Kimberly Ofori-Sanzo

What does it really take for Deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) children to thrive? It starts with language—and it starts early.

In this powerful session, Dr. Kimberly Ofori‑Sanzo explores how early language experiences shape the long-term social, emotional, and academic outcomes of DHH children. Drawing on key developmental concepts like serve and return, reciprocal interactions, and fluent, bidirectional communication, she will highlight how typical caregiver-child exchanges often differ for DHH infants and toddlers. You'll gain practical strategies to help caregivers and professionals create rich, accessible linguistic environments that support whole-child development from the very beginning.  Whether you're a teacher, early interventionist, or family support provider, this session will give you the tools to advocate for—and build—the environments DHH children need to thrive.

 Audience: 

✅ Birth to Preschool providers

Learner Outcomes:

Participants will be able to:

1. Define serve and return in early language acquisition.

2. Define reciprocal-contingent family interactions.

3. State at least three strategies that can be used to create linguistic environments where DHH children can thrive.

Candace Jones and Reginald Bess

All Deaf students bring unique linguistic, cultural, ability, and lived-experience backgrounds into the classroom. To foster true inclusivity, educators must support each student's language development, actively preventing language deprivation and avoiding language suppression. This workshop provides a contextual foundation for identifying and addressing individual Deaf students' linguistic needs using effective bilingual approaches. Participants will explore strategies to create a rich, inclusive language environment where Deaf students feel seen, honored, and valued—both in and beyond the classroom, regardless of their educational setting.

Audience:

Kelsey Spurgin

What does fluency look like for deaf and hard of hearing (DHH) students—whether they use spoken language, signed language, or both? In this dynamic session, Kelsey Spurgin brings research to life with practical, inclusive strategies for supporting fluency development across modalities.

Grounded in translanguaging pedagogy, repeated reading research, and spiraled instruction, this workshop will help you:

• Define fluency for DHH learners, including speed, accuracy, and prosody in both sign and speech

• Use repeated reading with engaging texts to build fluency and target skills like vocabulary, decoding, morphology, and comprehension

• Apply a spiraled instruction approach to reinforce learning over time

• Leverage the Translanguaging Framework for Deaf Education to honor and build on each student’s unique communication profile

• Explore tools to assess and track fluency progress in meaningful ways

Whether you’re a teacher of the deaf, an educational interpreter, or a literacy specialist, this session will equip you with actionable, flexible strategies to help your students move from first reads to fluent reads—with confidence.

Audience:

Saturday, January 24 (90 mins)

2:30 PM PST / 3:30 PM MST / 4:30 PM CST / 5:30 PM EST

Join the Zoom Room and move from knowledge to application.  Breakout rooms will be provided for your special interest area.  Don't miss this opportunity to network with others and get tangible materials and ideas that you will be able to immediately apply to help create a rich and inclusive environment for all deaf students. 

Saturday, January 31 (90 mins)

2:30 PM PST / 3:30 PM MST / 4:30 PM CST / 5:30 PM EST

Join the Zoom Room and move from knowledge to application.  Breakout rooms will be provided for your special interest area.  Don't miss this opportunity to network with others and get tangible materials and ideas that you will be able to immediately apply to help create a rich and inclusive environment for all deaf students.