Posted on 10/28/2016

My son Lucas is 6.5 years old, and was born profoundly deaf. He received his first set of hearing aids at 5 months old, and cochlear implants at the ages 1 and 2.  We used a combination of sign language and speech for the first two years, until he showed preference over spoken language. Now, our primary mode of communication is spoken language, with some sign.

When we first learned Lucas was deaf, I wondered a lot about what his life would look like- especially communication with others. One of my very favorite holidays is Halloween- and by nature that means Lucas would be interacting with many people that had no idea he was deaf. This meant the responsibility fell to me to make sure he was getting just as much out of the holiday as his older brother. It also meant I had to make sure that whatever costume he wore would work with his hearing aids, and later, cochlear implants.

His first Halloween he was “Orco”- the little wizard from HeMan. It was a pretty simple costume, and I made a little hat to go on his head. Since I was making it myself, I was able to make sure it didn’t cover up his hearing aids too much. I wanted to make sure his microphones were as exposed as possible to give him the best access to sound. I also put some keepers on his hearing aids, to ensure that we weren’t doing the hearing aid hunt in the dark on Halloween night.

He was only 6 months old that first Halloween, and had just received his hearing aids. Every door we went to, I practiced our language skills- saying and signing the same phrases at each door. I also made sure that if someone spoke to him directly, I repeated that information to him to ensure he didn’t miss anything. As he’s grown older, my role as his advocate has decreased. Where I used to be at every door with him, repeating questions, prompting answers and encouraging language- I now sit back and watch, only stepping in if I see he clearly missed something.  It’s been empowering for both of us for him to have this independence, and also his own self advocacy in asking someone to repeat themselves if he misses it the first time.

Here are a few tips and tricks that I’ve learned over the years:

• When you are buying costumes, try them on first if they have a head piece. Lucas has worn multiple costumes with big head pieces, but I have had to make a few modifications to ensure they aren’t covering up his microphones completely or obstructing his vision.
• If your child uses hearing aids or CIs, secure the amplification somehow to your child’s clothing. Double sided tape, or tethers are what we generally use. Between costumes knocking “gear” off, or kids running around with the excitement of Halloween, the last thing you want to be worrying about is lost amplification!
• Be there with them at the door for every interaction when they are young. Use it as an opportunity to give your child access to many different people and environments to learn and practice their language, no matter what your mode of communication is. Sign or repeat everything to them. Halloween night is such a language rich night, get as much of that information to them as possible.
• Encourage your child to advocate for themselves if they didn’t hear the speaker, or couldn’t read their lips. People are so willing to learn about your child and help them, use this opportunity to practice that skill. Teach them it’s ok to ask someone to speak slower, say it again, remove the mask so they can see their face etc. It may seem like just one night, but they will talk to so many more strangers in a few hours than they do on a daily basis. This can be such a positive, encouraging experience for your child.
• Practice some Halloween language or signs before you head out! When Lucas was young, we would role play going up to a door. I pre-exposed him to a lot of the language he would be hearing, and expressing, before hand in a quiet environment.
• -Use Halloween as an opportunity to expand your child’s language! You will see so many things out Trick or Treating or at an event, that is not in our daily language. Be descriptive, point all of it out! Call it a Witches Cauldron instead of a pot. Halloween is one of Lucas’ favorite Holidays now as well! As daunting as it can all seem at first, it will become second nature to you and your child. For the kids, it’s a night to dress up get a ton of candy and have fun. We parents share in that joy with them, and have the opportunity to turn Halloween into a night of learning, without our kids even noticing!

Tonya Ng is the proud mom of 4 children under the age of 9. Her son Lucas is profoundly deaf and uses bilateral cochlear implants.