CHILD HEARING CHECKLIST - a patient's guide
National Foundation for the Deaf

Introduction

Parents are most likely to be the ones who first notice if their child has hearing problems.

The sooner this is discovered, the sooner something can be done to help. The following checklist will show what a child should be doing at each age. More than one or two "noes" may mean getting a checkup and hearing test (done by an audiologist).

The checklist should be taken to the nurse or doctor:

Six weeks: When there is a sudden loud noise, does your baby:

Jump or blink
Stir in his or her sleep
Stop sucking for a moment
Look up from sucking
Cry

Three months : Does your baby:

Blink or cry when there is a sudden noise
Stop crying or sucking when you talk
Wake or stir to loud sounds
Coo or smile when you talk
Turn his or her eyes toward voices
Seem to like a musical toy
Stop moving when there is a new sound
Seem to know your voice

Six months: Does your baby:

Turn toward a sound or someone speaking
Smile when you talk
Cry when there is a sudden noise
Stop moving when there is a new sound
Like music
Make lots of different babbling sounds

Nine months: Does your baby:

Respond to his or her own name
Look around to find new sounds, even quiet sounds
Understand "no" and "ta-ta"
Listen when people talk
Like copying sounds
Use babbling that sounds like real speech
Try to talk back when you talk

12 months: Does your child:

Point to things and people he or she knows when asked to
Copy and repeat simple words or sounds
Try to talk
Understand things like "come here"
Say two or three words
Listen when people talk
Do what he or she is told
Say sentences with two words like "me drink"
Know a few parts of the body
Do one thing when asked like "get your shoes"
Ask for things by pointing, trying to say the word
Understand things like "give me that", "don't touch"

Two years: Does your child:

Do two things when asked like "get the ball" and "bring it here"
Repeat what you say
Know lots of words
Like being read to
Point to a picture when asked like "show me the baby"
Use the names of people and things she or he knows
Have a name for himself or herself
Like the radio or stereo
Say simple sentences like "milk all gone"

Three years: Does your child:

Know a few nursery rhymes or songs
Understand most words
Find you when you call from another room
Sometimes use whole sentences
Use words like go, me, in, and big
Tell a story
Say how she or he feels
Remember and tell about things that have happened
Count to three
Speak clearly so that everyone can understand him or her
Ask lots of "why" and "what" questions
Like naming things she or he sees and knows

Getting help

Always seek advice early if you have any concerns about your child's hearing.