The magazine for kids and teens with hearing loss

FU N R E M M U S S'MORE 2017

THINGS WE LOVE g omin c r e v cles

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Contents

Hi from Mel!

4 Things

We Love

6 O vercoming Obstacles

8 Mark it

with an E

10 Fun & Games

Contributors Melanie Paticoff • Editor in Chief Valorie Johnson • Content Editor N-KCreative.com • Magazine Design Overcoming Obstacles: Emily Evelyn Ethier • Baking Columnist With special thanks to all of our featured H W friends

www.HearingOurWay.com info@hearingourway.com 8820 Ladue Road, Ste. 203 St. Louis, MO 63124 Volume 4, No. 2 ©2017 Sophie’s Tales, LLC. All rights reserved. Hearing Our Way is published quarterly and is a publication of Sophie’s Tales, LLC. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited. See p.11 for more information about subscriptions for homes, schools, and offices or visit www.HearingOurWay.com. For promotional opportunities, change of address, or other customer service, contact info@hearingourway.com. • All comments and suggestions received by Hearing Our Way become the sole property of Hearing Our Way and may be used without compensation or acknowledgement. Hearing Our Way disclaims liability for any losses or damages that may result from using information in this magazine. • Inquire today about sponsorship and advertising opportunities. Contact Info@HearingOurWay.com.

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Dear Readers,

g it at camp, t is! Whether you’ll be kickin tha r, me sum to . . . in e div s'more Let’s lunteering, there’s always vo e tim ing nd spe or , on off on a family vacati this season. at a campfire with friends ws llo ma rsh ma st roa to e tim Hearing aring loss on every cover of he h wit ls de mo e rol ing she is We love to feature inspir may only be a toddler, but ily Em t! en fer dif no is very young age. Our Way, and this issue f-acceptance can start at a sel d an ss, ne are aw y, cac showing us that advo panied by the quote, y Dumbo collection, accom ne Dis p’s Ga in ed tur fea s This year, she wa more, Emily! The ad ssible.” We couldn’t agree po ’s ing yth an elf urs yo in kids “If you believe the importance of featuring d an ion lus inc t ou ab ack feedb inspired so much positive coming Obst acles on page 6, er Ov in w no d an , dia me am tre with hearing loss in mains ence! le baby making a big differ litt s thi t ou ab re mo rn lea we get to love ABC show Shark Tank will hit the of s fan y an , dia the me but Speaking of disabilities in ow that not one, not two, kn u yo Did 4. ge pa on n tio ld our latest Inspiration Sta xia? Instead of letting it ho sle dy y ilit ab dis ng rni lea become three of the ‘Sharks’ have the s challenge helped them to thi h wit up g win gro t tha them back, they each say they are today. W ow ! the incredible entrepreneurs r Evelyn mer issue! On page 8, bake sum d cke -pa jam s thi in t one of There’s even s'more to see pfire! On page 9, we revisi cam a ut ho wit . . . ' s re mo 12, travel shows us how to make s g updates for us. On page itin exc e som s ha o wh ie, an our PACS friends, Steph lear implant story. one family’s amazing coch ar he to ma na Pa to us h wit

er fun has begun ! m m Su . rs pe m ca y, ad Get re itor in Chief Mel Paticoff Grossman, Ed and maltipoo, Sophie rs!' P.S. Mel is now 'All Ea Learn more on p11.

Look for these symbols throughout the magazine for special tips !

Hearing – Info about hearing aids, cochlear implants, and listening devices Talking – Tips for speech and language Self-Advocacy – Ideas for sharing your hearing loss story with others

Sophie

Subscribing = loving! Please subscribe and show your support! Your subscription will help us reach and connect with even more kids with hearing loss who listen and talk.

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S G N I H T E V O L WE

ti n: inspirati n Sta nk Dive into the arTkaTank, wealthy business owners (the Sharks)

show, Sh of the Sharks On ABC's hit reality know that for some u yo d Di . ve lo ey th and ess ideas an, Daymond John, or rc Co invest in new busin a ar rb Ba ? nk come im to get to The Ta major obstacle to be it wasn’t an easy sw a e m co er ov to d l” O’Leary all ha le some Kevin “Mr. Wonderfu called dyslexia. Whi y lit bi sa di ng ni ar people: a le e Sharks let successful business ad block, none of th ro a as y lit bi sa di seen this ct, they all say people might have great success. In fa g in ev hi ac m fro t where them everyone else and ge their disability stop an th ly nt re ffe di k lped them thin dyslexia is what he entrepreneurs. dive in with these t’s Le y! da to e ar they petitive… cial, and more com so e or m e, tiv ea cr e more ated, “[Dyslexia] made m can keep you motiv re su it t bu , lly ta en gm g to get.” It sure is challengin nobody else is goin es ac pl u yo t ge d make you money an —Barbara Corcoran different ways, to solve problems in u yo es rc fo a xi le ys “D your capacity your brain, including so you use more of nt way e world in a differe th e se I n… tio iza for visual a positive for me that’s been d an le op pe t os m than John thing.” —Daymond and read it. in front of a mirror ok bo a ld ho ] to “[I was taught xia is] not at [showed me dysle Th . at th do d ul co No one else And I still do. I came to believe it. r… we po a s it’ ; ss a weakne ed to be taught rength. You just ne st a a xi sle dy er id I cons —Kevin O’Leary how to harness it.” trademark of Sony Pict Shark Tank is a registered

