A little help from his friends - Real Mum story on MoM

7 Comments

We hear so many negative stories about the way kids with disabilities are excluded, or somehow treated as different. And I just wanted to acknowledge what a very positive experience we’ve had at primary school.

My son is in first class, and he’s profoundly deaf. He wears cochlear implants, so has access to sound. His speech and communication are excellent, but the simple fact is that sometimes he has problems – he doesn’t always hear things correctly, or at all. And when your classmates are 6 or 7 years old, they’re not always very sensitive or aware of this.

And I have had a number of parents approach me, and ask a simple question: “What should I tell my child, so they’ll better understand when your son doesn’t hear, and maybe says something that sounds weird as a result?”

That means so much to me, because if the other kids understand better then it’ll help my son make friends. Which is so important to all parents. I really appreciate that so many parents have been so upfront about simply asking how they can help, by helping their children. It’s really hard for kids of that age to grasp that if he says something odd, it probably means he didn’t hear them properly (and so might be answering a different question than the one they asked). Some guidance from their parents will probably go a long way.

So I guess I’m saying thank you to those parents. And to other people who are hesitating, there are a lot of parents like me who wouldn’t be offended at all by a direct question – they might even welcome it.

Posted by BellaB, 21st August 2014

7 Comments

- - Lori-Anne said
  - 31 Jan 2016
    8:58 pm
I am so glad to hear you are having a positive experience at your son’s school… I work as a disability support worker and see discrimination and misunderstanding everyday… it is disheartening but it is lovely to hear good news stories.

- - mom113055 said
  - 24 Jul 2015
    4:16 pm
wonderful

- - mom56842 said
  - 16 Sep 2014
    10:55 pm
Restores your faith in humanity when people are considerate and caring.

- - no1ladydj said
  - 25 Aug 2014
    12:30 am
What a wonderful example those other parents are giving to their children as well. With attitudes like that, they’re sure to grow up as caring and not discriminating against people who are different.

- - ashblonde said
  - 21 Aug 2014
    4:12 pm
I think it should be up to the teacher to get the kids involved in helping your son. Most kids this age group would be eager to please & their parents should back them up also. Any child that feels the care & concern thrives! Good Luck dear little man, I hope the classroom back’s him up.

- - Kelly said
  - 21 Aug 2014
    2:13 pm
That is really nice that those parents took their time to actually come and speak to you.
Maybe see if the class teacher would either let you come and have a little talk about your sons hearing or if you could write up a little letter explaining the things that would help your son.
- mom57522 replied
  
  28 Oct 2014 , 9:26 pm
  I think your idea is really good.