‫ לחינוך ושיקום ילדים ונוער לקויי שמיעה‬- "‫מרכז טיפולי "שמע‬
‫משרד החינוך‬
84976 ‫אביב‬-‫ תל‬,03 ‫ רחוב פליטי הספר‬,"‫בית "שמע‬
30-/40-3/60 :‫ פקס‬,30-/48/8/8747679 :‫טלפון‬
shema@shema.tlv.k12.il :‫ דוא"ל‬/3/348 :‫סמל מוסד משה"ח‬
Dear English Teacher,
At the beginning of each year you meet new classes. Each child in
them is special, and has his/her own style of learning. Teaching them
is a challenge in itself, one that you are well acquainted with. This
year you also have a child with a hearing loss in your English class.
“Shema” has designed the following booklet to assist you in
integrating this pupil into your English lessons as smoothly as
possible. With a little knowledge and goodwill a pupil with a hearing
loss can go a long way.
The information here is only “the tip of the iceberg”. Feel free to
contact us with any question you may have.
HAVE A WONDERFUL AND FRUITFUL SCHOOL YEAR!
Yours
Naomi Epstein
"Shema" English Counselor
533563681.
‫ לחינוך ושיקום ילדים ונוער לקויי שמיעה‬- "‫מרכז טיפולי "שמע‬
‫משרד החינוך‬
84976 ‫אביב‬-‫ תל‬,03 ‫ רחוב פליטי הספר‬,"‫בית "שמע‬
30-/40-3/60 :‫ פקס‬,30-/48/8/8747679 :‫טלפון‬
shema@shema.tlv.k12.il :‫ דוא"ל‬/3/348 :‫סמל מוסד משה"ח‬
Armed With Information
Each Hearing Impaired child is, naturally, different. Not only do they
differ in individual ability and personality, the degree of hearing loss
varies greatly. Some children have a mild hearing loss while others
have a severe loss. Some depend mainly on their hearing to
understand speech while others rely heavily on lip reading. Some
children may be getting assistance in English from other sources.
This information, as will be explained in the following pages, is
important for you to know.
Here are a few basic facts about your pupil, and the phone numbers
of people you can contact for information. The homeroom teacher
and the school counselor are always good places to start.
Name of pupil: ____________________________________
Name of “Shema” counselor __________________________
Tel: _________________________
Pupil uses hearing aid: yes/no
Pupil can hear part/some/very little/almost nothing of what is being
said in class.
Pupil receives extra assistance in English: yes/no
From: (name of teacher) ______________
(Tel. No) _________________
“Shema” English counselor:
Naomi Epstein, 03-5345087 (home phone) naomi.shema@gmail.com
General comments:
___________________________________________________
___________________________________________________
533563681.
‫ לחינוך ושיקום ילדים ונוער לקויי שמיעה‬- "‫מרכז טיפולי "שמע‬
‫משרד החינוך‬
84976 ‫אביב‬-‫ תל‬,03 ‫ רחוב פליטי הספר‬,"‫בית "שמע‬
30-/40-3/60 :‫ פקס‬,30-/48/8/8747679 :‫טלפון‬
shema@shema.tlv.k12.il :‫ דוא"ל‬/3/348 :‫סמל מוסד משה"ח‬
LIP READING – THE CATCH 22 EFFECT
The term “lip reading” is actually a misnomer. What people who can lip-read actually do
is message read because unfortunately, eyes can’t take the place of ears.
Sounds such as /x/ /k/ /g/ cannot be seen on the lips at all, while other sounds, such as
/n/ /t/ /d/ are indistinguishable from one another.
On the basis of his/her knowledge of the language, the lip reader fills in the visual gaps,
using situational and contextual clues.
When a hearing impaired pupil begins studying English, he/she faces the following
situation:
The pupil:
Cannot hear/see all the sounds teacher is saying
SO
Needs knowledge of the language to fill in the gaps
BUT
Lacks the necessary knowledge of the new language
AND
Has trouble acquiring the necessary knowledge
BECAUSE
Cannot hear/see all the sounds teacher is saying
CONCLUSION:
The Hearing-Impaired pupil must learn to read English at a very early stage.
Through reading the pupil is exposed to the language in the most complete
manner.
533563681.
‫ לחינוך ושיקום ילדים ונוער לקויי שמיעה‬- "‫מרכז טיפולי "שמע‬
‫משרד החינוך‬
84976 ‫אביב‬-‫ תל‬,03 ‫ רחוב פליטי הספר‬,"‫בית "שמע‬
30-/40-3/60 :‫ פקס‬,30-/48/8/8747679 :‫טלפון‬
shema@shema.tlv.k12.il :‫ דוא"ל‬/3/348 :‫סמל מוסד משה"ח‬
The Survival Kit
Vocabulary is the aspect of language acquisition most difficult for the hearing
impaired child. When you don’t hear the words spoken around you (and sung on
MTV) it’s harder to remember them. Obviously, the pupil must work at
remembering vocabulary. But it’s critical to instill in the pupil the confidence
that he/she won’t “drown” if they forget a word, and that there’s a solution to
the problem:
THE DICTIONARY!!!!!!
The dictionary should be an integral part of the pupil’s equipment, along with the
course book and pencil box. He/She should be permitted to use it during class
work, and (when necessary) on tests. If part of the test is a “Vocabulary only”
section, then a pair of scissors is all that’s needed. The pupil does the vocabulary
section without the dictionary, cuts off and hands in that section, then
continues doing the test with the dictionary.
General recommendation:
BEGINNERS: A homemade dictionary. Each page of a notebook has a designated
letter. Ready made alphabet notebooks can be found in stores. The pupil writes
in the vocabulary items as he/she learns them, with a drawing or a translation
into Hebrew.
A picture, topic-based dictionary is not particularly useful because “forgotten”
words cannot be easily located.
INTERMEDIATE: A pocket dictionary that has basic vocabulary and can be
easily carried.
ADVANCED: Hearing impaired pupils are allowed to use electronic dictionaries
on the “Bagrut” examination. Hence it is extremely helpful if they use it during
the high-school years. It allows them to deal with the complex vocabulary found
in the texts taught and enables them to become competent dictionary users. An
electronic dictionary is a tool, and like any other tool, you must be very familiar
with its capabilities in order to make the most of it. Such a dictionary saves
time, which is very important to a pupil who must look up a great number of
words.
533563681.