LISTEN UP! Early Intervention Newsletter Term 1, 2015 In this edition PAGE 4 Parenting styles What’s New PAGE 5 Introducing LENA PAGE 6 Team Blue Student placements at the Centre PAGE 7 Early Intervention Team Changes Book of the month: Boom Bah! PAGE 9 Volunteers needed PAGE 10 The Big Question: How can I create a learning-friendly environment? PAGE 11 Family Spotlight: Lola Term dates 2015 Therapy is offered to families throughout the school terms and also in the first week of each school holiday break. Group programs do not take place in the school holidays. MONDAY 20 JANUARY TO FRIDAY 10 APRIL Term 1 MONDAY 27 APRIL TO FRIDAY 3 JULY Term 2 MONDAY 20 JULY TO FRIDAY 25 SEPTEMBER Term 3 MONDAY 12 OCTOBER TO FRIDAY 11 DECEMBER Term 4 Parent information sessions THURSDAY 16 APRIL 2015 9.00AM -1.30PM Breaking down the jargon — what parents need to understand about audiology behaviour management. RSVP required by Wednesday 8 April 2015 Ph 8267 9200 E [email protected] Fundraising event dates MONDAY 30 MARCH Boardroom luncheon SUNDAY 19 APRIL Bay to City Run FRIDAY 24 APRIL Fridays Uncorked at the National Wine Centre (Torbreck Wines) MONDAY 11 MAY David Roche Foundation Gallery Event SATURDAY 4 JULY Giveability Day Westfield SUNDAY 2 AUGUST Port Adelaide vs St Kilda Collection SUNDAY 20 SEPTEMBER City to Bay Fun Run SUNDAY 15 NOVEMBER Marble Hill picnic Would you like to help, volunteer or donate, then please call the Development Team or email [email protected] PAGE 3 Parenting styles Parenting or caring for a child brings with it immense joy as well as immense challenges. Each day the pendulum can swing from one side to the other many times! Increasingly, parenting ‘styles’ and models of behaviour management are being researched, as more is understood by child development experts about the role of brain development and growth for babies and young children, and how this growth is influenced by our caregivers. There is a wealth of information in books and on the internet about these topics. It can be extremely confusing and even overwhelming to sift through the information available. Parenting styles generally fall into four broad categories: Authoritarian, Supportive, Permissive and Disengaged. These categories are defined by the amount of nurturing and responsiveness vs demand and control balanced in each. For example, Authoritarian parenting has a high level of control with low level nurturing (children should do as they are instructed without question); Supportive parenting is a balance of both (there are clear boundaries that are open to compromise); Permissive parenting is often child-led with a lack of set or enforced boundaries or consequences; and Disengaged parenting is highly uncommunicative and unresponsive. Our parenting style is influenced by our beliefs about children and it guides our approach to behaviour management. It is common for individual parents What’s new Both Cochlear and MED-EL are launching new products in March. Cochlear is introducing a line of wireless accessories for the Nucleus 6. This includes the new wireless phone clip, mini microphone and TV streamer. These devices are only compatible with the Nucleus 6 speech processor (CP910 or CP920). MED-EL has a new implant called the Synchrony and a new speech processor called the Sonnet. The new speech processor is lightweight and water resistant, has a dual-microphone and automatic sound management as well as data logging. If you would like to know more please visit their websites at www.cochlear.com and ww.medel.com or speak with Cindy Marples on 8267 9200 PAGE 4 to differ in their approach. Most child development experts in Australia favour the Supportive approach as it provides a positive and secure framework for children to benefit from. It has structure and rules for the child, but they are valued and listened to with respect. If you are interested in further topics regarding parenting, behaviour management, and what to consider when making parenting decisions, I recommend the Child and Youth Health (CYH) Parent Easy Guides, available online or in hard copy via CYH Centres or from the Cora Barclay Centre Family Counsellor. www.cyh.com Belinda Dunne Family Counsellor Introducing LENA In 2001, philanthropist inventor, Terrance D Paul’s life changed after reading a book called ‘Meaningful Differences in the Everyday Experience of Young American Children.’ The book by Todd and Risley described their painstaking research project in which they measured how many words were spoken to children aged between 7 and 36 months. They found that children in families of high socioeconomic status (SES) had had 30 million more words spoken to them by the age of 3 than children of low SES. Essentially, they discovered that the amount parents talked to their children between 0 and 3 predicted the children’s later success in school. Terrance’s response to this information was to develop the LENA (Language Environment Analysis). The LENA system includes a Digital Language Processor (DLP) which records all of the spoken language, electronic media, background noise and conversation exchanges a child wearing the DLP is exposed to in a normal day, as well as their own vocal responses. The recordings in the DLP are then uploaded and analysed by a computer containing LENA software. The LENA software produces simple graphs which allow parents to readily see how much their own talk with their child compares with the recommended averages needed to optimise their children’s literacy and academic potential. It is that simple! We are very excited to have acquired the LENA system, it has incredible potential here at the Cora Barclay Centre to improve the language outcomes for children with hearing loss. Parents often tell me that the annual formalised assessments do not always accurately represent their child’s true abilities. When put in the spot light many children will simply not ‘perform’. LENA will be used alongside standardised assessments to allow us to get a sample of children’s language in PAGE 5 their natural environment of the home. This tool is so empowering for parents as they can look at the graphs of their child’s DLP recordings and know whether their everyday conversational interactions with their child are optimal in terms of maximising their child’s language, literacy and academic opportunities. If not, they can change the amount they talk with their children overnight! Please be assured that the Cora Barclay Centre clinicians will only have access to the data and will not be listening to the audio recording. Once the information has been uploaded and analysed the recording itself will be deleted. A few families have generously offered to trial the system in Term 1 and we will be asking other families if they would like to participate in Term 2. If you have any questions please come and see me or speak to your therapist. Rachael Ward Early Intervention Manager Team Blue Cora Barclay Centre audiologist, Cindy Marples, was invited by the Audiology Team at the Women’s and Children’s Hospital (WCH) into the operating theatre to watch Cora Barclay Centre student, Shun-Nga Hui, have surgery for her second implant. Cindy joined the team at WCH to undertake an inter-operative Neural Response Telemetry (NRT) test during surgery. An NRT test is used to check the electrodes once the array has been inserted into the patient’s cochlea. It measures the impedance as well as neural responses on each electrode. Shun-Nga’s implant impendence measures were good and there were good neural responses on each electrode. The NRT response will be used to shape Shun-Nga’s MAP and guide the audiologists with initial mapping. “I enjoyed being part of the team. It was a great opportunity to see first-hand the amazing work undertaken at the WCH and to be so hands-on myself” said Cindy. I really felt a part of the team, especially once we were all in our blue theatre suits.” Cindy also attended Shun-Nga’s initial switch-on at WCH two weeks after surgery. Shun-Nga will soon be resuming her cochlear implant appointments at the Cora Barclay Centre with Cindy. Congratulations Shun-Nga on her second implant! Photo: WCH Audiology Team and Cindy Cindy Marples Audiologist, Allied Health Team Manager (Left to right) Megan Walsh, Katie Nuttall, Cindy Marples, Tony Marciano “I enjoyed being part of the team. It was a great opportunity to see first-hand the work undertaken at the WCH and to be so hands-on myself.” Student placements at the Centre The Cora Barclay Centre is committed to supporting student placements in the fields of Speech Pathology, Audiology and Deaf Education Teaching in order to: The benefits from our support of students include: Prepare students for entry into the profession Ability to deploy someone onto minor projects Provide a range of clinical experiences Opportunity to assess prospective employees Enable the development of professional skills Contribution to community engagement goals of the organisation Inspire potential future therapists/ audiologists/teachers of the deaf Student contributions to projects and programs The student placements we offer range from single day introductions, to term long integration. Students come with a range of required competencies and are expected to learn and PAGE 6 develop their skills. Students have national police clearances, first aid training and appropriate immunisations. Student observations