Resources

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California Hands & Voices is here to help. If you’re looking for something specific, please don’t hesitate to reach out—we’d love to support you on your journey.

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Advocacy / Law

CA Departments & Family Support

  • California Deaf – Blind Services (CDBS) CDBS serves individuals who have hearing and vision problems, with or without additional disabilities.
  • California Department of Developmental Services The California Department of Developmental Services is the agency through which the State of California provides services and supports to individuals with developmental disabilities.
  • California Department of Education The Department of Education serves our state by innovating and collaborating with educators, schools, parents, and community partners.
  • California Department of Education – Special Education Information and resources to serve the unique needs of persons with disabilities so that each person will meet or exceed high standards of achievement in academic and nonacademic skills.
  • California Department of Education Guidelines & Webinars Educational Advocacy Guidelines & Webinars
  • Deaf Access Program (PDF Map) STATE OF CALIFORNIA – HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES AGENCY DEPARTMENT OF SOCIAL SERVICES
  • Department of Health Care Services The following list of websites was compiled for parents of children newly diagnosed with hearing loss. In an effort to help direct parents to useful resources, these websites have been previewed and summarized. They are listed in alphabetical order.
  • Early Start The Early Start (ES) program is California’s early intervention program for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or at risk for having a developmental disability and their families. Early Start services are available statewide and are provided i
  • Family Resource Centers California’s FRC are staffed by parents who have children with special needs and provide information and parent-to-parent support. Each FRC is unique, reflecting the needs of their community.
  • Family Resource Centers Network of California Improving the lives of families of children with disabilities
  • Family Resource Network of CA.(FRC) Early Start funds Family Resource Centers (FRCs) to provide parent-to-parent support for families of children birth-3 throughout California. You can go to this site to find a Family Resource Center near you.
  • LEAD-K Family Services (CA EHDI Program) LEAD-K Family Services is the EHDI Program in California. If you are the parent of a infant who was newly identified you were likely referred to LEAD-K Family Services for parent to parent support. But did you know you can self refer to LEAD-K Family Se
  • Parent Training and Information Centers (PDF) There are seven Parent Training and Information Centers in CA. This color coded map will help you to find out which PTI serves your county.
  • Regional Centers DDS oversees the coordination and delivery of services for Californians with developmental disabilities through a statewide network of 21 community-based, non-profit agencies known as regional centers. Regional centers provide assessments, determine eligi
  • SB 210 Language Development Milestones Language Development Milestones This Parent Profile is designed to help you track your child’s language growth. You and your Early Start or preschool teacher should discuss whether your child is meeting each of these milestones.
  • United States Department of Education Educational Advocacy resource

CA Education Placements

  • California School for the Deaf, Fremont California School for the Deaf, Riverside offers comprehensive educational and extra-curricular programs that prepare students to achieve their full academic, social, and career potential. (Northern CA Counties)
  • California School for the Deaf, Riverside California School for the Deaf, Riverside offers comprehensive educational and extra-curricular programs that prepare students to achieve their full academic, social, and career potential.
  • California Special Education Local Plan Areas This website defines what a Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) is, explains the legal background and gives a list of SELPAs throughout California
  • CCHAT Center (Sacramento) The CCHAT Center – Sacramento is a school devoted to teaching deaf and hard of hearing children to listen and develop spoken language.
  • Center for Early Intervention on Deafness CEID programs combine specialized early childhood education with extensive therapies, home visits, and parent education and support.
  • Echo Center (Culver City) The Echo Center is dedicated to developing listening, speech and language skills,
  • Hands & Voices (Education) This section of articles encapsulates considerations in education for children who are DHH.
  • No Limits for Deaf Children No Limits teaches underserved deaf children and their families the skills to succeed in school and in life through its after-school educational centers and distinguished theater arts program, promoting advocacy and awareness worldwide.  
  • Public School Directory The California School Directory contains information about all California public schools, private schools, nonpublic nonsectarian schools, school districts, and county offices of education.
  • Weingarten Children’s Center Jean Weingarten Peninsula Oral School for the Deaf in Redwood City is a not-for-profit, state accredited non-public school teaching deaf children to listen, think and talk through intensive speech/language therapy and the development of listening skills.

