Moving Through The Milestones

You may have heard the saying, “If you don’t know where you’re going, how will you know when you get there?” The same theory applies to being aware of the developmental milestones for your baby, particularly if they have a hearing loss! Children develop at different rates but there's an identifiable set of skills most will pass through as they grow. These skills are the developmental milestones, and they build on each other, going from simple to complex, during predictable time periods.

It’s important for you to be aware of typical development so you can understand what skills your baby needs at each age and stage -- and so you can help them move to the next stage. You'll want to hold high expectations for them to reach the same milestones as children born with typical hearing. Knowing these milestones will also allow you to work with your LSL professional to monitor your child’s listening and language progress and to create a plan that will help you reach the goals you have for your child.

Hearing Loss and Development

Today, babies with hearing loss can be identified through newborn hearing screening, fit with appropriate hearing technology, and receive early intervention with their family to support timely listening and spoken language development. Sometimes though, children are identified late, their hearing loss may progress, or they're not receiving appropriate amplification with their hearing technology. If a child isn't hearing all spoken language occurring around them, their listening, language, speech, and social development will likely begin showing delays. That's why it's important for parents and professionals to closely monitor their child’s development over time to make sure they're meeting developmental milestones and to identify any changes in hearing status. For children with hearing loss, addressing developmental concerns early can make a big difference for long term spoken language success.

Overcoming the Fear of Knowing

We know it's sometimes scary to learn about milestones because it can create feelings of failure or panic if your child hasn’t hit a milestone yet. That fear might convince us that staying in one place, sometimes being a comfort zone of unawareness, is the easiest and most natural thing to do. However, there’s freedom in awareness! Freedom to adjust, set new goals, and keep moving forward. Knowledge is power, and being knowledgeable about these milestones will help you become a better partner with your LSL professionals and better teacher for your child. As a parent, you've got what it takes to help your child reach these milestones. 

Guides to Grow

The best place to start learning about developmental norms? Download a milestone guide which can show charts and timetables for mastery of skills. Then, work with your LSL intervention team to understand how these milestones relate to supporting your child as they learn to listen and talk. These guides can be broken down into the areas of hearing/auditory, cognitive, speech (sound production), language (listening, understanding, and using words), social/emotional, and physical development. Check out our developmental milestones chart as well as these resources:

• Developmental Milestones for Babies and Children
• The Integrated Scales of Development
• Baby Hearing Development

An Important Reminder 

Every child is unique and different. Just because your child does or doesn’t match up to a certain developmental milestone yet doesn’t mean they won’t reach the listening, talking, and literacy goals you have for them! Knowing where they are developmentally gives you and your LSL provider a starting point for setting goals and moving forward. That will help you know what to do now and what to expect ahead. When you make sure your child is wearing the right hearing devices at all waking moments, attend regular sessions in LSL early intervention, and make LSL strategies a part of your daily life, you are doing what it takes to help your baby learn to listen, talk, read, and thrive!!

Looking for support as you dive into learning more about milestones? Discover your community of other families on the journey. Visit the Family Support Community or the private, families-only Facebook group and let members know what you’re feeling! These communities are welcoming spaces for you to share your fears, struggles, worries, or challenges with other families who understand -- and for them to give you helpful advice and cheer you on!