Letter to My Teacher

Below is a letter written by a 3.5 year old boy who has bilateral microtia and artresia and wears a bone conduction aid on a softband. The letter can be edited and adapted for any child to help the teachers, teaching assistants, Special Education Needs co-ordinators, etc to have an understanding of your child’s needs and what can be useful for them, before they start in their class.

Letter to my Teacher

To ……………..

My name is Isaac and I am starting in your class in September which I am really looking forward to! My favourite things to do are playing with my cars, reading books, playing with puppets, riding my scooter really fast in the park and swimming with my family.

I thought I would let you know that I have something called Microtia which means that both my ears are small and they look different from my friends’ ears. I wear a hearing aid on a headband which helps me to hear well.

Here are a couple of things that might be useful to know when teaching me:

• I can hear well with my hearing aid on but when it is noisy I find it more difficult
• Please call my name so I know you are talking to me
• Let me have a clear view of your face when you are talking
• I may be distracted by lots of background noise so it helps if the classroom is quieter when I need to listen
• Carpets and curtains make the classroom less echoey so I can hear better

If my friends are interested in my ears and my hearing aid then maybe you could help me to answer their questions:

• Why do your ears look like that? I have microtia which means I was born with little ears
• Will they ever grow and look like mine? No they will stay small
• Do they hurt? No
• Why do you wear a headband and what’s that box? This is my hearing aid and it helps me to hear well. I can’t hear very well without it. Some people need glasses to see and I need this to help me to hear.

My friend Paul (Hearing Impairment Teacher) comes to see me at school sometimes to see how I am getting on and he has known me since I was a baby. Noel (Speech and Language Therapist) also sees me quite a lot to help me with my talking. You can ask them questions too.

I really look forward to being in your class in September and please ask my mummy and daddy if you have any questions.

From Isaac x

Useful Resources

‘A child with microtia and artresia – A guide for families’ National Deaf Children’s Society (Feb 2010)

‘Deaf Friendly Nurseries and Pre-schools’ NDCS (Feb 2009)