Covid-19

Deaf Plus

  • ASDC (Autism) Strategies to Support Communication at Home and in the Community.
  • California Parent Centers Working with families of infants, toddlers, children, and youth with disabilities, birth to 26.
  • Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (CHADD) We believe in improving the lives of people affected by ADHD.
  • Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing PLUS EBook Children Who Are Deaf or Hard of Hearing PLUS Susan Wiley, PhD; Rachel St. John, MD, FAAP; & Candace Lindow-Davies
  • Council for Exceptional Children (CEC) The Council for Exceptional Children is a professional association of educators dedicated to advancing the success of children with exceptionalities. 
  • Deaf/Hard of Hearing Plus <em>D/HH Plus is meant to be a positive term, not in any way negative or insensitive to the child who has medical issues along with hearing loss. Visit this website to learn more. </em>
  • Early Start The Early Start (ES) program is California’s early intervention program for infants and toddlers with developmental delays or at risk for having a developmental disability and their families. Early Start services are available statewide and are provided i
  • Educational Plan Checklist for D/HH-Plus Students Educational Advocacy for Students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing (2013) DesGeorges J., Johnson C., Seaver L., Hands & Voices
  • Family Resource Centers California’s FRC are staffed by parents who have children with special needs and provide information and parent-to-parent support. Each FRC is unique, reflecting the needs of their community.
  • Family Resource Centers Network of California Improving the lives of families of children with disabilities
  • Goldenhar Syndrome The National Craniofacial Association is a non-profit organization serving children and adults throughout the United States with severe craniofacial deformities resulting from birth defects, injuries, or disease.
  • Hands & Voices (Deaf Plus) Sometimes our children have multiple exceptionalities that affect their learning, social skills or emotional health. Here is an article about “deaf plus” on Hands & Voices HQ website.
  • Helen Keller National Center Helen Keller National Center for Deaf-Blind Youths and Adults (HKNC) Our mission: to enable each person who is deaf-blind to live, work, and thrive in their community of choice.
  • NCDB & State Deaf-Blind Technical Assistance Network As a national technical assistance center funded by the federal Department of Education, NCDB works to improve the quality of life for children who are deaf-blind and their families.
  • Regional Centers DDS oversees the coordination and delivery of services for Californians with developmental disabilities through a statewide network of 21 community-based, non-profit agencies known as regional centers. Regional centers provide assessments, determine eligi
  • Special Needs

Funding Resources

  • AG Bell Financial Aid Financial aid programs are available for families at every stage of raising their child. Click through our website to read more about what may be available for you.
  • ESCO ESCO, the leading provider of loss and damage coverage for the hearing industry.
  • HLAA This organization provides information about many national or regional resources for obtaining amplification.
  • Medicaid Offers U.S. government funding for some children needing hearing assistance.
  • Starkey Hearing Foundation The Starkey Hearing Foundation’s Hear Now program provides hearing aids for deaf and hard of hearing persons living in the United States. Applications are available online.