and involvement in your child’s therapy sessions is entirely at your discretion. Your permission will be sought prior to the session and you are under no obligation to agree. Student involvement can be a wonderfully enriching experience, where you can share and consolidate your knowledge and skills as your child’s primary language facilitator. Any and all involvement you permit is greatly appreciated. Bronwyn O’Sullivan Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Early Intervention Team Changes Please welcome Kathryn Anderson to the Cora Barclay Centre Early Intervention team. Kathryn is a Speech and Language Pathologist who has been working in early intervention for the past three years with children who are deaf. Kathryn will be working with the Centre towards her formal qualification as a Listening and Spoken Language certified Auditory Verbal Therapist (LSLS Cert. AVT) Please also say farewell to Bronwyn O’Sullivan, who will be commencing maternity leave at the beginning of Term 2. Best wishes to Bronwyn on her impending joyful arrival! Book of the month: Boom Bah PAGE 7 Here is the story... Boom Bah! is a story of a group of farm animals that decide to start up a band using everyday house hold items as instruments. The story begins with a mouse banging a wooden spoon on a cup to make a sound (Ting). This prompts other animals to make a sound and a cat responds with a ‘Tong!’ by hitting a canned item with a spoon. The reader is prompted to listen and hear what other sounds the animals are making with their new instruments. Soon a pig, a chicken and a goat join in and march around the farm using a bowl, a box, a cup, some sticks and a bell as instruments. Each instrument makes their own ‘Learning to Listen’ sound (Tap Tap, Clickety Click!). More and more animals join in and they all start to dance to the music. As they are dancing to the music, they discover another band of farm animals approaching making their own music with real musical instruments such as a tuba, a drum, a trombone and cymbals. They all decide to play music, dance around together and make a loud noise – BOOM BAH! At the end, they decide to play ‘follow the leader’ who marches to the farmer’s front door where they pose and say TAH DAH! This story was a great way to start the year as it prompted children to listen to the sounds around them. In the book, the mouse prompted the reader and other animals to ‘Listen… What’s that sound?’ Activities you can do... You can point to your ear and say ‘Listen... What can you hear now?’ Maybe your child can hear the birds outside, some traffic going by, the dishwasher running in the kitchen, pets scurrying on the floor, dogs barking, cats meowing, or even... silence. Try experimenting with different sounds around the house by going on your own listening walk using a wooden spoon. See what other items make a sound. What kind of noise does it make? What does a cup vs. a can sound like? What does a bowl vs. a box sound like? What other objects make noise when you hit them with a wooden spoon? Encourage your child to make their own instruments with everyday items. I remember as a child using pots and pans as drums and lids as cymbals. It is also easy to make your own instruments at home using empty bottles and tins and filling them up with rice, lentils, pebbles, salt etc. Line up different sized bins as drums to make different tones, or use large and small lids as cymbals. Dance to a rhythm of the beat and sing your favourite song! PAGE 8 Shake your shakers fast and then slow, up high and then down low using a high and low tone. Contrast loud sounds vs. soft sounds and then STOP! Imitate a rhythm and see if your child can imitate it back and vice versa. There are so many fun ways to make music around the house and it doesn’t involve spending lots of money on instruments or even leaving your own home. Above all, enjoy this time you have with your child, and remember to listen... Sarah Lacanilao Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Volunteers needed The Cora Barclay Centre needs volunteers to support our events throughout the year. Whether you volunteer once a week, once a month or once a year, we’d love to hear from you. By becoming an event volunteer you will receive regular emails with details of upcoming events at which the Centre needs support, and you can choose the ones at which you’d like to lend a hand. It really is that easy. We have a number of events already this year for which we will be looking for volunteer support. OCTOBER Loud Shirt Day Barbecues Cooking and selling sausages at Bunnings stores across SA on Loud Shirt Day. NOVEMBER Picnic at Marble Hill Selling strawberries and cream and promoting