Merry CHRISTmas! The holidays are fun for everyone, even the folks who lack hearing; however, the joy can sour if they are with family/friends whom do not create a "deaf-friendly" environment. Here's some tips as you gather with your families or friends with hearing loss to celebrate Jesus as the true meaning of CHRISTmas:
1. Pay attention to lighting of the gathering place...too dim or too bright, we can't lipread.
2. Stay away from windows during daylight hours with direct sun shining in-the halo around your head makes lip reading hard!
3. Avoid playing background music. If you have to do so, low volume is best.
4. Arrange yourselves where everyone is visible. We don't want to have to turn our heads continuously to read lips!
5. Make sure to repeat as needed and HIGHLIGHT subject changes so that we can follow the conversation.
There's several more tips I can give. If you have any questions/comments/concerns about this post, shoot me an email at kkeasler@oconee.k12.sc.us.
