handicapped child - able to listen and understand - unable to speak

[Lucy]

Stefan,
I don't know any person like that boy but some years ago I read a book titled "Dziecko w autoportrecie z zamalowana twarza" (A child's self-portrait with the face painted over) by Marina Zalewska (Polish psychologist) where reasons for no or poor speech production in hearing and deaf pre-school kids were analysed and effective therapies presented. It was very mind-opening to me! :-)
Lucy
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Anne-Claude Prélaz Girod 
  To: sw-l at majordomo.valenciacc.edu 
  Sent: Sunday, November 12, 2006 10:02 PM
  Subject: Re: [sw-l] handicapped child - able to listen and understand - unable to speak


  Stefan




  in my speech therapist practice (my old life... some years ago.....)... I followed a small boy who completely lost language (comprehension and production skliis were both lost) after developping a LandauKleffner syndrom... he was put in the scholl for the deaf where I used to work to enable him to develop language skills in SignLanguage... because oral langauges were just impossible... 


  he recovered very well after a few years... and Signlanguage was a real help for him during these years


  Maybe I can explain more.... you should give me a call on SKYPE....
  I could even send you the paper that was published on him if you're interested.... and you should watch on of the  "SIGNES" TV progamm for the deaf here in Switzerland... were the whole progamm was talking about this young man... and another child in France that happen to have the same problem!


  talk of all that soon...


  for now I desperatly need to go to bed....


  Anny




  Le 12 nov. 06 à 16:16, Stefan Wöhrmann a écrit :


    Hi Valerie and dear sw-list members all over the world,



    Excuse me,  if somebody feels that this question is not subject to SignWriting  ... I need your support.



    Last week I  met a 5 year old boy in my classroom– 

    He is  physically handicapped. He can hear and understand spoken language but is unable to speak a single word and this will not change in the future. So he uses gestures as far as possible.



    Now we are in the process to develop ideas – what kind of education – program would fit his needs at best?



    He is able to understand questions and to follow instructions given in spoken language at his level of age without any problem. So he iss smart ... smile!



    In the long run he probably will choose to use kind of computersoftware – to type his comments on a screen –  but will this support his need for everyday – communication?



    His mother has heard about  GebaerdenSchrift (SignWriting ) and she decided to check out whether this could support her and her son to improve their communcation.



    Believe it or not but this smart little boy was able to identify the signs of a two pages GebaerdenSchrift-Document after only a 45 minute session!  And even when I wrote some sign-names at the blackboard he could understand and sign immediately the idea : written names  - well of course written  SignLanguage



    I am wondering wether anybody who reads this message knows of a child in an almost parallel situation. Would be great to get some enriching ideas, comments, weblinks ...



    Thanks for your attention!



    Stefan ;-)  






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