How can speech therapy help a child with hearing loss?

Speech-language pathologists (SLPs) play an important role in determining and supporting the communication for children who are d/Deaf or hard of hearing. They provide targeted speech and language therapy to help children develop a range of skills, including:

• Improving articulation and speech clarity
• Supporting listening and auditory skills
• Using visual and tactile supports
• Supporting social communication
• Incorporating sign language (if appropriate)

The ultimate goal of an SLP isn’t necessarily to get your child to speak — it’s to support the communication method that works best for them, whether that’s spoken language, sign language, or AAC. They’re there to help you and your child find what works consistently for them, both at home and in the classroom.

Some SLPs are fluent in ASL, which allows them to incorporate both signed and spoken communication strategies to best meet each child’s needs. In these cases, they may support spoken language with signed language to help with full comprehension.

As always, your child’s environment and communication preferences are important to consider when choosing an SLP. It really comes down to what works best for your child.

For more information, see our full article Supporting a Child With Hearing Loss at Home, at School, and in the Community.