Preferential Seating Suggestions

For Students with Hearing Difficulties

If you have a student in your classroom that has a hearing difficulty, you could help this student be a more successful participant in your class by following these recommendations:

LIGHT:

· The light should not be behind the speaker. This includes light from windows. Perhaps the student should have his/her back to the window.

DISTANCE:

· The student needs to see your face but not be right in front of you. The student may strain his/her neck looking up. The recommended speech reading distance is 8 feet. It is best if the student can see and hear the other class members.

SIGNIFICANT NOISE SOURCES:

· If possible, the student needs to be far away from noise sources like the ventilation of fans, hall traffic, noisy clocks, or even very noisy fellow students.

· If one ear is better than the other, then position the student with the worse ear toward the noise and the good ear toward the sound source you want him/her to hear.

SPECIAL PROBLEMS FOR STUDENTS WITH MORE LOSS IN ONE EAR:

· This student might have difficulty locating the source of a sound. Or he/she might experience difficulty focusing on you in a noisy situation. Thus, the good ear needs to be toward the sounds you want him/her to hear (as mentioned above).

HELPFUL TEACHER HINTS

1. Speak naturally with normal rate/loudness and clarity, but not exaggerated (otherwise speech reading and understanding is difficult).

2. Avoid writing on the whiteboard while talking.

3. Try to avoid pacing while talking.

4. If at all possible, write directions on the whiteboard either before or after giving them.

5. Give an overview of the topic to be discussed prior to the beginning of the lesson. This will be of significant assistance to many students in your class.

6. If at all possible, define potentially difficulty vocabulary prior to the beginning of the lesson.