There is a large population of deaf children in the DC region, and Fairfax County Public Schools have created programs to accommodate the different communication modes for those children. One such program is the Cued Speech Program, which consists of Canterbury Woods Elementary School, Frost Middle School, and Woodson High School.

My friend Josè, a graduate student at Gallaudet in Audiology, interned at Canterbury Woods last semester and took a Cued Speech class this spring. Through him, I received an invitation to come speak at a dinner party for members of the Fairfax cue community. After some period of thought I accepted the offer.

This past weekend, I flew to DC to visit Canterbury Woods Elementary School and attend a dinner party organized by members of the Fairfax cue community. I also had the opportunity to visit Woodson High School, which has a large presence of signers.

At Canterbury Woods, I met some of the older deaf children and spent time in the pre-school class. One of the teachers told me that there were sixteen deaf or hard of hearing cuers at Canterbury Woods, some of which I knew previously from Cue Camp Virginia at Jamestown.

The teachers cued to the children the entire time, and the children were cueing and speaking expressively. What surprised me was just how many teachers cued. Quite a number of the faculty at Canterbury Woods has made the effort to learn Cued Speech, with some cueing fluently.

While I was in the pre-school program, I took part in the activities such as “Dog, Dog, Cat” aka “Duck, Duck, Goose,” and reading time. The children were all expressive in cues and spoken language, certainly more verbal than I was at their age when I had no auditory input.

I interacted with students in what I assumed to be resource class or some sort of group therapy. I conversed freely with some of the students on the subject of roller coasters, the subject which the class was discussing before I came in. All the kids would speak to me, with a few haltingly cueing since I cued to them. After that, I moved on to another group session and had more interaction. Then the time came for lunch and we stopped for some subs on the way to Woodson High School.

Woodson serves as the high school where the vast majority of deaf and hard of hearing students attend and all the deaf/hoh programs converge to create a diverse mix of students. While at the high school I met two hard of hearing students, one from the Ivory Coast in Africa and one of Hispanic descent. They spent some time with the educational audiologist. The student from Africa was hard of hearing and did not know sign language, while the Hispanic student signed fluently.

I also met other deaf/hoh students that I signed with. One actually stated he knew how to cue his name and proceeded to show me. I commended him on his skills and encouraged him to learn more cues. I also met with faculty in the deaf program, some of who could cue to get by.

At the end of the school day we helped Lorac, the pre-school teacher, prepare the food and drinks for the dinner party. Since her husband couldn’t make it in time, I stepped in as the grill master and cooked some flank steaks throughout the evening until there were no more meat to burn. I chatted with those who braved the chilly air to step outside and mingle.

After dinner I spoke to families and professionals who cued or were curious about Cued Speech. Some adult deaf cuers attended and shared their experiences. I elaborated quite a bit about my experience growing up as a deaf cuer and wearing the cochlear implant, and then I facilitated discussion amongst the people who attended the dinner.

Throughout the course of the night, I touched upon various issues, such as mainstreaming and social interaction with both deaf and hearing peers. I opened the floor to parents, adult cuers, and professionals who shared their experiences with Cued Speech. Some parents had the opportunity to ask questions relative to their experience.

I was surprised at the large turnout, probably close to 50 people, at the dinner gathering and enjoyed talking with many of them. Some I had known previously from cue camps and enjoyed catching up with them. That night I left Fairfax still feeling the positive vibes out of that house. Now I know personally how well-knit this cue community is.

Tags: Cued Speech