Hi. We are moving to Port Orange, FL and have a DHH 3 year old son. So far we have not found any really good programs for total communication or any kind of groups. Seems like all the DHH kids are mixed in with kids with behavioral issues. Any help is definitely appreciated! Thanks!
I think that grouping of special needs is often due to a lack of local resources for low incidence disabilities, some common elements in a learning environment that benefit various types of special learning needs, and the fact that a large majority of dhh kids also have other learning issues. We had several options that included similar hometown programs with mixed special needs, but we were lucky enough to have 3 schools for the deaf within 2 hours distance, enabling us to select one that fit our philosophical approach to teaching a deaf child (a bi-bi school with ASL immersion opportunities) and participate in their programs immediately (we started there 3X a week when my daughter was 1, and at 3 she became a full-time day student, she's there now and is thriving academically).
I recall being appalled at the idea of tossing my daughter in with what seemed a random and unrelated assortment of special needs, but in retrospect, I see that this is actually the case whether you take the deaf school route or not. The population at a typical school for the deaf is probably as mixed (or more), in terms of special needs / behavioral issues, as you might be finding in your child's local early intervention programs, but her programs at the school have always been tailored to dhh needs as a primary focus. The enormous benefit isn't finding a peer group of kids 'just like your child' -- the population is too small for that even at a school for the deaf -- it's finding qualified teachers with expertise in addressing how deaf kids learn and an environment that offers full access to learning. That's the holy grail, whether it be at a deaf school or locally in a group of mixed needs kids.
Are you about an hour from St. Augustine? Perhaps FSDB has a preK program, either on campus or via outreach, that you can take advantage of. I drove her for the first few years, but at ~3.5y my daughter began taking the 2 hr ride each way by van with a group of deaf kids living nearby. She LOVED the ride, great social experience! Ironically, although they've shortened her trip this year to just an hour each way by changing her van route, she hates the shorter haul: her only van companion is non-communicative, no more party bus
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