ures Television Inc.

vie : The Emoji seMemoojis movie We L ojisve are coming to the big we use every day, and now tho

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rld We all have our favorite em xtopolis’, The Emoji Movie ’s secret wo ‘Te in s pal oji em r you n Joi r! me sum screen this personalities. meet emojis who each have distinct ’ll you re, The ne. pho art sm r o was you ide ins ression, except for Gene, an emoji wh exp ial fac — one y onl and — one e rybody else. They each hav t wants to have one expression like eve jus and ns sio res exp le ltip mu h wit n bor devices d you know? Captioning ie Di d di t ha W mov you! We want to HEAR from ie ? Do you are now available in most ng hi ov tc M you think of The Emoji out like theaters. Do you like wa ning? d io think it’s better to stan y else? movies with closed capt od yb Gene or to be like ever y Pict stered trademark of Son The Emoji Movie is a regi

ures Television Inc.

n Entrepreneur: A perso , who takes an idea d product, or service an ess turns it into a busin Dyslexia: A learning disability that makes d it difficult to read an d an write numbers letters

g Siblint sp Meet Charlie , Stella ,

and Catherine, siblings who never let hearing los s get in the way of fun ! Ch arlie , 4, uses bilateral cochlear implant s to hear. Stella, 3, does no t have hearing loss. Baby Catherine wears hearing aids while she aw aits her upcoming bilateral cochle ar implant surgery! Togeth er, the older siblings love gymnastics, swimming , and keeping an eye on their baby sister.

W rds, W rds, W rds Sleep like a Log

Charlie: I got my cochlear impla nts

when I was just 9-months-o and then went to speech th ld erapy every week for two ye ar s. No wI can hear, talk, and commun icate with Stella, Catherine , and all of my friends.

Stella: Even though I’m Charlie’ s litt

le sister, some people think we look like twins! When Charlie doesn’t have his cochlear im plants on I know he can’t hear me, so we have to look at each othe r to talk. Sometimes I’ll try to put Ch arlie’s implants on my head , but they just won’t ‘st ick ’!

Camping Connection: We lov e summ

er. We go camping in our backyard in a tent and roast marshmallows ov er a campfire to make s’mores ! Every summer, we visit our Nana and PopPop at their lake house. This will be Catherine’s first tim e at the lake.

Language can be tricky, especially idioms, which are groups of words or expressions that mean something different than what they say. You might hear the idiom sleep like a log and think, ‘Do trees sleep?’ Sleep like a log actually means to sleep really well- very still and quiet like a tree without tossing and turning. Like this: “You didn’t hear the storm last night?” “Nope, when I don’t have my hearing aids in, I sleep like a log!”

One La

st Word: We love taking care of baby Catherine. We like to make her laugh and hold her. In the morning, we help Mom check her hearing aids by getting different instruments and toys to make sounds. When she tu rns our way, we know her he aring aids are working! We can’t wait for her to get her own set of pin k ‘superhero ears.’ Hearing loss is part of the whole family. Shar e your story with info@ hearingourway.com

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ng vercomi

bstacles

f Stories o Inspiring You ! e ik L s Teen d n a s id K

H W does Emily hear? With her Gap onesie on, a gummy smile, and 2 pink hearing aids!

All About Me

Emily’s Faves! H BOOKS

All – I LOVE to read! H TOYS

Baby dolls

H SONG

Cake by the Ocean – DNCE

H TV SHOWS

Bubble Guppies Doc McStuffins Sesame Street

H CHARACTER

Elmo

H FIRST WORD

Baby

H FOOD

Pizza

Hi, my name is Emily, and I’m 18-months-old. I’m from Long Island, New York. I love to go to school, play with my toys, and learn to listen with my hearing aids. This year I went to New York City and auditioned for an ad campaign… and guess what? I was featured in the GapxDisney campaign proudly showing off my hearing aids!