the raffle. These include: APRIL National Wine Centre Uncorked Selling raffle tickets at the Torbreck Winery Uncorked event. JULY Westfield Give Ability Day Taking donations at one of the three Westfield centres; Marion, West Lakes and Tea Tree Plaza. AUGUST Port Adelaide vs. St Kilda football match Taking donations at Adelaide Oval. SEPTEMBER Sunday Mail City to Bay Helping to set up our marquee and cooking the BBQ for runners and walkers. PAGE 9 Westfield Tea Tree Plaza Melbourne Cup Event Selling sweeps and raffle tickets. As you can see there are already some great opportunities to support the Cora Barclay Centre this year. We know when you have children it can be tricky to get a babysitter, therefore, why not bring the kids along! It’s a great way to introduce them to supporting their local community! To be part of our volunteering list call, email or drop by the office and see Louise. 8267 9200 [email protected] Louise Baida Campaigns & Events Coordinator The Big Question: How can I create a learning-friendly environment? Those of you who have been on service at the Cora Barclay Centre might think the answer to this question is quite simple as it has likely been drilled into you by your therapist several times: minimise background noise, speak to the better ear and get down on your child’s level… right? While this is all correct, there is much more that can be taught about how to create a really great learning environment that involves more than just acoustic-based alterations. Turn off your phone. Turn off your phone while playing with your child not just to reduce chances of noise but also to minimise distractions for yourself and interruptions to your play routine. In today’s high tech world we are constantly glued to our mobiles and tablets for text messaging, emails, Facebook, etc., not just talking on the phone. Although this has been immensely convenient for us, it has created a culture of detachment from the here and now and has provided us with an endless stream of distractions from daily life, which includes in-depth play with our children. Set aside some mobile/ technology free time to play with your child, it will lessen the likelihood that you will be drawn away from play to answer to dings and beeps and increase the quality of one-on-one interaction. Control the toys. While we do want you to follow your child’s lead, if there are countless toys that are easily accessible to your child, you will find yourself just trying to keep up from one activity to the next. Limiting the amount of toys is more likely to increase your child’s attention span to a particular item as there will be less distraction and clutter. Put most of the toys somewhere that is not accessible or that requires your child to ask for their toys. Alternatively, just have a maximum of 3 or 4 toys that are accessible and allow your child to choose between these. Rotating these toys every day or every couple days will help to keep things fresh and interesting. How often you rotate them might depend on your child’s level of interest in the toys. Not only will this help increase attention, it will create motivation for your child to speak up. Create a theme. Make crafts and select toys and books based on a specific theme for the week. You can decide the theme, or if your child is older and is in child care or kindergarten, ask the carers/teachers for a list of themes that they will be using that term and reinforce these themes at home (e.g. garden, insects, body parts, ocean, etc.). Children love and need repetition to learn, and creating a theme is a great way to reinforce new vocabulary in a variety of contexts. Be an OWL parent. Observe. Wait. Listen. With a lot of focus on teaching our children in Auditory-Verbal Therapy, it is one of the most important things that parents often forget to do. We need to be active observers and also allow ample processing time for children to respond to our statements, requests, and questions. Take a step back from doing all the talking and remember that we are also learning about our children. By observing, waiting and listening we allow processing time and an opportunity to be part of a conversation. Participation rather than intrusion on play will help to promote a more positive play environment for your child as it allows them to explore and learn about their surroundings freely. PAGE 10 Put most of the toys somewhere that is not accessible or that requires your child to ask for their toys. Not only will this help increase attention, it will create motivation for your child to speak up. In summary, while it is important to create a good acoustic environment for your child, it is equally important that we are aware