Your child has just been identified as deaf. Here’s what comes next.
Take a breath. Finding out can bring a lot of feelings at once: worry, sadness, confusion, sometimes even relief at finally having an answer. All of that is normal. Your child is the same child they were yesterday, and there is a lot you can start doing today.
In Indian Sign Language
Watch this page in ISL
Everything on this page, signed by our team. The full transcript is under the video.
Demo video. The ISL version, signed by Alok Ranjan, is being recorded.
Show transcript
If your child has just been identified as deaf, take a breath. Whatever you are feeling is normal.
Your child can have language right now, through sight. The early years matter most, and you can start today, with a few signs, eye contact and pictures.
Most deaf children have hearing parents. You can learn too, and you don’t have to do it alone. Send us a message, and ask us anything.
Five things to know
Your child can have language right now
Language doesn’t need sound. Deaf children learn a sign language as naturally as hearing children learn a spoken one.
The early years matter most
Language grows fastest in the first years of life, so starting early helps, whatever you decide about hearing devices.
You don’t have to choose one path for ever
Signing and hearing devices can go together. Many of our children use both.
You can learn too
Most deaf children have hearing parents. You don’t need to be fluent to start; a few signs a day make a difference.
You are not doing this alone
Other parents, Deaf adults and our team are here for you. Our Parent Circle is a judgement-free space where families learn to sign and grow together.
What you can do this week
- Keep your follow-up appointments with your audiologist or ENT doctor.
- Get face to face. Make eye contact, and use your face, hands and pointing to show what you mean.
- Try your first signs. Watch our first-signs video with your child.
- Make a picture routine for the day: waking up, eating, bath and bedtime.
- Message us. Ask anything, with no forms and no pressure.
Questions you might have
Will learning sign language stop my child from speaking?
This is one of the most common worries, and you may hear different views, because researchers still debate it. What is widely agreed is that a child needs full access to a language as early as possible, and ISL gives that from the first day.
At Ishara Kids, children who use devices practise listening and speech every day alongside signing, and we will always tell you honestly how your child is doing.
We haven’t decided about hearing aids or an implant yet.
That’s fine. Your child is welcome either way, and nothing here depends on that decision. It is a decision for you and your doctors.
Do we need reports or certificates to start?
No. You don’t need any reports to begin.