Reading Support for Families

Reading and writing are also called literacy skills, and they are critically important, because they are skills that lead to learning for life. Through reading and writing, thoughts and ideas can be shared, and different perspectives experienced. Children who are deaf/hard of hearing may need specialized support while learning these skills. This section of the guide provides a “Simple View of Reading,” literacy tips, tools, strategies, and resources. There are also videos, to deepen understanding.

The Simple View of Reading

The Simple View of Reading is a helpful way to understand what children need in order to read well. It explains that reading is made up of two big skills, decoding and language comprehension. Decoding is the ability to read the words on the page. Language comprehension is the ability to understand what those words mean.

Tips for Reading Together

Check for Access

• Limit background noise and clutter like the TV or toys. This helps your child focus on your voice or signs while reading.
• Deaf or hard of hearing children may use hearing or vision, or both to learn. Be sure to check their hearing and eyesight regularly, especially if you notice any changes. Talk to your child’s doctor if concerned.
• Make sure your child can clearly see your face and the book.
• Use the language or communication mode your child is most comfortable with (spoken language, sign language, or both).

Encourage Interaction

• Show excitement during story time! Your energy can help your child enjoy reading.
• Ask your child to show you the title page, the beginning of the story, and the back cover to show it is over.
• Invite your child to turn the pages from right to left.
• Encourage your child to point to pictures and name what they see.
• Talk about how the story connects to real life; This builds understanding and memory.

Support Language and Literacy Everyday

• Talk with your child often, using fun and vivid words. Describe everyday tasks as you do them.
• Follow your child’s lead—talk more about what they are interested in and take turns communicating.
• Help your child learn words using signs, gestures, and pictures alongside spoken or written words.
• Play with sounds and rhythm through nursery rhymes and songs.
• Read together daily. Use facial expressions, props, or gestures to help your child understand.
• Add writing tools to play areas (like crayons, notepads, menus, or stickers) so writing becomes part of play.
• Keep books and printed materials at home. Visit little free libraries, get a library card, and create a cozy reading area.
• Model reading yourself. Set a regular time when the whole family reads—without screens.
• Check out “Reading Tips for Families,” a website with videos, resources, and activities, designed to support the literacy journey of all children at home.

Literacy Tools and Strategies

Cued Speech is a visual mode of communication in which mouth movements of spoken language combine with “cues” to make the sounds (phonemes) of traditional spoken languages look different. Cueing allows users who are deaf, hard of hearing or who have language/communication challenges to access the basic, fundamental properties of spoken languages using vision.  

A person cues the sounds (phonemes) of spoken language by using eight distinct hand gestures or “hand shapes” in any one of four distinct locations near the mouth. The handshapes represent consonant phonemes and the locations near the mouth represent vowel phonemes. Then one can cue consonant/vowel chunks at the same time with the mouth movements of speech. Cued Speech does not require the use of hearing or talking. It is only required that the user show the mouth movements that match the cues.

Fingerspelling can help your child connect sign language to written English. When you spell words with your hands (like C-A-T), your child learns how those letters look and how they match printed words in books. This helps build their understanding of spelling and word structure. Over time, fingerspelling supports reading, writing, and recognizing new words—just like sounding out words helps hearing kids. Starting fingerspelling early, even before preschool, strengthens the brain pathways that support literacy.

Visual Phonics is a tool that helps children connect spoken and written language. It uses 45 hand signs and written symbols to show the sounds of speech (phonemes). These hand signs and symbols give children a visual and tactile way to understand how words are formed, especially if they have difficulty hearing certain sounds. For children who are deaf or hard of hearing, learning phonics can be challenging because they may not hear all the sounds in spoken words. Visual Phonics provides a way to see and feel those sounds, making reading and spelling easier to understand.

Additional Resources 

• 15 Principles for Reading with Your Deaf Child
• Children’s books with deaf/hard of hearing characters.
• Outreach Center literacy resources for deaf/hard of hearing learners. 
• Reading Rockets Tips for Parents.
• The State Library of Ohio: Outreach and Deafness collection of digital and print materials. 
• VL2 Storybook App: English and American Sign Language digital books.