My Listening Voice

Overview

This four-week online sequence supports Savannah, a Grade 1 student with bilateral hearing loss who uses bilateral cochlear implants and a Roger remote microphone system. Through playful listening, speaking, visual, and self-advocacy tasks, she will practise understanding spoken messages, communicating clearly, and explaining what helps her access learning.

Learning intentions

• Students will practise listening for important sounds, words, and details.
• Students will communicate ideas using clear words, gestures, visuals, and complete sentences.
• Students will identify and request the supports they need to listen and participate.
• Students will connect classroom communication with respectful relationships and participation.

Success criteria

• I can complete a listening check and tell an adult if something needs adjusting.
• I can listen for a target word or sound and show my answer.
• I can use a clear sentence to share an idea or ask for help.
• I can explain one strategy that helps me hear and learn.

Curriculum links

• English Language Arts — oral communication: listens to and interacts with others, communicates ideas, and responds to messages.
• Cross-curricular competencies — communicates appropriately, uses information, and cooperates with others.
• Culture and Citizenship in Québec — explores cultural realities, including identity, relationships, diversity, and participation in a shared classroom.
• Québec Education Program — develops autonomy, self-awareness, and connections between learning and everyday life.

Lesson structure (40 minutes)

Lesson 1 — Listening Detective

1. 0–5 min · Welcome and listening check. Open with the listening detective introduction slides. Teacher says, “Hi, Savannah. Before we begin, let’s check that your listening tools are ready. Please show me thumbs up if you can hear my voice. Can you hear me when I say your name?” Confirm the Roger microphone is connected, positioned correctly, muted when not in use, and that Savannah’s cochlear implant indicators appear normal according to school procedures. Savannah gives thumbs up, thumbs down, or points to a visual traffic-light choice: green means ready, yellow means check, red means stop and fix.

2. 5–10 min · Teach the listening routine. Teacher models: “First I check my equipment. Next I look at the speaker. Then I listen. If I miss something, I ask for help.” Display the four picture steps in the deck and say, “My listening check is…” Savannah repeats the routine orally, with signs, pointing, or selecting pictures.

3. 10–18 min · Auditory attention game. Teacher says, “You are a listening detective. When you hear the word moon, touch the moon picture. When you hear sun, touch the sun picture.” Say the words in changing order, first clearly and then in short sentences: “The moon is bright.” “I see the sun.” Include quiet pauses and visual support, but show the written sentence only after Savannah responds. Savannah identifies the target word and indicates whether listening felt easy, tricky, or impossible.

4. 18–26 min · Follow-and-find directions. Teacher says, “Listen first; I will show the picture after you try.” Give one-step directions such as, “Point to the red star,” and then two-step directions such as, “Touch the blue circle, then draw a line to the house.” Check understanding by asking, “What will you do first?” Savannah completes the directions on the listening detective activity sheet using drawing, circling, pointing, or oral responses.

5. 26–33 min · Communication development. Teacher displays a picture of a child who has missed a message and models: “I missed that. Please say it again.” Then model, “Please speak clearly,” “Please move closer to the microphone,” and “Can you show me?” Practise through role-play: deliberately give one message too quickly or with the microphone muted, then pause. Ask, “What could you say?” Savannah chooses or says an appropriate advocacy sentence and practises it with a confident voice.

6. 33–38 min · Personal strategy card. Teacher asks, “What helps you listen best: looking at the speaker, a quiet room, the Roger microphone, seeing a picture, or asking for repetition?” Savannah selects two strategies and completes the sentence, “I listen best when…” Teacher records her words on the worksheet or in the Teams chat. Reinforce: “Asking for help is a strong learning skill.”

7. 38–40 min · Exit check. Teacher asks, “What is one thing you heard today? What can you say if you miss a message?” Savannah answers orally, points to visuals, or uses the chat. Record independent responses and any equipment or listening concerns for follow-up.

Lesson 2 — Words and Details

• 0–5 min: Complete the same equipment and voice check. Prompt: “Show green, yellow, or red. What needs checking?”
• 5–15 min: Play a visual “mystery bag” game. Say three familiar words linked to a picture set; Savannah identifies the word heard and explains, “I heard ___.”
• 15–25 min: Read a short illustrated story aloud through Teams. Pause for “Who?”, “What happened?”, and “Where?” Savannah answers by speaking, pointing, drawing, or typing.
• 25–33 min: Practise repair phrases: “I heard ___, but I missed ___,” and “Please tell me the important word.”
• 33–40 min: Savannah chooses the best support for three scenarios and explains one choice.

Lesson 3 — Listening in Conversation

• 0–5 min: Complete the listening check and practise turning the Roger microphone on and off appropriately.
• 5–15 min: Use an illustrated “Would you rather?” game. Savannah listens to the question, repeats the key choice, and answers in a complete sentence.
• 15–25 min: Practise conversation turns using a visual turn-taking signal: listen, think, speak, check. Teacher asks follow-up questions such as, “Why?” and “Tell me more.”
• 25–33 min: Role-play a group Teams situation. Savannah practises saying, “It is my turn,” “I have an idea,” and “I cannot hear everyone.”
• 33–40 min: Reflect orally or in chat: “A good conversation partner…”

Lesson 4 — My Listening Toolkit

• 0–5 min: Savannah leads the listening check and explains what each result means.
• 5–15 min: Complete a listening scavenger hunt using pictures, classroom objects, and spoken clues. Increase from one detail to two details.
• 15–25 min: Review the sequence: check equipment, look, listen, ask, confirm. Savannah orders the picture steps and explains them.
• 25–33 min: Create a short “How to help me hear” presentation for a trusted adult: “Please face me. Please use the microphone. Please repeat if I ask.”
• 33–40 min: Savannah presents her toolkit and completes a final self-assessment: “I am confident with… I am still practising…”

Resources

• the listening detective introduction slides
• the listening detective activity sheet
• Computer with Teams and camera
• Roger remote microphone system and cochlear implant equipment
• Traffic-light listening visuals
• Picture cards or screen-shared images
• Drawing materials
• Quiet online learning space

Assessment

• Observe whether Savannah completes the listening check, identifies target words, and follows one- and two-step directions.
• Note her ability to use a repair or advocacy phrase without prompting.
• Collect oral, visual, typed, or drawn exit responses; never assess listening through speech alone.

Differentiation

• Provide captions, keyword text, enlarged visuals, predictable routines, and one instruction at a time; allow extra processing time before repeating.
• Keep the teacher’s face visible, use natural speech, reduce background noise, and confirm that the Roger microphone is functioning before each lesson.
• Accept speech, pointing, signing, drawing, or Teams chat as valid communication responses.
• Extension: Savannah gives a two-step direction, asks a follow-up question, or teaches another person one listening-support strategy.