DESCRIPTION OF AUDITORY-VERBAL THERAPY

Auditory-Verbal Therapy facilitates optimal acquisition of spoken language through listening by newborns, infants, toddlers, and young children who are deaf or hard of hearing. Auditory-Verbal therapy promotes early diagnosis, one-on-one therapy, and state-of-the-art audiologic management and technology. Parents and caregivers actively participate in therapy. Through guidance, coaching, and demonstration, parents become the primary facilitators of their child's spoken language development. Ultimately, parents and caregivers gain confidence that their child can have access to a full range of academic, social, and occupational choices throughout life. Auditory-Verbal therapy must be conducted in adherence to all 10 Principles of Auditory-Verbal Therapy.

Principles of Auditory-Verbal Therapy

1. Promote early diagnosis of hearing loss in newborns, infants, toddlers, and young children, followed by immediate audiologic management and Auditory-Verbal therapy.

2. Recommend immediate assessment and use of appropriate, state-of-the-art hearing technology to obtain maximum benefits of auditory stimulation.

3. Guide and coach parents¹ to help their child use hearing as the primary sensory modality in developing spoken language without the use of sign language or emphasis on lipreading.

4. Guide and coach parents¹ to become the primary facilitators of their child's listening and spoken language development through active consistent participation in individualized Auditory-Verbal therapy.

5. Guide and coach parents¹ to create environments that support listening for the acquisition of spoken language throughout the child's daily activities.

6. Guide and coach parents¹ to help their child integrate listening and spoken language into all aspects of the child's life.

7. Guide and coach parents¹ to use natural developmental patterns of audition, speech, language, cognition, and communication.

8. Guide and coach parents¹ to help their child self-monitor spoken language through listening.

9. Administer ongoing formal and informal diagnostic assessments to develop individualized Auditory-Verbal treatment plans, to monitor progress and to evaluate the effectiveness of the plans for the child and family.

10. Promote education in regular schools with peers who have typical hearing and with appropriate services from early childhood onwards.

*An Auditory-Verbal Practice requires all 10 principles.

¹The term "parents" also includes grandparents, relatives, guardians, and any caregivers who interact with the child.

(Adapted from the Principles originally developed by Doreen Pollack, 1970)
Adopted by the AG Bell Academy for Listening and Spoken Language®, July 26, 2007.