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Having a Conditioned Play Hearing Test at ECHO

This picture story is for children who might have difficulty learning to raise their hand when they hear a sound.
 
In a conditioned play hearing test, your child will perform a task, such as putting a toy into a bucket, when they hear a sound. Our audiologists will work with your child to teach them how to do this task. ECHO audiologists have years of experience working with children and will try to make the visit as non-threatening and as fun as possible.

For tips on how to use this picture story, please review our Picture Story Instructions below.

I’m going to the Carle ECHO building to have a special test to see how well I can hear. ECHO stands for “Expanding Children’s Hearing Opportunities.”

We’ll check in at the front desk and then sit in the colorful waiting room until my name is called.

The friendly audiologist will call my name when it’s time for my hearing test.

We’ll walk down the hallway to a special room called a sound booth. It’s very quiet inside the booth. This is what the sound booth looks like. I can sit on mom or dad’s lap or in a chair by myself. The audiologist will ask us questions about my ears.

The audiologist has a special flashlight she uses to look in people’s ears. She will look in both my ears.

She will then show me a colorful rubber plug that she’ll hold up to each of my ears. She will let me touch it first. It feels squishy. When she puts it up to my ear, it will make a humming sound and my ear will draw a picture on a computer screen! It will look like a mountain or a pancake! All this will only take a few seconds and then she’ll put the plug up to my other ear.

Now it’s time to play some fun listening games. I’ll wear little soft squishy earphones that go in my ears or I can wear headphones that go over my ears. I can see what they look like and touch them before they’re put in my ears.

Another audiologist will sit in the booth with me to help me play the games. When I hear a “beep-beep-beep” sound, I’ll put a toy in a bucket or maybe put a piece on a puzzle. I might also be asked to say some words.

The audiologist will tell me when I can take off the earphones. My visit to ECHO will be all done and it’ll be time to go. Getting a hearing test is lots of fun!

Picture Story Instructions: Tips for Parents

The goal of our picture story is to tell your child what to expect during their visit. However, there may not be a picture for everything your child will experience with us. We recommend that you remind your child that they may see a different staff person than the one in the picture. Depending on your child’s comfort level, the steps in the story may be done in a different order than the way they’re shown in our story.

Below are several ways you can help your child use this picture story:

  • Review the picture story with your child several days before the appointment. Show them the photos of where they’ll be going for the appointment and what they’ll be experiencing.
  • Encourage your child to ask questions, and try to answer them as best you can. Also encourage your child to review the picture story on their own.
  • Encourage your child to identify parts of the appointment that might be stressful for them, and work with your child to develop coping strategies that will help at these times. Notify your audiologist if there is something particularly worrisome for your child.

If you can, practice some of the steps in the story with your child before the appointment. Some of the things you can practice are:

  • If you have a toy doctor kit at home, you can use this to show your child the ear light and how it’s used to look in their ears. Demonstrating on a doll or a stuffed animal first may help.
  • If you have headphones or earbuds, have your child practice listening to music through them. If they’re resistant to having them put on, hold one up close to their ear so they can at least hear the music.
  • You can have your child practice listening for sounds by holding a toy up to their cheek. Then you can either say “beep-beep-beep” or tap a spoon onto a glass and instruct your child to put the toy into a bowl every time they hear that sound.

Important Tips:

  • Choose just a few things to practice based on what you think will be most effective for your child. You don’t need to practice everything.
  • If your child doesn’t respond to a strategy after two or three tries, try a different one.
  • If your child shows signs of distress while practicing, stop the practice session and try again later.
  • If there are things that are comforting to your child (for example, a stuffed animal), feel free to bring them to the appointment.

Related Services and Resources

Audiology and Hearing Services
Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT)/Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery
Having a Visual Reinforcement (VRA) Hearing Test

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