Hearing My Way

My Mommy and Daddy learned that I had hearing loss during my newborn hearing screening at the hospital where I was born. Three months later, I got my pink hearing aids with sparkly pink ear molds! My hearing aids help me hear all of the speech sounds and quiet sounds, too, like birds chirping.

School Cool

Even though I’m little, I already go to school! It’s a special school for kids with hearing loss, where I learn lots of new words, ideas, and how to be a good listener. I am an auditory/verbal learner. That means I use listening and speaking to communicate. I have so much fun playing with my friends and teachers at school.

Family First

My family loves to help me learn new things by reading and playing with me. The first sounds I remember hearing were my parents’ voices. My Daddy always makes up silly songs and sings them to me. My first word was ‘baby’ because my favorite toys are my baby dolls. Recently, I started saying all of my older cousins’ names because I love spending time with them!

Em ily ge ts fi tt ed ea r m old s.

fo r he r sp ar kly pi

Overcoming Obstacles

Even though I love how my hearing aids make everyone’s voice clearer and louder which helps me a lot, I’m still a baby, and sometimes I pull my hearing aids out! I’m learning how important it is to keep them on and how much they help me.

Role Model

I never thought I would be called a role model when I’m just a baby. I had an opportunity this past year to be included in an amazing campaign with GapxDisney. They are spreading messages of love, acceptance, and dreaming big. I hope that other babies, kids, and teens with hearing loss will see my picture and feel happiness that our differences are being celebrated. I want everyone who sees the ad with me and my pink hearing aids to recognize that kids with hearing loss are smart, strong, cool, and extraordinarily capable!

The Gap and Disney Baby are registered trademarks.

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Em ily ta ke s in th e at he r fir st birt s ou nd s hd ay .

More than 97% of all babies in the United States receive a newborn hearing screening.

Em ily sees herself d uring a shopping trip at T he G ap.

Be on our next cover! info@hearingourway.com

I WANT YOU TO HEAR. Every day, I want you to hear the love in my voice. The music box singing to you. The lullabies as you fall asleep. I want you to hear your name called at graduation. The words “You’re hired.” The words “I do.” The first words from your own child. I want you to hear the world today, tomorrow, forever.

Call 1 866 922 9211, or visit www.IWantYoutoHear.com for more information.

©2016 Cochlear Limited. All rights reserved. Trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of Cochlear Limited. CAM-MK-PR-273 ISS1 MAR16

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Hi bakers! My name is Evelyn, and

welcome to my kitchen. I’m 13-years-old, I have one cochlear implant and one hearing aid, and I live in Canada. I’m here to share my love of baking with you, so whip out your spatula, and let’s get cooking!

Sizzling Summer S’mores Cups INGREDIENTS

Look out for boLd text to know what supplies you will need!

• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting • 3/4 cup graham cracker crumbs • 1/4 + 1/8 teaspoon salt • 1/4 teaspoon baking soda • 1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened • 1/3 cup packed light brown sugar • 1/4 cup granulated sugar • 1 large egg • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract • 12 large marshmallows, cut into halves • 24 milk chocolate Hershey's Kisses, unwrapped

— TIPS — ●If you don’t have a stand mixer you can use a hand mixer.

DIRECTIONS 1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Spray a 24-cup mini muffin tin with non-stick cooking spray and lightly dust with flour. 2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together flour, graham cracker crumbs, salt, and baking soda until combined. Set aside. 3. In a mixer, blend together butter, brown sugar, and granulated sugar until well combined (not light and fluffy, just blended well). Scrape down the sides of the bowl, then add the egg and vanilla, and mix until combined. Scrape the bowl again. 4. W  ith the mixer set on low, slowly add in flour mixture and mix just until combined. Fold batter with a spatula several times to ensure it’s evenly mixed. 5. U  sing a tablespoon, drop a scoop of batter into each prepared muffin tin. Use your thumb to push in a small hole at the top of each. Let rest 5 minutes. 6. Bake for 7 minutes, or until center appears slightly underbaked and edges are set. 7. While the cookies bake, cut marshmallows in half and unwrap Kisses. 8. Remove cookies from oven, and quickly add a half of a marshmallow to each cookie cup while they are warm. Return to oven, bake for about 1 minute longer or until marshmallows begin to melt and puff. 9. I mmediately remove from oven and gently place 1 unwrapped Hershey’s Kiss onto the marshmallow of each cookie cup. 10. L et rest for about 15 minutes, then remove and enjoy warm, or let cool on a wire rack.

Get baking, then send in your pics! @HearingOurWay

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! e i n a h p e Meet St Three years ago, we interviewed our first PACS student, Stephanie, who was inspired to study deaf education after growing up wearing hearing aids herself. What has changed since we last checked in with Stephanie? Well, she graduated from the program and became a teacher of the deaf, got married, moved to North Carolina, and most recently, got a cochlear implant!

