Live English

Live English

What is it??

Live English – Why?• To be a competent communicator, a person must use a range of pragmatic

skills effectively.

• Profoundly deaf children often find learning the rules of social communication more challenging (Crocker & Edwards, 2004) and many have difficulties in acquiring pragmatic skills necessary for communicating with hearing people, particularly when using speech (Bench, 1992; Jeanes, Nienhuys & Rickards, 2000).

• Signing deaf children can make fewer and less specific requests for clarification than oral deaf or hearing peers. Neither signing nor oral deaf children consistently respond appropriately to requests for clarification. Often Deaf children are not always made aware of the lack of clarity of their own communication.

smiLE Therapy: strategies and measurable interaction in Live English• smiLE -structured, specific therapy for students with special

communication needs. Focuses on face-to-face interaction between students and people unfamiliar with their needs, in everyday life situations.

• Created - Karin Schamroth and Laura Threadgill, Specialist Speech and Language Therapists (2002). Was originally developed specifically for Deaf/hearing impaired pupils.

• smiLE - teaches specific communication strategies to manage real situations with confidence. smiLE is systematic, fulfills the learning needs of students and has clear goals and outcomes.

Live English - Principles• Group respect• Group responsibility• Students to self evaluate• SaLTs/ToDs/TAs/Care Staff to carryover and generalize

activities and learnt skills• Complex communication broken down into small steps• Role play used• Sabotage can be used to cause communication break down

Live English

Skill Baseline Date: Final (end of block) Date:

IndependenceUse of Clarification StrategiesAwareness & Use of Social Conventions

1 2 3 4 5

Never good

Not very good

OK Good Excellent

Joint working with Deaf staff

• Video clips….• Negative role play• Positive role play

How can we help?