I took part this past weekend in the KC Ability Expo, an event in my area that promotes understanding of differently abled individuals and support organizations. The annual fest features info booths, artists, wheelchair dancers, a Deaf choir, and other entertainment. As a second-year Expo volunteer, I split duties between helping with a Hearing Loss … Continue reading
Filed under sign language …
What I Learned from a (Deaf) Baseball Player
A couple of weeks ago, I watched the excellent documentary ‘I See the Crowd Roar.’ It is about one of the greatest American baseball players in history—William Hoy. He was also one of the first players who was deaf. Hoy went by the nickname ‘Dummy.’ I shudder when I write that name because in 2012 it … Continue reading
Why Can’t This Young Boy Sign His Name at School?
I was shocked to read that a 3-year-old boy in Nebraska has been denied the right to use his sign language name at school. Below is the entire article by Steve Ross with 1011now.com. It is Lipreading Mom’s conviction that children with deafness or hearing loss should be allowed to use the communication method that … Continue reading
Why Going Deaf Was a Blessing for Me
By Karen Putz / Lipreading Mom Guest Blogger I was born with hearing in the so-called “normal” range. I started losing my hearing in elementary school and received my first hearing aid when I was nine. I hated the thing. No one ever saw it, because I kept it hidden under my long hair, or stuffed … Continue reading
Why Can’t the Girl Scouts Provide Sign Language and Captioning?
As a person with hearing loss and a former Girl Scout, a recent story in the Chicago Tribune about a 12-year-old girl who is Deaf being denied sign language interpretation is disheartening. Her troop paid for an interpreter, then apparently was unable to continue doing so and disbanded. Now, the young girl’s parents are suing … Continue reading
Captioning or Sign Language? That Is the Question
Dr. Tony Evans is a Christian evangelist who travels all over the world with his revivals. I was anxious to see him speak when he came to my city, but I had one question. Would I understand him? My hearing loss makes it difficult to catch all the words coming from even the most eloquent … Continue reading
How to Teach Sign Language to Children – An Instructor’s Perspective
Dawn Alexander and I attended college together back in the 1990s. What I remember most about her were her hands—she often communicated with them. As an American Sign Language (ASL) instructor, Dawn has learned what works best in teaching this visual form of communication. Let her words and her signing fingers inspire you. Lipreading Mom: … Continue reading
Help! I Can’t Understand this Guy’s Mumbling
My new column, “Can You Help?”, allows LipreadingMom.com followers to share and answer questions with each other. This week’s question comes from a friend who can’t understand what the heck her daughter’s boyfriend is saying. Can you help? Dear Lipreading Mom, My daughter is dating a guy that has some type of social anxiety disorder. … Continue reading
Can a Baby Learn Sign Language?
When my daughter was eight months old, we took a baby sign language class. Most of the kids there were several months older, but I was insistent that my pint-size girl learn the language early. There’s nothing quite like being a mom who can’t hear her own child clearly. When she cooed and babbled, I … Continue reading
What is Meniere’s Disease? An Insider’s Perspective
I met DJ Evans online several months ago through our shared interest in hearing loss awareness and advocacy. Like me, she is a mom with hearing loss. Unlike me, she also lives with Meniere’s Disease. Those of us who don’t live with Meniere’s likely have a vague idea of what it is. Before interviewing DJ, I thought … Continue reading
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