example). Peter has some great listening skills- last night from across the room and up half a flight of stairs he heard the door open and shouted "Hello, Daddy!" As my husband came home. He said it so clearly my husband thought it was our 5-year-old daughter!
Current obsessions: the Music Together song "Hop Ol' Squirrel", watering things with the spray nozzle of the hose (sisters included), opening doors, or just shouting "open!" when he sees doors, clocks ("Tick-tick, tick-tick!!!) and identifying people who are crying (and if it is his sisters, making fun of them for it !)
Below: one poorly filmed, hastily edited video snapshot of where we are.
Right now I feel like we are in the middle of scaling Half-Dome. The climb is not over. We are securely tied in, and I don't think we are going to fall at all, but there is still a lot of hard work to do. We will pay for one more year of school, and we have one more year of coverage for the AVT therapy, then we are in the hands of our school district (which is tiny, and I don't think they have ever had a CI kid, and maybe not even any deaf or hard-of-hearing kids). I feel like that set of transitions will be like stepping off of Half Dome, so I had better get to the top before they happen ;).
This last year has been intense, to say the least. Peter is doing so well, even better then predicted, so I can't complain. As much as I hate being so busy and driving so much each week, I am overjoyed about the results. Right now we have 2 mornings of Oral school (class is 9:00-11:30, with 30 minutes of that time with a speech therapist), one morning with a 45 minute Music Together class followed a 60 minutes AVT session, and occasional play dates at the School for the Deaf to see ASL in action. I had given up on the county services because they were so depressing, but they are revamping the program starting with summer session, so I might see if it's any better. I don't think you have to do as much as we do to be as successful, but I don't want to cut back on what seems to be working for us.
Peter's vocabulary continues to grow weekly, if not daily, so it's impossible to keep an accurate list! I will add a document showing signed and spoken vocab growth over the last six months, but since I did it for his birthday it is already out of date ;)
Two-word combos are frequent, three words are coming along nicely ("Where mama car?" Or "Where red vacuum?" for example). Peter has some great listening skills- last night from across the room and up half a flight of stairs he heard the door open and shouted "Hello, Daddy!" As my husband came home. He said it so clearly my husband thought it was our 5-year-old daughter!
Current obsessions: the Music Together song "Hop Ol' Squirrel", watering things with the spray nozzle of the hose (sisters included), opening doors, or just shouting "open!" when he sees doors, clocks ("Tick-tick, tick-tick!!!) and identifying people who are crying (and if it is his sisters, making fun of them for it !)
Below: one poorly filmed, hastily edited video snapshot of where we are.
Right now I feel like we are in the middle of scaling Half-Dome. The climb is not over. We are securely tied in, and I don't think we are going to fall at all, but there is still a lot of hard work to do. We will pay for one more year of school, and we have one more year of coverage for the AVT therapy, then we are in the hands of our school district (which is tiny, and I don't think they have ever had a CI kid, and maybe not even any deaf or hard-of-hearing kids). I feel like that set of transitions will be like stepping off of Half Dome, so I had better get to the top before they happen ;).
Friday, April 18, 2014
Lab Rat
Today we took part in a science experiment! I am not sure exactly what kind of results they are looking for, but it was run by a neurolinguistic lab out of one of our state universities. They did three separate experiments, all designed for CIkids who sign, too. The first one was auditory- Peter had CI's on, and watched a silent video, and they played some (loud) random noises. Peter had a little cap on with electrodes touching his scalp, and they recorded brain response to the noises. Peter just sat in my lap, and was completely unfazed, though I could tell the first loud noises were a bit startling. The second experiment he still had the cap on, but no CI's, and he watched a video (of a funny claymation penguin) with some random peripheral vision things once in a while. The last exercise was just a language (sign) survey- so no cap, and CI's were back on. One of the researchers would show a page with two pictures, sign one and ask which picture it was (in sign). Peter did so well! He didn't know the signs we don't use (like CANDY) and there were a couple where he liked one picture and was excited to touch it regardless of the question, but he got a huge majority right- and I have never done that kind of game/test with him at home in sign.
