How Do Deaf Parents Teach Their Child to Talk?

Raising a child is no easy feat. You come into this world, and you try to figure out how ‘life’ works, and then you are responsible for another child! Okay, yes, some other things happen in between all of this as well, but the main takeaway is the same. No matter how much you think you are ready to have a child, you aren’t. 

So, imagine, if raising a child is so hard for a non-disabled person, how hard must it be for someone with disabilities. More specifically, someone with a hearing disability. Imagine you are deaf, but your child does not have that disability.

Here is a related article that might interest you on How Deaf Do You Have To Be To Get A Cochlear Implant?

How do you deal with it? How do you communicate with them, or how do you teach them things like how to talk? This is precisely what we will tackle in this article. How exactly do deaf parents teach their children to speak? 

If you are going through this situation, or you know someone in a similar situation and want to learn more about it, you are at the right place. And if you are here for no reason at all, well then, the more you know, the better. 

The Challenges Deaf Parents Face 

One of the biggest challenges deaf parents face is teaching their children how to accommodate the day-to-day world while being able-bodied.

If they don’t know what that’s like, how will they teach their children? Moreover, children mirror people around them, especially their parents, so they might pick up things their deaf parents do. Still, they don’t have to (but there is nothing wrong with that.) 

Most deaf people forget how to speak. Especially if they have been deaf for a long time, over time, their brain starts to forget how to pronounce words and how to speak correctly because they can’t hear them. That’s why they use sign language. This means they cannot teach their child how to speak, but this can be solved as well. 

Also, make sure to check out my post on How Do Deaf And Blind Learn Braille? What Is Braille?

How Does a Child of a Deaf Person Learn to Speak (CODA)

If a child of a deaf person (better known as CODA) is surrounded by hearing people who speak, they quickly pick up speaking, just like a child with hearing parents.

Whether it is friends, family, school, daycare, etc., there is no problem as long as a child is exposed to people speaking, especially in their developmental stage. 

Some dead parents also make their children watch television or videos, so they spend more time hearing people speak. This makes up for them not hearing their parents speak.

However, the real issue comes in if the child is not surrounded by hearing people, but that’s usually not the case. If not in the house, the child is surrounded by hearing people in their daycare or their school. So, they pick up speaking from there. 

Believe it or not, there are people who believe that children of deaf parents are at a disadvantage, but that’s far from the truth.

Sure, there are some challenges, but they are nothing that can’t be overcome. Instead, these children are usually the ones to bridge the gap between deaf and hearing people.

We have a related article for you, you can read Can Headphones Make You Deaf?

 It’s time we get rid of the stigma surrounding children of deaf parents and instead work towards finding ways to help them overcome their challenges. In the end, everyone deserves to have a happy and peaceful life.