Technology Recommendations?

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cinnamongirl

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I am working hard to stay out of the "ignorant hearing people" category, but, really, I am. But not disrespectfully, if that is any consolation?
I am SO VERY new at this and am trying very hard to make life the best for my kiddos as possible.
If any of you would be willing to help me out, I would be so grateful.

Technology advances at an amazing pace, and I'm learning about all kinds of things that are made for signalling, etc. Are there any gizmos or gadgets that you use or wish you had growing up that you would recommend? Is there something that I absolutely HAVE to invest in for my girls?

Does any one have a canine companion trained to hear for you? How has this relationship been for you?

Thank you for your help!
 
I got my hand on a T mobile Sidekick II back in 2006 when I was 29 years old. I wish that I would've gotten my hand on it when I was in high school, but it wasn't invented then. It would've made my life much easier.
 
What is it about the Sidekick? Anything specific or is it text messaging that was the glory?
 
Yes, the text messages. I used to have to rely on relay phone calls. I don't have to do so much of that any more. Now people do texts.
 
Makes sense. I prefer texting more times than not, actually. (Just don't have much to say usually)
My oldest is pushing 9, so I know I'm close to needing to get her something.
Thanks for that tip, d!
 
The Sidekick was simply among the first to be easy to use by deaf people due to it's keyboard, and earlier on, it's software was more geared towards personal data use when all the other phones were geared towards business data use. That's why it was so popular with the deaf. These days though, just about every smartphone out there leaves the Sidekick in the dust for deaf people, whether they have software keyboards or hardware keyboards.

Right now, text messaging and email access are prime for deaf. Of course, I don't know what a child would need, I would assume that it wouldn't hurt to have a phone with text messaging capabilities for your older child if you wanted to and she could figure out how to work it. There may even be phones just for children with safety restrictions, so that she can only text you and other certain preset numbers. Definitely worth checking into, it will give her more independence if she is away from you a lot.

I had a hearing dog. Truthfully, I would not recommend one for your children until they are older, and are mature and responsible enough to adhere strictly to the training requirements involved. With a hearing dog, it doesn't come set for life as far as training goes. You have to practice the training every day, even the tasks that didn't naturally occur that day, and most importantly you have to adhere to lots of rules to keep the dog in top working condition and suitable for public access: NO table scraps, no feeding from the hand except for treats and dog must always work for treats, NO playing while vest is on, NO jumping on people, etc etc. Some dogs even need rules like you can't play tug with them, stuff like that. Children usually have trouble adhering to these rules because they don't understand that it messes up the dog's training. Some kids are ready for the responsibility as young as 13, but most must be at least 16.

As much as having a hearing dog helps, it comes with it's challenges as well. It's fun to take a dog everywhere that other people don't get to... at first. Then it gets a little old dealing with the public's reaction to the dog, having to pick places to sit in public with the dog in mind, scan and check all the floors for any harmful things it might eat while sitting there (even if trained not to eat off the floor), be mindful of things in the environment that are harmful to the dog, and then there's the extra work required to keep the dog acceptable for public access like more grooming than a pet dog would require.

To be honest, there are enough technological things out there that your children can use that will do everything a dog will do, and more. I would honestly have the children use those things and then they can think about getting a hearing dog in their late teens.

The devices I would recommend for now are those that allow them more independence and not relying so much on mommy. Door knock flashers for their bedrooms and bathrooms, for starters - they deserve their privacy just like hearing kids do. Definitely get a system to flash the lights when someone rings the doorbell, because it's disconcerting to a kid when a stranger appears seemingly out of nowhere. Get them an alarm clock system that vibrates the pillow or bed and flashes the lights. It's much better for them to be pissed off at the alarm clock in the morning rather than mom flicking the light switch on and off or shaking them awake lol.
 
One of the most important things I tell parents of Hoh and deaf children is to make sure that your home is hoh/deaf friendly as soon as possible (long before they start school).

Make sure that the close captions are ALWAYS on - even before they are reading (pr pre-readin) so they are able to connect that the captions "mean something" in relation to the action on screen.

Make sure to get visual signallers (Sonic Alert makes a great, affordable, expandable system) as soon as possible that indicate the phone or doorbell is ringing etc. This helps the child(ren) connect what's happening in their environment -for example without a signalling system, if you disappear suddenly and "magically appear" with someone the child has no idea how you knew the person was at the door or how you knew to answer it, because they are unaware the door bell was rung! Same situation with the phone - how did you know someone was on the other side wanting to talk??

Get yourself and your critical "family" (grandparents, aunts & uncles etc) set up with VP phones, or at least webcams so you can communicate visually using any of the many free video programs (skype, gmail, msn, yahoo etc all have free computer video chats) - Hopefully you are learning (or have learned) and are using Sign Language at least as a second language at your home, but even if you aren't (yet - please start!! it's SOOO important) speaking and listening while being able to actaully see someone's lips move (speechreading) as well as body language is very very important, video chats make this easy!