The whole thing, including picking a prize (toy tractor for Peter, $20 Target card for me) took less than an hour, and afterward we went to the playground for a little bit. It was beautiful and sunny, and a fun start to Peter's birthday weekend!
The whole thing, including picking a prize (toy tractor for Peter, $20 Target card for me) took less than an hour, and afterward we went to the playground for a little bit. It was beautiful and sunny, and a fun start to Peter's birthday weekend!
Sunday, April 6, 2014
Age-appropriate!
He is on the lower end of normal right now, but moving quickly. One therapist said she had never seen a child test at that level with less than a year of hearing. Our work is far from done, but it is such a relief to know that it is truly paying off. I think all those different pieces - family, me, signing as much as I could from birth, music class, school, and his three different speech therapists all contributed to his growth over the last year. We are doing so well we got booted from Baby Talk (a free FaceTime-delivered distance therapy program), so they can help families who need it more. Gotta say I don't mind being dropped because Peter is just doing so well.
I know not all kids are going to catch up like that. I think it is usually closer to three years old, but they do catch up, and are often ahead of hearing peers entering school! This technology is amazing!
Sunday, March 16, 2014
Uh Oh!
My poor neglected blog. I guess that is what happens when you juggle lots of things. I have been super busy working with Peter, plus doing costumes for my second grader's school play, and my iDevices all need to be cleaned out so I have enough memory to film and post videos....oh well.
Anyway, since this blog is supposed to help me document progress, I wanted to say that Peter let me know when the batteries in one of his processors went out! He has occasionally brought his BTE processors to me when they fall off, but he doesn't wear them all the time (as he has a habit of throwing things, and I don't want them thrown!) but yesterday he looked up at me, held out the processor for his Neptune (which had been tucked in a vest pocket) and said "Uh oh!". The headpiece (Or coil) was still on his head, so it wasn't that, then when I looked at the processor it had the flashing orange light indicating it was about to shut down because the battery was almost dead. So it could be a total fluke, because there are still plenty of times (like right before nap, or a tantrum) when he purposely takes off the headpieces. If he is not mad he usually leaves them alone, so I don't think they bother him, but this was the first times he called attention to it not working, not just that it had fallen off. So...he is bonding with them? I hope so. He doesn't seem to mind hearing. And I am pretty sure he likes hearing, especially listening to fun kid music.
When I told my husband that this was just the start of "reliable reporting" and that the continuum would stretch for several years until he could manage and trouble shoot any and all of his own hearing technology my husband was a bit surprised. And when I think that even after he is in grade school, and can tie his own shoes, and take the bus on his own, that I will still need to play a part in making sure things are working optimally it is sometimes daunting. But taking care of things while helping a child grow into their own responsibilities is what parents do, right?
Anyway, since this blog is supposed to help me document progress, I wanted to say that Peter let me know when the batteries in one of his processors went out! He has occasionally brought his BTE processors to me when they fall off, but he doesn't wear them all the time (as he has a habit of throwing things, and I don't want them thrown!) but yesterday he looked up at me, held out the processor for his Neptune (which had been tucked in a vest pocket) and said "Uh oh!". The headpiece (Or coil) was still on his head, so it wasn't that, then when I looked at the processor it had the flashing orange light indicating it was about to shut down because the battery was almost dead. So it could be a total fluke, because there are still plenty of times (like right before nap, or a tantrum) when he purposely takes off the headpieces. If he is not mad he usually leaves them alone, so I don't think they bother him, but this was the first times he called attention to it not working, not just that it had fallen off. So...he is bonding with them? I hope so. He doesn't seem to mind hearing. And I am pretty sure he likes hearing, especially listening to fun kid music.
When I told my husband that this was just the start of "reliable reporting" and that the continuum would stretch for several years until he could manage and trouble shoot any and all of his own hearing technology my husband was a bit surprised. And when I think that even after he is in grade school, and can tie his own shoes, and take the bus on his own, that I will still need to play a part in making sure things are working optimally it is sometimes daunting. But taking care of things while helping a child grow into their own responsibilities is what parents do, right?
Wednesday, January 22, 2014
Two words!
