How’s your baby’s hearing? (1078)

Much of baby's first year is spent learning how to listen. Through listening your infant learns about the world, makes sounds, and learns to talk.

Doctors can now check even a newborn's hearing. If you suspect your child has a hearing problem, tell your doctor right away. A hearing problem interferes with a baby's ability to communicate and to learn.

A lot of language learning happens in the first five years, so it's very important to treat problems early. Don't wait until your child begins school.

Here are some behaviors to expect from your child at certain ages that will tell you their hearing is normal.

- At 3-6 months of age baby should awaken or become quiet when she hears your voice.

- He should also react to your voice even when he cannot see you. Usually he should turn his head and eyes toward the source of the sound.

- At 7-10 months of age baby should react to sounds she cannot see such as familiar footsteps, the dog barking, the phone ringing, paper rattling, someone's voice, or her own name. Such sounds do not have to be loud to cause a response.

- At 11-15 months of age baby should begin to point or find familiar objects or people when asked. Ask him, "Where is Jimmy?" or "Find the ball."

- At this age baby should provide different responses to different sounds. It's normal for her to jabber in response to a human voice, to cry when there is thunder, to frown when scolded.

- At 11-15 months baby should enjoy listening to some sounds and imitating them. Imitation means that baby can hear sounds and match them.

If your child does not often react to sounds in these ways, there may be a problem. Check with your doctor about testing baby's hearing.

For more information on this subject, Please visit the College of Agricultural Sciences Publications Web site.

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