When you get them an alarm clock once they're in school, make sure it's a visual and tactile type (Sonic Alert, Sonic Boom) so they can start practicing independently getting up in the morning (with parent(s) for back up, of course).

Make sure that your smoke detectors have strobe lights - to visually signal that they are "going off" - EVEN if your child is able to hear a smoke detector while awake with or without a HA or CI, this does NOT mean they can hear it if they are sleeping. For example during the day, I can hear a smoke detector if I'm in the same room with or without my HA - however while alsleep I'm completely unable to hear or understand the alarm (I sleep right through them).

If you have a Hoh child - when they are asleep, for safety sake PLEASE assume they are 100% deaf and make sure visual (& or Tactile) signallers are in place for their protection!

Not only does creating an environment at home that is accessible to your hoh or deaf child mean that they are able to properly navigate, understand and relax in their home it also (perhaps more importantly) instills from a very early age that the Hoh/deaf child has RIGHTS to accessibility outside the home. Advocating for your child inside your home (getting signallers, using captions/subtitles etc) trains parents and children for the advocacy they will need to do once the child goes to daycares, pre-school, elementary/grade school and beyond - which is a huge factor in making sure that your child is able to do and become anything they want to be (and that the school can't "trick" you into thinking that the school can't get services, or your child doesn't "meet requirements for" support services ... which is utterly false).

I hope this helps - feel free to ask as many questions as you want, and if you'd like to PM me, I'd be happy to answer anything you might be pondering re accessibly, raising a hoh/deaf child (from the perspective of having been a hoh/deaf child myself) etc.
 
cinnamongirl said:
Makes sense. I prefer texting more times than not, actually. (Just don't have much to say usually)
My oldest is pushing 9, so I know I'm close to needing to get her something.
Thanks for that tip, d!
Click to expand...

You can get QWERTY keyboard cells with a text only plan, or text and data (no voice) in many locations. This would allow her to text people as well as place calls through IM and IP relay.

You should be able to lock the phone down to only allow her to contact people in her address book (which can be locked), or something similar if this is a concern.

Honestly while I don't think hearing kids in hearing family need phones until highschool - for hoh/deaf children (or those in hoh/deaf families) being able to text and place relay calls is fairly important (since we can't just pick up a standard hearing phone and place a call.
 
The deaf people I know (mostly in their 30s, some high school aged) use cell phones for texting. I could be wrong but I *think* AT&T or some other providers will do a text/data only plan for deaf people so you don't need to pay for voice service on that phone. But another family I know just shares a family plan for minutes and the hearing kids use the voice service and texting, and the deaf parents just text.

Several I know have iPhones. The Facetime program is handy for voice chat, but I don't know many who actually USE that, they mostly just text and search the net...so is a smart phone necessary for a 9 year old? Probably not. Really my friends search the web, play with facebook, send e-mails, and all that other stuff everyone with a smart phone does. The kind of stuff you'd need to decide as a parent if you want your kid to have access too all the time, regardless of being deaf or hearing. (As a teacher, I would say it isn't necessary. Any teenager would disagree with me though.)

I think they all have videophones, many of which run through the internet, meaning you need a good broadband speed or the video doesn't go smoothly.
 
kellycat said:
The deaf people I know (mostly in their 30s, some high school aged) use cell phones for texting. I could be wrong but I *think* AT&T or some other providers will do a text/data only plan for deaf people so you don't need to pay for voice service on that phone. But another family I know just shares a family plan for minutes and the hearing kids use the voice service and texting, and the deaf parents just text.

Several I know have iPhones. The Facetime program is handy for voice chat, but I don't know many who actually USE that, they mostly just text and search the net...so is a smart phone necessary for a 9 year old? Probably not. Really my friends search the web, play with facebook, send e-mails, and all that other stuff everyone with a smart phone does. The kind of stuff you'd need to decide as a parent if you want your kid to have access too all the time, regardless of being deaf or hearing. (As a teacher, I would say it isn't necessary. Any teenager would disagree with me though.)

I think they all have videophones, many of which run through the internet, meaning you need a good broadband speed or the video doesn't go smoothly.
Click to expand...

Yes, AT T will do "deaf" plan if a person fax in an audiogram to show that they're deaf. T mobile, Verizon, and US Cellular to name some will give you a text only plan if you request it. No need to prove that you're deaf.
 
Technology changes fast. What is good right now isn't necessarily going to be the best solution by the time they are old enough to use it.
 