Green Hat! Who knew a construction worker's helmet could be so exciting? We were driving by a new group of houses going up near Samantha's preschool, and I pointed out all the diggers doing their digging. There was a guy with a red hard hat on, and red has been a popular word for Peter lately, so I pointed that out. Then he said "green hat" (sounds more like " eee ha") and I looked, and sure enough, the rest of the guys, and one who had just joined red had, wore green hard hats. This was his first spoken, spontaneous, two word combo :)
Granted, he has been saying two one-word sentences, like Blow. Bubbles. But there has been a pause. He has also signed a word and joined it with a spoken word, like "baaaa" SHEEP, so this not completely out of the blue, but I am still happy, proud and excited that he is starting to use two word spoken phrases. "Bug Bug school" is another one, and color words paired with a noun are burbling out too.
Peter 's AVT therapist commented on how amazingly well he is doing, and how quickly he moved to two word phrases, with only 8 months of hearing under his belt. I fully credit the use of ASL from day 1 as helping me build a language foundation, especially since the hearing aids gave him no help with speech. Now that he is hearing I also think our Music Together classes and CD's and even though I don't sing well, my singing random songs throughout the day is helping a lot as well.
If the link below works, it is a short news clip about CI's and music therapy bridging the gap from silence to sound
http://youtu.be/geKdOyJOoA0
I think Peter is doing so well it is time to prune back anything that isn't helping....namely the services offered by the county. The people there are all really nice, but I think I can use those two hours to do something a lot more useful...more on that later. (Later is another new spoken word and sign)
Granted, he has been saying two one-word sentences, like Blow. Bubbles. But there has been a pause. He has also signed a word and joined it with a spoken word, like "baaaa" SHEEP, so this not completely out of the blue, but I am still happy, proud and excited that he is starting to use two word spoken phrases. "Bug Bug school" is another one, and color words paired with a noun are burbling out too.
Peter 's AVT therapist commented on how amazingly well he is doing, and how quickly he moved to two word phrases, with only 8 months of hearing under his belt. I fully credit the use of ASL from day 1 as helping me build a language foundation, especially since the hearing aids gave him no help with speech. Now that he is hearing I also think our Music Together classes and CD's and even though I don't sing well, my singing random songs throughout the day is helping a lot as well.
If the link below works, it is a short news clip about CI's and music therapy bridging the gap from silence to sound
http://youtu.be/geKdOyJOoA0
I think Peter is doing so well it is time to prune back anything that isn't helping....namely the services offered by the county. The people there are all really nice, but I think I can use those two hours to do something a lot more useful...more on that later. (Later is another new spoken word and sign)
Monday, January 13, 2014
Sunday Cinema
The week just started, and I am already behind! Here is a quick video update of some new language.
Please know that I delete far more video where Peter says nothing, screeches, or gets distracted! But he is doing well, and we are so proud of him :)
This is "family" words:
Please know that I delete far more video where Peter says nothing, screeches, or gets distracted! But he is doing well, and we are so proud of him :)
This is "family" words:
I kept trying to get him to say "Nana"!
Nana' s hard work over thanksgiving paid off!
Peter loves his sisters! And the dogs, too?
Thank you!
Monday, December 23, 2013
Holiday Madness, Holiday Gifts
I am so far behind in everything! Not just Christmas, but everything! I just went gift shopping today, hardly anything is wrapped, and still several people will be getting I.O.U.'s in their packages. I still need to clean the house for Christmas Day company, and there are still cards on my table that haven't been mailed. And I have just plum given up on getting any more projects done, or putting out more decorations, or anything really. I was wiped out and sick as the school semesters finished, and it has taken until now to get my feet back under me. But enough of the whining!