Middle and High School

New Families

Other Related Links

  • ABC Song – You Tube
  • AG Bell For children with hearing loss, their families, and the professionals that work with them. You can find the California Chapter informaiton at: http://agbellca.org/
  • ASL Connect These “anytime, anywhere” learning ASL opportunities allow you to engage at a distance–learning whenever and wherever you choose. Even if you are at a different school to take advantage of these extraordinary ASL courses.
  • ASL Websites There are many sites on the web to learn ASL vocabulary. This document contains a few websites to get you started.
  • Auditory Neuropathy A resource website for parents of children identified with Auditory Neuropathy.
  • California Association of the Deaf This organization preserves, protects, and promotes civil, human, and linguistic rights of Deaf people in California.
  • California Hands & Voices Facebook Group Join the conversation online! Introduce your family, ask questions and make local and statewide connections!
  • Convo Relay Convo is deaf-owned and develops VRS technologies that allow phone convos for ASL users living in a global economy.
  • DawnSignPress
  • Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program Welcome to the Deaf and Disabled Telecommunications Program (DDTP). We provide telephone communications access for all deaf and disabled Californians.
  • Described and Captioned Media Program Browse from a library of over 4,000 free-loan described and captioned media titles. (For Parents and Professionals)
  • Diglo (was Harris Communications) We want to be the one-stop source of products for Deaf and Hard of Hearing people, from assistive products like vibrating alarm clocks and loud, amplified telephones to books and DVDs on sign language and improving interpreting skills.
  • DPAN We produce American Sign Language centric projects from full scale video productions, to collecting ASL video data for high-tech, to simply creating access for ASL & Captions to be enjoyed by everyone.
  • Dry & Store You can maintain peak performance, reduce repairs, and enjoy better sound quality – it’s easy, with Dry & Store.
  • Ear Gear Protect your Hearing Instrument from Sweat, Moisture, Dirt and Loss.
  • EduCAPTION EduCAPTION is a leader in providing Broadcast Captioning Services and CART Services [Communication Access Realtime Translation] for the benefit of deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals.
  • EHDI Pals (Find a Pediatric Audiologist) At the heart of EHDI-PALS is a national web-based directory of facilities that offer pediatric audiology services to young children who are younger than five years of age.
  • Getting from There to Hear (A Deaf Audiologist) Links and posts about issues related to hearing loss
  • H&V Blog: Raising a Deaf or Hard of Hearing Child
  • Hands & Voices (FM)
  • Hands & Voices (Technology)
  • Hearing Loss Association of America HLAA’s mission is to open the world of communication to people with hearing loss by providing information, education, support and advocacy.
  • Learn ASL Online Take learning American Sign Language into your own hands with our online courses!
  • LING Sounds Sample of LING Sounds
  • Listening tools; Interactive tools and PDF games
  • Listeningtree Games and Activities for Listening and Language
  • My Baby’s Hearing This is a web sited developed by Boys Town National Research Hospital provides parents with information regarding hearing screening and walks them through the process if their child has been identified deaf or hard of hearing.
  • NAD: Learning American Sign Language A list of ASL resources provided by the Laurent Clerc National Deaf Education Center:
  • National Association of the Deaf The oldest and one of the largest consumer organizations advocating equal access by people who are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing in the areas of employment, education, telecommunications, and rehabilitation.
  • National Cued Speech Association (NCSA) The NCSA provides awareness and education, through instructional programs, publications, exhibits and conferences, regarding the use of cued speech.
  • National Deaf Center on Postsecondary Outcomes We share information, networks, and strategies to improve continuing education and training for deaf people.
  • Navigating deafness in a hearing world | Rachel Kolb | TEDxStanford Rhodes Scholar Rachel Kolb — who was born deaf — shows what is possible through family support and self-belief, and proves that what is assumed about you and what you can actually
  • Otitis Media (Ear Infection) An ear infection is an inflammation of the middle ear, usually caused by bacteria, that occurs when fluid builds up behind the eardrum.
  • Preguntas Frecuentes Dos padres defensores bilingües discuten algunas de las preguntas y temas más frecuentes en apoyar a un niño Sordo/Perdida Audición en la escuela y la navegación por los servicios de educación especial.
  • Purple Relay At Purple, we’re dedicated to developing fast, easy and convenient communications solutions and services for Deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals and businesses using a variety of different platforms.
  • Say It In Sign Say it in Sign provides a better and more tangible medium for reading American Sign Language (ASL). Our goal is to create ASL greeting cards, educational flash cards and in the future children’s books, games and posters all using lenticular graphics.
  • SEE Center The SEE Center provides quality training and support for those who use Signing Exact English. On this website, you will be able to find upcoming workshops and testing sites that are happening in your area and around the country.
  • Sign Language Resources
  • SignOn with ASDC “SignOn with ASDC”! With a paid membership of $35, the ASDC is offering 5 free SignOn sessions to 500 families! American Society for Deaf Children Online interactive ASL practice with Deaf adults
  • Sorenson Communications Relay SVRS empowers the deaf and hard-of-hearing community to communicate with both deaf and hearing family, friends or business contacts using video relay service.
  • The American Academy of Audiology The world’s largest professional organization of, by, and for audiologists.
  • The Listening Room The Listening Room features three sections with content created specifically for their respective age groups: Infants & Toddlers, Kids, and Teens & Adults.

Recursos en Español