Build Daily Hearing Device Routines for Kids: Tips for Parents

Habits help all of us! Think about washing your hands and brushing your teeth – those habits probably feel automatic now, but at one point, they were brand new and took practice.

Building habits happens through repetition, reminders, and reflection! You practice the routine, set up helpful reminders, and check in to see how it’s going. And before you know it, something that you want to do has become something natural that you do!

This is especially true for children with hearing loss wearing their hearing devices all waking hours! It takes repetition, reminders, and reflection to help your little one wear their hearing devices – but with a few simple steps you can be on your way to making this a natural habit for you and your child!

Why Is Wear Time a Worthwhile Habit?

Children with hearing loss need consistent access to conversations and sounds during all the hours that they are awake for their brains to learn to listen, talk, and later on – read! Every hour, every routine, and every effort you make truly adds up over time.

Think of “all waking hours” as brain-building time for your little one! Remember – everyday routine moments like talking, playing, and singing play a big role in helping your child’s brain grow. So, building daily habits to keep hearing devices on your child’s little ears helps them learn all day long!

Tips for Building Your Daily Habit

Make It Clear and Simple

Create clear and simple reminders! This may look like a wake-up routine or a special place just for hearing devices, to help you remember to put hearing devices on your little one as soon as they wake up. Your child will quickly learn that waking up means devices on, and devices on means they’re ready to listen and learn!

Try it out:

• Say “Eyes Open, Ears On!” every morning as your cue. Place sticky notes around the house to keep this motto on top of mind.
• Keep all hearing devices in one clear place like a small shelf, basket, or tray.
• Pair putting devices on with a morning routine you already do like a diaper change, getting dressed, or morning hugs.

Make It Meaningful

Connect hearing device wear time to your hopes and goals for your child! These goals may be that your child

• Learns new words
• Joins conversations
• Talks and play with friends
• Or a number of others!

Try keeping these goals front and center, so they can remind you of the meaningful purpose behind wear time!

Try it out:

• Keep a short list of motivators written down on your phone or on sticky notes: “I want my child to talk with their friends.” “I want them to love reading.” “I want to help them have every chance to learn.”
• Celebrate small wins – “They pointed to their ear when they heard a sound!” Share wins like this with family, friends, caregivers, your LSL professional, audiologist, or even other families of children with hearing loss.
• Use this vision board and goal setting worksheet to write out your goals and celebrate each exciting milestone along the way.

These motivations help wear time feel purposeful, not stressful!

Make It Easy

Set up a simple morning routine and keep hearing devices in one spot so it’s quick and easy to put your child’s devices on each day. The simpler the routine feels, the easier it is to stick with it – especially on busy mornings.

Try it out:

• Prep hearing devices and supplies like the charger, batteries, and drying box the night before.
• Keep daily device checks short and consistent (visual check, battery check, quick listen). For a brief reminder to reference, check out this Daily Hearing Aid Care Checklist.
• Place cleaning tools and extra batteries within reach.

Make It a Win

Notice the great changes that happen when your child wears their hearing devices – like hearing new sounds, learning new words, and joining in conversations. Celebrate these wins with family, friends, and your professional team. Be proud of how you’re helping your child grow a strong, healthy brain each day!

Try it out:

• Do a quick Ling 6 Sound check and celebrate when your child responds!
• Track wear time with a daily habit tracker and celebrate progress!
• Notice and share wins like more babbling, new words, better listening, and more conversations.
• Give your child lots of praise for keeping their hearing devices on.

Celebrate all the wins – big or small! Progress AND showing up each day to try is a win to recognize!

Make It Work with Childcare

Wear time and daily device habits are possible for each family – whether you’re at home, using childcare, or supported by grandparents, nannies, or other caregivers.

Anyone spending time with your child needs to know the importance of wear time and how to keep devices on properly.

Try it out:

• Set up a time to meet with your caregiver and walk them through the how-to's of working with your child’s hearing devices.
• Share a troubleshooting kit with a guide or checklist for your child’s hearing devices.
• Create a video and share how to check and put hearing devices on.

Find more tips for working with caregivers by watching this video with Dr. Teresa Caraway, Speech Language Pathologist for over 40 years.

Small Daily Habits Make A Lifetime of Listening and Learning

Wear time makes a BIG difference for children learning to listen and talk! When you set up simple, daily habits, it not only makes wear time possible but also makes it doable!

Hear from one mom whose early wear time routines and habits set her daughter up for a lifetime of listening, spoken language, reading, and thriving.

And remember, YOU are doing a wonderful job and your child is in the best hands with you!

_{*Habit Framework adapted from Atomic Habits by James Clear: Clear, J. (2018). Atomic habits: An easy & proven way to build good habits & break bad ones. Avery.}