I have really wanted to update Peter's word list, and since we filled out The MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory for our IFSP meeting, it should be easy. But every time I turn around Peter is adding another word! Some in ASL, some spoken, some both! I am so pleased with his progress! And he is starting to put two words together!!! As I saw with my girls, and I predicted Peter would do the same, the phrases are one spoken and one signed word. "More" MUSIC, and "dada" WORK have come out so far, and I can't wait to find out what is next. Peter is really into colors, so I am curious to see if he will use them in a two-word phrase. I have noticed that Peter will start using a word in ASL, then shortly thereafter say it, or try to say it, so I have no problems with him using ASL, since I don't think it is slowing him down any. It just lets him communicate ideas and words before he is ready to pronounce them- like the word ORANGE - he knows it and can sign it, but he is a ways off from saying it. But because I know what he is looking at or wants, I can talk more about the orange train, or the orange light, etc. It seems to work for us.
On a slightly different note, we got the Naida processors- the behind the ear (BTE) CI from Advanced Bionics. They are small and sleek, though still bigger than the hearing aids were. I think they might be lighter, though. Peter sometimes REALLY likes wearing them, and other times not so much. If there is a risk of throwing (and since I don't have any wig tape yet, that is any time he is being a stinker) I just put the Neptunes back on. Or I have the Neptunes already in his pockets, and pop them on as soon as the Naidas are taken off/shaken off/rubbed off. I am hoping the better microphone placement and the multiple microphones in the Naidas make for better hearing and easier hearing. We will see.
Happy Holidays!
I have really wanted to update Peter's word list, and since we filled out The MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory for our IFSP meeting, it should be easy. But every time I turn around Peter is adding another word! Some in ASL, some spoken, some both! I am so pleased with his progress! And he is starting to put two words together!!! As I saw with my girls, and I predicted Peter would do the same, the phrases are one spoken and one signed word. "More" MUSIC, and "dada" WORK have come out so far, and I can't wait to find out what is next. Peter is really into colors, so I am curious to see if he will use them in a two-word phrase. I have noticed that Peter will start using a word in ASL, then shortly thereafter say it, or try to say it, so I have no problems with him using ASL, since I don't think it is slowing him down any. It just lets him communicate ideas and words before he is ready to pronounce them- like the word ORANGE - he knows it and can sign it, but he is a ways off from saying it. But because I know what he is looking at or wants, I can talk more about the orange train, or the orange light, etc. It seems to work for us.
On a slightly different note, we got the Naida processors- the behind the ear (BTE) CI from Advanced Bionics. They are small and sleek, though still bigger than the hearing aids were. I think they might be lighter, though. Peter sometimes REALLY likes wearing them, and other times not so much. If there is a risk of throwing (and since I don't have any wig tape yet, that is any time he is being a stinker) I just put the Neptunes back on. Or I have the Neptunes already in his pockets, and pop them on as soon as the Naidas are taken off/shaken off/rubbed off. I am hoping the better microphone placement and the multiple microphones in the Naidas make for better hearing and easier hearing. We will see.
Happy Holidays!
Thursday, November 14, 2013
100th Post! And it is a special one!
Yesterday I thought I was going to have a really rough afternoon, as Peter had only napped for a few minutes. But he was Ok. And while we were chatting, he suddenly said:
I was pretty excited! I got both a sign and spoken word, when I wasn't even sure he had signed mom before!! So happy!
Sunday, November 10, 2013
Cinema Sunday
More videos! I take so many because Peter acts so differently at home vs. at a therapist´s office, and I want to be able to show people what he is doing most of the time, especially when he just stares at the therapists and waits for them to entertain him ;) Don't worry, the videos are all very short, less than a minute each.
The words of the week seem to be "hot" and "stop"! Peter has been saying "hot" a lot- seeing the fire in the pizza oven at Safeway and saying it was great example of unprompted speech showing comprehension! Another favorite word this week is "stop" though it often sound like bop :) he uses it for the water turning off, music box stopping, songs ending, etc. I didn't get a "stop" video, but I did get a "hot".
Peter is adding so much each week- we have been highlighting color words lately, and here he is signing blue for the first time (that I know) and approximating the word, too! So proud of him!
And then there is the "how can you resist when he asks like this?"
The words of the week seem to be "hot" and "stop"! Peter has been saying "hot" a lot- seeing the fire in the pizza oven at Safeway and saying it was great example of unprompted speech showing comprehension! Another favorite word this week is "stop" though it often sound like bop :) he uses it for the water turning off, music box stopping, songs ending, etc. I didn't get a "stop" video, but I did get a "hot".