My CI Journey

I had been thinking about getting a cochlear implant even before I started graduate school—it took me 10 years to finally decide! It wasn’t until I spent the last few years working with children and adults with cochlear implants that I felt inspired, confident, and ready to get one myself. I wish I had gotten one a long time ago because I had no idea how much I was missing.

Keeping Up With Kanso

I only qualified as a cochlear implant candidate for one ear, so I’m not bilateral yet, but would love to be one day! I decided to choose Cochlear because of their new sound processor for cochlear implants, the Kanso, an off-the-ear, all-in-one option. The Kanso is lightweight, works with all of the Cochlear True Wireless accessories, and allows me to still tuck my hair back behind my ear!

Surgery and Activation Day

This was my first time having surgery, so I was understandably nervous. I was happy that I was able to go home the same day as my surgery. At first I felt tired and a little bit dizzy, but soon I was walking around and feeling better. Activation day went surprisingly well. I didn’t know what to expect, but the first sound I heard was my husband’s soft laugh!

Are you thinking of getting a cochlear implant? Here are Stephanie’s Top 3 Tips:

➊ Talk to people with cochlear implants. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. Most people love to share their CI stories! ➋ Auditory training is important to help you learn to hear with your new device. I recommend meeting with an auditory specialist. I also loved using the app i-Angel Sound because you can practice detecting, discriminating, and identifying sounds. ➌ Follow my journey on YouTube for more information and to connect: StephanieLopezCIJourney

Interested in learning more about Stephanie's graduate program in deaf education and audiology?

Visit pacs.wustl.edu

I want you to hear your friend asking to come play. Kanso® is a new way of hearing with a Cochlear Implant. It’s an off-the-ear sound processor designed to be comfortable and easy to use while providing your child’s best hearing experience. Call 1 866 922 9211, or visit IWantYoutoHear.com for more information. ©Cochlear Limited 2017. All rights reserved. Hear now. And always and other trademarks and registered trademarks are the property of Cochlear Limited. CAM-MK-PR-313 ISS1 MAR17

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hen ll w e t s you ow i can shmall w o H ar rm you ? dy rea -d” “goo s k o It lo

get crafty! Looking for a fun summer activity? Chloe, Giselle, and Valeria from Stillwater, Minnesota teach us how to make Hearrings, earrings for hearing aids! t your local craft store (like isi V  1 Michaels) to pick up jewelry , making materials like O-rings lobster claws, and charms. t your favorite ‘bling’, 2 Selecch atta it to the ring or claw, and hang it from the tubing of your hearing aid.

at u go o y n do p at Whe nd sto a red ? en ng gre eati e r ’ u n. n yo Whe ermelo t a wa t bes the the s i t Wha o go to t day h? c bea . d ay SU N

write T

us !

g, rt, writin a r u o y in d Sen photos to poetry or om

gour way.c info@hearin ext issue .

the n to be featured in

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campsite

maze

Uh oh! This camper has gotten lost trying to find the campsite. Can you follow the path to get back to the campsite in time to make s’mores?

eative and change the 3 Bearcrms whenever you’d like. ch

Wear your Hearrings proudly and with a smile! nd in pictures of 4 Seur yo Hearrings or other hearing loss crafts to info@hearingourway.com.

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aring Our Way is the An annual subscription to He ndparent, or teacher t, gra perfect gift from any paren 9.99/year. Bulk pricing is this year! Prices start at $1 tals, and doctors offices! available for schools, hospi

le worl dw ide. Hearing Our Way is avail ab ingOurWay.com Subscribe NOW: www.Hear

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sophie's spotlight on alejandro

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Sophie loves shining a spotlight on amazing kids with hearing loss around the world. Alejandro, 4, from Panama City, Panama, and his family share their story with us. To shine a spotlight on someone you know, write to us at info@hearingourway.com! When Alejandro was 8-months-old, his mom noticed that he didn’t hear noises. The first doctor they went to didn’t think anything was wrong, but when Alejandro was 20-months-old, they saw another doctor who sent them to the hospital. There he was diagnosed with hearing loss and soon got his first pair of hearing aids. After that, Alejandro started auditory-verbal therapy where someone from the Hear the World Foundation heard his story. He was chosen to receive a cochlear implant, and his family was very grateful. Before the surgery, Alejandro was nervous, and his parents were anxious and hopeful. After the surgery, they all felt very happy and thankful. Alejandro’s favorite word is ‘mama,’ and his favorite sounds are the trucks going by on the road. He loves listening to music, riding his bike, and going to the river to swim. His mom says, “We are so happy to see Alejandro more connected to the world.” To learn more about Hear The World, visit www.hear-the-world.com.

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