What are the five guiding principles behind the Language First framework?

The Language First Guiding Principles are part of a framework for working with children who are Deaf and hard of hearing (D/HH) between 0-5 years of age. These principles apply specifically to work with D/HH children during their formative language-learning years. A D/HH child who is outside of the critical period for language acquisition and already demonstrating symptoms of language deprivation will require a different framework of intervention.

These principles were created by Language First to help guide the practice of professionals (e.g. speech-language pathologists, teachers of the deaf, early interventionists, audiologists, doctors, etc.) working with D/HH children. They represent a theoretical perspective that is based in research and best practice.

Throughout this training, you will see that each principle has a definition, an explanation video in ASL with English voiceover and captions, examples of what it should look like on the left, examples of what it should not look like on the right, and two key concepts or take-home points. Each principle will also have a quiz to ensure comprehension of the concepts. Once you complete all quizzes and take the final exam at the end of the training, you will receive a certificate of completion via email.