Lily7 said:
I had a hearing dog. Truthfully, I would not recommend one for your children until they are older, and are mature and responsible enough to adhere strictly to the training requirements involved. With a hearing dog, it doesn't come set for life as far as training goes. You have to practice the training every day, even the tasks that didn't naturally occur that day, and most importantly you have to adhere to lots of rules to keep the dog in top working condition and suitable for public access: NO table scraps, no feeding from the hand except for treats and dog must always work for treats, NO playing while vest is on, NO jumping on people, etc etc. Some dogs even need rules like you can't play tug with them, stuff like that. Children usually have trouble adhering to these rules because they don't understand that it messes up the dog's training. Some kids are ready for the responsibility as young as 13, but most must be at least 16.

As much as having a hearing dog helps, it comes with it's challenges as well. It's fun to take a dog everywhere that other people don't get to... at first. Then it gets a little old dealing with the public's reaction to the dog, having to pick places to sit in public with the dog in mind, scan and check all the floors for any harmful things it might eat while sitting there (even if trained not to eat off the floor), be mindful of things in the environment that are harmful to the dog, and then there's the extra work required to keep the dog acceptable for public access like more grooming than a pet dog would require.

To be honest, there are enough technological things out there that your children can use that will do everything a dog will do, and more. I would honestly have the children use those things and then they can think about getting a hearing dog in their late teens.

The devices I would recommend for now are those that allow them more independence and not relying so much on mommy. Door knock flashers for their bedrooms and bathrooms, for starters - they deserve their privacy just like hearing kids do. Definitely get a system to flash the lights when someone rings the doorbell, because it's disconcerting to a kid when a stranger appears seemingly out of nowhere. Get them an alarm clock system that vibrates the pillow or bed and flashes the lights. It's much better for them to be pissed off at the alarm clock in the morning rather than mom flicking the light switch on and off or shaking them awake lol.
Click to expand...

GREAT information!!

Anij said:
One of the most important things I tell parents of Hoh and deaf children is to make sure that your home is hoh/deaf friendly as soon as possible (long before they start school).

Make sure that the close captions are ALWAYS on - even before they are reading (pr pre-readin) so they are able to connect that the captions "mean something" in relation to the action on screen.

Make sure to get visual signallers (Sonic Alert makes a great, affordable, expandable system) as soon as possible that indicate the phone or doorbell is ringing etc. This helps the child(ren) connect what's happening in their environment -for example without a signalling system, if you disappear suddenly and "magically appear" with someone the child has no idea how you knew the person was at the door or how you knew to answer it, because they are unaware the door bell was rung! Same situation with the phone - how did you know someone was on the other side wanting to talk??

Get yourself and your critical "family" (grandparents, aunts & uncles etc) set up with VP phones, or at least webcams so you can communicate visually using any of the many free video programs (skype, gmail, msn, yahoo etc all have free computer video chats) - Hopefully you are learning (or have learned) and are using Sign Language at least as a second language at your home, but even if you aren't (yet - please start!! it's SOOO important) speaking and listening while being able to actaully see someone's lips move (speechreading) as well as body language is very very important, video chats make this easy!

When you get them an alarm clock once they're in school, make sure it's a visual and tactile type (Sonic Alert, Sonic Boom) so they can start practicing independently getting up in the morning (with parent(s) for back up, of course).

Make sure that your smoke detectors have strobe lights - to visually signal that they are "going off" - EVEN if your child is able to hear a smoke detector while awake with or without a HA or CI, this does NOT mean they can hear it if they are sleeping. For example during the day, I can hear a smoke detector if I'm in the same room with or without my HA - however while alsleep I'm completely unable to hear or understand the alarm (I sleep right through them).

If you have a Hoh child - when they are asleep, for safety sake PLEASE assume they are 100% deaf and make sure visual (& or Tactile) signallers are in place for their protection!

Not only does creating an environment at home that is accessible to your hoh or deaf child mean that they are able to properly navigate, understand and relax in their home it also (perhaps more importantly) instills from a very early age that the Hoh/deaf child has RIGHTS to accessibility outside the home. Advocating for your child inside your home (getting signallers, using captions/subtitles etc) trains parents and children for the advocacy they will need to do once the child goes to daycares, pre-school, elementary/grade school and beyond - which is a huge factor in making sure that your child is able to do and become anything they want to be (and that the school can't "trick" you into thinking that the school can't get services, or your child doesn't "meet requirements for" support services ... which is utterly false).

I hope this helps - feel free to ask as many questions as you want, and if you'd like to PM me, I'd be happy to answer anything you might be pondering re accessibly, raising a hoh/deaf child (from the perspective of having been a hoh/deaf child myself) etc.
Click to expand...
YES!! I will "mark" your name so I can chat with you. This is wonderful!
Captions have been on since identification.
For now, I don't see any need for signalers as we live very rural and if someone is coming over, we know it before hand and I always tell them that "someone" is coming over. I try to get specific.
OMG! I never even thought about the smoke detectors! I am going to look into that ASAP. That is first on the 'honey-do' list.
Wow.