Peter is adding so much each week- we have been highlighting color words lately, and here he is signing blue for the first time (that I know) and approximating the word, too! So proud of him!
And then there is the "how can you resist when he asks like this?"
And finally, I have read so much (and watched) about how bad music can sound to CI people. I have also read lots of blogs of people with CIs who enjoy music. I think Peter enjoys it. He is starting to dance, and I couldn't resist this ;)
Sunday, November 3, 2013
I just want him to thrive
Is that too much to ask? I want Peter to be a super-user with his CI. I want him to succeed in school, and worry about how to fit in yet another AP class in high school. I want him to learn to advocate for himself. I want him to get a scholarship to university- sports or academic, either would be OK! I want him to have good friends and enjoy life. I hope everything we are doing now is building a foundation for future success. We are following enough people on this journey that I don't feel lost, but CI kids are still such a minority!
Universal Newborn Hearing Screening in California (Summary of all states) just started in 1998, and has become standard across the country only since 1999, as described in this NIH fact sheet. And the FDA lowered the age guidelines for Cochlear Implantation to 12 months in 2000. So the first cohort of early identified, early implanted kids is just getting to high school age! There hasn't been time for most local schools to have a true depth and breadth of experience with "today's" CI kids. So CI parents aren't alone, but we still have to navigate so many decisions on our own, use our gut instincts a lot, and we may go into schools where we are the first ones to educate them about what our amazing kids need to become those poster kids of academic success.
I wonder how the transition to our local school will go for us. They take over responsibility for services to Peter at age three, and that transition/ hand-off to the local school district starts a year from now. I try not to worry too much, but sometimes it's hard not to after hearing so many stories about contentious IFSP/IEP meetings, and how schools with no experience can have too-low expectations of CI kids. I will try to keep the worry to a minimum and just continue to educate myself :)
Universal Newborn Hearing Screening in California (Summary of all states) just started in 1998, and has become standard across the country only since 1999, as described in this NIH fact sheet. And the FDA lowered the age guidelines for Cochlear Implantation to 12 months in 2000. So the first cohort of early identified, early implanted kids is just getting to high school age! There hasn't been time for most local schools to have a true depth and breadth of experience with "today's" CI kids. So CI parents aren't alone, but we still have to navigate so many decisions on our own, use our gut instincts a lot, and we may go into schools where we are the first ones to educate them about what our amazing kids need to become those poster kids of academic success.
I wonder how the transition to our local school will go for us. They take over responsibility for services to Peter at age three, and that transition/ hand-off to the local school district starts a year from now. I try not to worry too much, but sometimes it's hard not to after hearing so many stories about contentious IFSP/IEP meetings, and how schools with no experience can have too-low expectations of CI kids. I will try to keep the worry to a minimum and just continue to educate myself :)
Saturday, November 2, 2013
This week's video check-in
I need to write more, but I need to do a lot of other things more, too ;). Like cleaning my house, finishing projects, or taking showers. It's pretty sad when I am thinking to myself...I gotta try to get a shower at least every other day. Thank goodness I have been too busy to get my haircut and I can put my hair in a ponytail ;)
I am going to make time to update Peter's word list, as a couple therapists have asked for one. And I make time to do these videos, since they help the therapists see what Peter is like in a more natural setting. He will talk to the speech therapists, but not nearly as much as he does at home, and they can sometimes hear or see more on the videos than I can. The videos also show everyone on Team Peter that all the input is paying off! In this video "I Want" is starting to emerge!
Just a note about how I do the videos- they are shot on my iPod or iPad, often with the forward facing camera, and then quickly edited/titled with iMovie on my iPad. That app was a great purchase!
I am going to make time to update Peter's word list, as a couple therapists have asked for one. And I make time to do these videos, since they help the therapists see what Peter is like in a more natural setting. He will talk to the speech therapists, but not nearly as much as he does at home, and they can sometimes hear or see more on the videos than I can. The videos also show everyone on Team Peter that all the input is paying off! In this video "I Want" is starting to emerge!
