There is more to listening than just
hearing.
A miraculous process that begins in
the womb, learning to communicate is a vital part of
expressing oneself and of understanding and interacting with
the world. A child’s ability to listen well affects every
aspect of his or her life. But for some 1.5 million children
in the United States who have normal hearing and
intelligence, communication and language are blocked. Words
are jumbled and distorted. These children have a hard time
following directions and become frustrated in trying to make
themselves understood, which often leads to unruly behavior,
poor school performance, social isolation, and low
self-esteem.
Auditory Processing Disorder (APD)
affects the brain’s ability to accurately process the sounds
of speech, which in turn impedes the ability to communicate.
Experts are just beginning to unlock the mystery of this
confounding condition. As a result, APD is often undiagnosed
or misdiagnosed. But hope is here. Now veteran
speech-language pathologist Lois Kam Heymann offers the
first practical guide to help parents dramatically improve
the listening and language skills of their children, whether
they have a diagnosed auditory processing disorder, slow
language development—or simply need practice listening.
Inside this reassuring, action-oriented book you’ll
find
• easy-to-identify milestones to help
parents pinpoint challenges that may arise during each stage
of their child’s development from birth to age eight
•
the tools and checklists needed to assist parents in
recognizing APD early
• tips to distinguish APD from
other listening/learning disorders, including ADD, ADHD,
LPD, and PDD
• methods to encourage a child’s natural
listening abilities through books, stories, nursery rhymes,
songs, lullabies, toys, and games
• home techniques to
hone a child’s auditory processing—whether he or she has
severe APD limitations or just needs to build listening
“muscles”
• specific suggestions on how to improve a
child’s listening skills outside the home—at school, during
after-school activities, even when at a restaurant
• an
analysis of traditional classroom settings and effective
ways parents can advocate for better sound quality
•
guidelines for finding the right professionals to work with
your child
With hands-on ways for improving a
child’s ability to listen to instructions, process
information, and follow directions, parents can turn simple
activities into powerful listening lessons in only minutes a
day. The bottom line: Learning how to listen in our noisy,
complicated world is the key to a happy and engaged child.
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