Anij said:
You can get QWERTY keyboard cells with a text only plan, or text and data (no voice) in many locations. This would allow her to text people as well as place calls through IM and IP relay.

You should be able to lock the phone down to only allow her to contact people in her address book (which can be locked), or something similar if this is a concern.

Honestly while I don't think hearing kids in hearing family need phones until highschool - for hoh/deaf children (or those in hoh/deaf families) being able to text and place relay calls is fairly important (since we can't just pick up a standard hearing phone and place a call.
Click to expand...

Cool!

Lily7 said:
I don't know anything about this company, but a web search brought them up. Looks like they have text capable phones and allow total parental control over what they can do on the phones.

Cell Phones For Kids | Kids Cell Phones | Prepaid Cells For Kids from Kajeet
Click to expand...

Will definitely check this out :)

kellycat said:
The deaf people I know (mostly in their 30s, some high school aged) use cell phones for texting. I could be wrong but I *think* AT&T or some other providers will do a text/data only plan for deaf people so you don't need to pay for voice service on that phone. But another family I know just shares a family plan for minutes and the hearing kids use the voice service and texting, and the deaf parents just text.

Several I know have iPhones. The Facetime program is handy for voice chat, but I don't know many who actually USE that, they mostly just text and search the net...so is a smart phone necessary for a 9 year old? Probably not. Really my friends search the web, play with facebook, send e-mails, and all that other stuff everyone with a smart phone does. The kind of stuff you'd need to decide as a parent if you want your kid to have access too all the time, regardless of being deaf or hearing. (As a teacher, I would say it isn't necessary. Any teenager would disagree with me though.)

I think they all have videophones, many of which run through the internet, meaning you need a good broadband speed or the video doesn't go smoothly.
Click to expand...

Haha, I see what you are saying!

dereksbicycles said:
Yes, AT T will do "deaf" plan if a person fax in an audiogram to show that they're deaf. T mobile, Verizon, and US Cellular to name some will give you a text only plan if you request it. No need to prove that you're deaf.
Click to expand...

Great, have AT&T.

Bottesini said:
Technology changes fast. What is good right now isn't necessarily going to be the best solution by the time they are old enough to use it.
Click to expand...
YES! So true!
Specifically, though, is there any technology you wish you had growing up that we do have access to now?
Thanks everyone for all of these GREAT AND SO HELPFUL tips!!
We are learning ASL, the entire household. We also plan to move in a couple to a few years closer to a deaf school and community. Then, I will make sure to get the signallers set up in the house.
Thanks again! Much to consider here :)
 
cinnamongirl said:
YES! So true!
Specifically, though, is there any technology you wish you had growing up that we do have access to now?
Thanks everyone for all of these GREAT AND SO HELPFUL tips!!
We are learning ASL, the entire household. We also plan to move in a couple to a few years closer to a deaf school and community. Then, I will make sure to get the signallers set up in the house.
Thanks again! Much to consider here :)
Click to expand...

Video phone. I can talk to my children and my five year old and three year old granddaughters , which was an impossibility when I was a child.

That's the best invention of the century and even your small children can enjoy it right now.
 
I met a person who had a Cochlear Implant and used a "hearing dog" AFTER Implantation.
This was almost 5 years ago at Sunnybrook/Toronto-where I met her.
I thought about the "utility" of such and decided-for me-not much value-at all.

I hoped my Implant would help me "hear" after getting "used to it". It does.

I understand a person at Canadian Hearing Society/Toronto also used a "hearing dog" with his Implant.
 
drphil said:
I met a person who had a Cochlear Implant and used a "hearing dog" AFTER Implantation.
This was almost 5 years ago at Sunnybrook/Toronto-where I met her.
I thought about the "utility" of such and decided-for me-not much value-at all.

I hoped my Implant would help me "hear" after getting "used to it". It does.

I understand a person at Canadian Hearing Society/Toronto also used a "hearing dog" with his Implant.
Click to expand...

She didn't ask anything about implantation....
 
Bottesini said:
Video phone. I can talk to my children and my five year old and three year old granddaughters , which was an impossibility when I was a child.

That's the best invention of the century and even your small children can enjoy it right now.
Click to expand...

Maybe a stupid question that I should be asking Dr. Google, but is there a difference between a video phone and video chat forums like gchat, fb, skype, logitech, etc? (web cam)
 
cinnamongirl said:
Maybe a stupid question that I should be asking Dr. Google, but is there a difference between a video phone and video chat forums like gchat, fb, skype, logitech, etc? (web cam)
Click to expand...

If you have a lot of hearing relatives, Skype is very handy since anyone can have it.

Logitech is just a type of webcam.

FB uses Skype for their video chat program.
 
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