Just a note about how I do the videos- they are shot on my iPod or iPad, often with the forward facing camera, and then quickly edited/titled with iMovie on my iPad. That app was a great purchase!
Saturday, October 26, 2013
Infographic I thought was neat- ASL
I liked this, but remember- I am Swizerland, so even if I personally like ASL, I don't think everyone NEEDS to learn it. I hope with all the fun YouTube ASL music videos more people WANT to learn it :). I think it would be interesting to see if using more finger spelling and signs in the lower grades of regular schools would help kinesthetic learners, as well as visual learners, but I don't have a soapbox for the issue ;)
Friday, October 25, 2013
I want to be Swizerland...and a video
I like that Swizerland is neutral. I also like that they are tri-lingual and ready to defend themselves if necessary ;)
Having a deaf child means you get free entry into a world where so many of a parent's choices are judged by those who would not make the same choice. Technology, communication, and education are all hot button topics to some people in each "camp". I am incredibly lucky that I live in a region with so many resources. If I lived in the middle of nowhere I wouldn't have choices- there aren't a lot of Deaf Schools, so signing wouldn't be as viable, Oral Schools aren't everywhere, and certified AVT therapists aren't everywhere, so if I lived somewhere else I might be stuck with whatever the state gave me and be glad for it. But I am here. I am availing myself of everything I can, and usually I am happy I can do that.
But when I feel like there might be pressure to just use one approach I feel myself getting defensive. I would defend my choices if anyone at the school for the deaf railed on me for implanting my boy- but no one has, thankfully! I know I need to respect the parents there (hearing and deaf) who have their own reasons not to amplify or implant their kids and who have just embraced signing. Likewise, parents may never sign, and throw themselves whole heartedly into an Oral or Aditory Verbal approach. If that works for their family I think that is awesome! I have read many blogs where CI kids thrived with those approaches. But I am doing things in a way that feels right for me.
I love languages, and the more the merrier. If I can give Peter access to multiple languages, I will. Kids in Swizerland don't have problems learning at least two, and often three or four languages. My friends who have multiple languages at home have kids who maybe started talking a month or two later than my kids, but they now read and speak in two languages at age 7. I know Peter is a smart cookie- he is now catching up to about where 9-month old hearing kids are, according to a couple evaluation scales. Since he's 18 months old, that may not seem awesome, but he has made those 9 months of progress in Under six months, and less than two of those months with two ears on. If what we are doing is working so far, I don't see a reason to change. Of course if I feel there are issues I will make adjustments, but right now I am still figuring out what proportions of what ingredients are the best for us, and everything is staying in the mix.
Our mix is working well:
Having a deaf child means you get free entry into a world where so many of a parent's choices are judged by those who would not make the same choice. Technology, communication, and education are all hot button topics to some people in each "camp". I am incredibly lucky that I live in a region with so many resources. If I lived in the middle of nowhere I wouldn't have choices- there aren't a lot of Deaf Schools, so signing wouldn't be as viable, Oral Schools aren't everywhere, and certified AVT therapists aren't everywhere, so if I lived somewhere else I might be stuck with whatever the state gave me and be glad for it. But I am here. I am availing myself of everything I can, and usually I am happy I can do that.
But when I feel like there might be pressure to just use one approach I feel myself getting defensive. I would defend my choices if anyone at the school for the deaf railed on me for implanting my boy- but no one has, thankfully! I know I need to respect the parents there (hearing and deaf) who have their own reasons not to amplify or implant their kids and who have just embraced signing. Likewise, parents may never sign, and throw themselves whole heartedly into an Oral or Aditory Verbal approach. If that works for their family I think that is awesome! I have read many blogs where CI kids thrived with those approaches. But I am doing things in a way that feels right for me.
