Unlocking the Curriculum
Johnson et al.
Family Support Program
The goal of this component is to provide educational and emotional support for the families
of deaf children. It is critical that parents understand the differences between our model of
education and the interventionist models that are more typically available. We are asking them to
come to grips with the deafness of their child in a new and different way. We are presenting their
child, not as a defective human whose natural tendencies to learn and interact visually must be
inhibited, but as a capable person whose first linguistic task must be to learn a language other than
that of the parents in order to succeed. This will entail an understanding of the challenge a deaf
child presents to a family, in which he or she will not be able to participate normally or fully
without substantial adjustments by siblings and parents. The focus of family activities will be
around the acceptance of this view and to the resulting family adaptation to and participation in
the child's development it requires.
The program will be accessible to parents and family members throughout the time that
their child is in school. Over time, a significant role will be played by the experienced parents in
assisting in the adaptation of new parents and family members to the program.
The program includes the following parts:
1. Parent Support Groups
2. Weekly deaf community contact (foster grandparents)
3. Family education and counseling by professionals
4. Weekend camp programs to provide occasional intensive contact with the deaf
community
5. Summer camp programs to provide yearly, long-term contact with the deaf
community
Family-Infant-Toddler Program
This component aims toward the development of American Sign Language skills for deaf
infants and toddlers and the development of sign language and interactional skills for their parents
and siblings.
1. Family:
a. ASL teaching
b. family counseling
c. deafness education
2. Infants-Toddlers:
a. ASL acquisition
b. play groups with focus on language and psycho-social development
c. reading readiness
d. speech readiness
e. auditory stimulation
SASLJ, Vol. 2, No. 2 – Fall/Winter 2018
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