Active Audiology conducts hearing tests for children between the ages of 4 years to 18 years old. We are also able to compile a report on your child’s hearing results if requested by a school or specialist. For this age group, a pure tone audiometry test is conducted. This hearing test uses sounds at different volumes and pitches with headphones over your child’s ears. The child is simply asked to respond in some way (by the press of a button or raising their arm) when the tone is heard.
If you think your child is not listening, not hearing properly, their speech is unclear or their speech is not at the level of children the same age, your child’s hearing needs to be tested.
COMMON BEHAVIOUR IN CHILDREN WITH A HEARING LOSS:
- Sad – because they don’t understand why people shout at them
- Angry & Frustrated – at not being able to hear or communicate
- Shy – particularly around people they don’t know, because they can’t understand everything they say.
- Quiet & Withdrawn at school – if they can’t hear the teacher well or follow instructions
- Exhaustion – hearing takes a lot of energy. Children with a hearing loss are often exhausted by the end of the day.
- Misbehaved – a ‘behavioural problem’ can sometimes mask a hearing loss in children. Often ‘behavioural problems’ result from frustration at not hearing correctly.
CENTRAL AUDITORY PROCESSING DISORDER (CAPD) ASSESSMENTS ( FOR CHILDREN AGED 7 YEARS AND UP ):
- CAPD is a disorder where something affects the way the brain recognizes and interprets sound. The ears and the brain do not co-ordinate properly. This results in the inability to process the meaning of sound.
- The child may have difficulty following instructions or hearing in the classroom. Reading and learning difficulties are also common.
- If you suspect your child has auditory processing problems, our audiologists can perform a battery of tests to assess your child for CAPD.
- These tests take up to 2 hours and a comprehensive report is provided for parents, teachers and/or any specialist requested.
Call Active Audiology on 1300364007 to speak to a qualified audiologist about your children’s hearing behaviour.