I love languages, and the more the merrier. If I can give Peter access to multiple languages, I will. Kids in Swizerland don't have problems learning at least two, and often three or four languages. My friends who have multiple languages at home have kids who maybe started talking a month or two later than my kids, but they now read and speak in two languages at age 7. I know Peter is a smart cookie- he is now catching up to about where 9-month old hearing kids are, according to a couple evaluation scales. Since he's 18 months old, that may not seem awesome, but he has made those 9 months of progress in Under six months, and less than two of those months with two ears on. If what we are doing is working so far, I don't see a reason to change. Of course if I feel there are issues I will make adjustments, but right now I am still figuring out what proportions of what ingredients are the best for us, and everything is staying in the mix.
Our mix is working well:
Saturday, October 19, 2013
Music?
Great talk. Makes me think about how Peter perceives music. I know he likes music class, and I really hope we are helping train his brain to hear the beauty.
TED talk on Building the Musical Muscle (about music and CIs)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTE0MRRXNzs&sns=em
(If there is no video above here is the link)
So much is being said right now about music and how CI recipients hear it. Just remember that brains are amazing, and they can learn more than we think;)
;)More hope for music! New Sound processing strategy being studied :)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bTE0MRRXNzs&sns=em
(If there is no video above here is the link)
So much is being said right now about music and how CI recipients hear it. Just remember that brains are amazing, and they can learn more than we think;)
;)More hope for music! New Sound processing strategy being studied :)
Tuesday, October 15, 2013
Video Check-in
Thank goodness I don't get fined for late check-ins on the blog! I am trying to keep up recording progress and what is happening, but it's hard! The last two weeks we were hit with kidney stones (my hubby) and the flu (everyone else) , busy work, late meetings and oral surgery (hubby), keys locked in the car after speech therapy (Peter and I were outside the car), and then the fun stuff, too- making Halloween costumes for the girls, and me teaching French again. But it has added up to me being busy, and wondering how badly I'm failing something or someone at any moment.
But we are now all healthy, and Peter seems to be doing great!
Note that this video was made using a treat- I do not force him to talk for food! I want to make communicating fun, and what is more fun than chocolate ;)
And puppets...
But we are now all healthy, and Peter seems to be doing great!
And puppets...
Saturday, October 5, 2013
iPad Apps We Use
Here is a list of the Apps I am currently using with Peter:
Speech-related:
SoundTouch (pairs real pictures with real sound clips)
MusicOBaby (interactive instruments on the iPad screen)
Musical Hands (easy to play colored screen for sound awareness)
The Farm (easy farmyard games with animal sounds)
Bugs & Bubbles (right now we are only using the colored-bubble popping part, but it's good for practicing "bubble" and "pop"! My girls like the other parts of the app)
Monkey Preschool is not used by Peter, but he is VERY interested when Samantha plays it. I swear I heard him say "mmmm" when she turned it on last time!
Fine motor:
DoodleBuddy (free, and great for finger painting with no mess!)
Sign Language:
The Baobab (a beautifully illustrated written and signed story)
Signed Stories (a whole library of ASL-interpreted and read-aloud stories. Peter loves "Five Speckled Frogs". I have fun taking the ASL quizzes based on each story :))
Not used as much:
SignShine (signed, but not illustrated nursery songs)
Baby ASL (good for my girls to practice on)
I am always looking for more fun, smart apps. If you have any you love, let me know!
Speech-related:
SoundTouch (pairs real pictures with real sound clips)
MusicOBaby (interactive instruments on the iPad screen)
Musical Hands (easy to play colored screen for sound awareness)
The Farm (easy farmyard games with animal sounds)
Bugs & Bubbles (right now we are only using the colored-bubble popping part, but it's good for practicing "bubble" and "pop"! My girls like the other parts of the app)
Monkey Preschool is not used by Peter, but he is VERY interested when Samantha plays it. I swear I heard him say "mmmm" when she turned it on last time!
Fine motor:
DoodleBuddy (free, and great for finger painting with no mess!)
Sign Language:
The Baobab (a beautifully illustrated written and signed story)
Signed Stories (a whole library of ASL-interpreted and read-aloud stories. Peter loves "Five Speckled Frogs". I have fun taking the ASL quizzes based on each story :))
Not used as much:
SignShine (signed, but not illustrated nursery songs)
Baby ASL (good for my girls to practice on)
I am always looking for more fun, smart apps. If you have any you love, let me know!
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