of how our own actions can influence this environment and how we can change our behaviours to maximise child learning. Lia Hardy Listening and Spoken Language Specialist Certified Auditory-Verbal Therapist Family Spotlight: Lola “Lola was ‘switched on’ and was able to hear us for the first time. It was MAGICAL and we felt so blessed she was finally able to hear us.” My partner Ryan and I welcomed our beautiful baby Lola Taih Cuell into the world on the 29th May 2013 at 3:16am. Lola was a tiny 2600gms and after a week her feeding was very poor so she began to lose weight and had also developed a rash all over her body. The doctors checked her and we were rushed straight to the Women’s and Children’s Hospital where they would continue to do more tests. After a night in hospital where my tiny little baby had a large needle inserted into her bladder the paediatrician came around and gave us the news. Lola had a virus called Cytomegalovirus or congenital CMV. Ryan and I had never heard of it and so didn’t really think much of it because we thought to ourselves “It’s just a virus and she will get better right?” The doctors then explained to us that CMV is passed to an unborn child if the mother gets a primary infection and it passes through the placenta to the foetus. We were then told that the range of side effects that CMV can have on the unborn child are: As the ABR test was being done we were told which sounds Lola wasn’t responding to, as we got to the end of the test the lady explained very nicely to us that Lola wasn’t responding to any of the sounds and that Lola was profoundly deaf. Cerebral Palsy, blindness, deafness, seizures, respiration issues, inability to thrive, tube feeding, enlarged organs, brain damage and in some cases even still birth. I took it on the chin and after five minutes I needed some time to myself to ‘grieve’ if you will, and adjust to the fact my baby couldn’t hear. She would never be able to hear us tell her we love her, hear us sing to her, hear the birds chirp or water splashing. Our hearts were breaking for her but we wouldn’t love her any less and we would get through this together. The heartbreak we then felt was unimaginable, that something so horrible could happen to our precious baby girl. All the testing began, firstly she had ultrasounds and they discovered she had enlarged organs. They then tested her eyesight, and thankfully it was pristine. CT scans on Lola had revealed some calcification on her brain, and she then had her hearing test. PAGE 11 We had to play the waiting game to see what the future held for Lola. After three weeks in hospital we were finally allowed to go home with a feeding tube and oxygen, but as we were about to leave got a call to say Lola was going to have some hearing aid moulds done. After months of hospital trips and more hearing tests it was decided at about 6 months that the hearing aids weren’t suitable for Lola to learn speech and that she was a candidate for Cochlear implants. Lola received her bilateral Cochlear implants at only 9 months of age and was switched on almost a month later aged 10 months. On Wednesday 26th March 2014 Lola was ‘switched on’ and was able to hear us for the first time. It was MAGICAL and we felt so blessed she was finally able to hear us. Lola is a natural communicator and happily accepted wearing the CI processors. Within weeks she was trying to imitate sounds she heard and we could say “Lola where, are the fish, shh-shh-shh?” And she would look at the fish tank. Now it is only 11 months since she was ‘switched on’ and she understands so many things and is trying to say new words everyday mixed up with her constant chattering. We were also told that Lola may never be able to walk but she reached this milestone at Christmas time 2014 and is continuing to grow into a beautiful little person with a wonderful personality and is now thriving. A huge thank you to her therapist Chris! “Now it is only 11 months since she was ‘switched on’ and she understands so many things and is trying to say new words everyday mixed up with her constant chattering.“ PAGE 12 Family CONNECT In response to family requests FamilyCONNECT has been developed to help families connect with other families receiving services at the Cora Barclay Centre. The Family CONNECT folder will be available in the Rainbow Room for access by families. We encourage you to submit contact information you are happy to share by completing the form available from your therapist or at reception. To find out more you can email [email protected]. PAGE 13 185 Melbourne Street North Adelaide 5006 08 8267 9200 [email protected] corabarclay.com.au
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