Originally published in Deaf-Blind Perspectives, vol. 12(1), Fall 2004.

Learning From Children Who Are Deafblind "Throw Away the Toys"

Sharon Barrey Grassick
Coordinator of Deafblind Education
Department of Education, Western Australia
and Communication Specialist
Deafblind Specialist Services, SENSES Foundation

Toys can be fun and are often great for educational purposes, but sometimes toys should be left in the cupboard. Many children who are deafblind or have multiple disabilities are not yet able, or perhaps have not been given an opportunity, to choose toys or activities for themselves. If a child were free to choose any toy at all, he or she would probably choose you, the "human toy."

We often forget the two things that are most important to children, especially to children with sensory impairments—effective human contact and interaction. Is time best spent trying to teach a child to use a particular toy, or is it better spent interacting on a personal, conversational level with a child, using voice and body language, especially the hands, to share experiences and acknowledge the child’s behavior as communication?

There is often too much emphasis on teaching children, particularly those with severe physical disabilities, to use toys by directing and controlling their hands and not enough emphasis on personally interacting with children to achieve the same kinds of skill development. Rather than manipulating a child’s hands to teach him or her how to use a toy, offering ourselves as human toys and making our hands available for the child to control can achieve remarkable conversations (Miles & Riggio, 1999). What better way to learn cause and effect, for example, than by playing a turn-taking game, pausing the activity, and then waiting for the child to indicate that the game should continue? A child may notice, "If I move my leg when Daddy stops swinging me, Daddy starts swinging me again!" "If Mummy stops bouncing me and I move my arms up and down, Mummy starts bouncing me again!"

A great deal of money and time can be spent looking for effective cause and effect toys—toys with bright shiny colors, good contrast, interesting sounds, and stimulating textures. These toys are designed to be motivating, but motivating to whom? Too often, they are far more attractive to an adult than to a child. Consider the following activities as alternatives to commercial cause and effect toys:

• Instead of pushing a button to cause a toy to pop up, push against Dad’s arm to make his arm pop up (in a specific and predictable pattern every time).
• Instead of touching a switch to cause a light to go on, touch Mom’s face and watch her eyes and mouth open wide, then shut again. (Brightly colored lipstick and eye shadow can help here.)
• Instead of touching a toy to cause it to move, touch Mom’s hand to make it move in a particular way. (Brightly colored nail polish may add interest.)

If a child does something, the adult communication partner acknowledges and responds in a particular, meaningful way, keeping it fun and interactive. Depending upon the interests and abilities of an individual child, many variations to the above can be used.

During these activities, be sure to acknowledge when a child’s behavior, such as turning away or diverting the eyes, communicates a need for a break, time for processing, or self-regulation. These cues are often subtle, but it is important to learn to recognize them and understand the needs they express. These types of behaviors can be misinterpreted as noncompliance or disinterest in a person or activity. Just imagine the energy that is required by children who are deafblind, and who often have additional disabilities or complex medical conditions, to try to use what little vision or hearing they may have. The need for breaks must be recognized and respected.

The following example demonstrates the value of human interaction. A young deafblind child, "C," would not accept her hearing aid. As soon as it was inserted, she would use her excellent fine motor skills to pull it out. Her parents had been using a special toy to motivate her to keep the hearing aid in, but it did not appear to interest C or offer her any auditory stimulation.

Because of the wonderful bond she had with her parents, a different approach was suggested—to use the parents themselves rather than a toy as the motivation for acceptance of the hearing aid. They used the following process:

• They showed the hearing aid to their daughter and offered it under her hand for her to feel.
• They used a touch cue (circle around her earlobe) before inserting the aid and made sure it was turned off before putting it in.
• Immediately after inserting the aid, they turned it on and took turns using their voices to greet C in an interesting singsong way, using her name and their names (e.g., "Helllllllllooooooo CCCC. It’s Mummmy here!"), using a natural intensity but with lots of inflection and intonation.
• After vocalizing to C, they would stop and give her time to locate the direction the voice was coming from.
• If she started to move her hand towards the hearing aid in an attempt to remove it, they would gently intercept and redirect her hand using one of their hands under hers. They would divert her attention by offering an interesting game involving her hands, voice, and movement. They avoided physically taking her hand away.

The first time the parents tried this approach, it was maintained for over 10 minutes with lots of smiling from C and without her attempting to remove the hearing aid. When C finally turned her head away, this was acknowledged and interpreted as a need for a break or time to process the information. The hearing aid touch cue was given and the aid quickly turned off and removed before she had the opportunity to remove it herself. C is now wearing her hearing aid most of the day.

Using parents as motivating "human toys" empowers parents. What better way to motivate a child than to have a parent who responds to their child’s actions and behaviors in a positive and meaningful way? The important components are consistency, routine, predictability, understanding, and fun!

During activities, maintain conversations by using fingerplay and by singing songs with specific patterns. Always allow time for the child to initiate contact with you and to respond to your interactions. Significant people may have a special song or rhyme that they sing every time they greet a child, and this can become a type of "song signature."

Allow the child to have access to your face, especially to your mouth. If a child’s hand or fingers make contact with your face, immediately respond by vocalizing, talking, or singing. "Chin to chin" is another technique that can be very effective. It involves talking or singing with your chin in contact with the child’s chin, allowing the child to feel the vibrations from your vocal chords and breath flow.

In summary, don’t throw away all the toys! There is definitely a time and place for some. However, stop and think before offering a toy. Maybe there is another way. We don’t always have the luxury of one-on-one time to spend with children. When we do, the most valuable activities are those that involve personal interaction, turn-taking, imitation, conversation, and the enjoyment of being connected with another human being.

Reference

Miles, B., & Riggio, M. (Eds.) (1999). Remarkable conversations: A guide to developing meaningful communication with children and young adults who are deafblind. Watertown, MA: Perkins School for the Blind.

A special thank you to Dr. Mike Steer of Renwick College, NSW, Australia, for his help with editing.

Editor’s note: A previous version of this article was published in the ADBC Beacon: The Newletter of the Australian DeafBlind Council, No. 25, February 2004.