Take notes. I worked in special education (SPED) in a hearing and speech center, clinical environment. Mostly, we had very young children. My class was five deaf four-year-olds who were also mute. There are teachers who would smile at the mute part. My kids were from Chinatown. Let me skip to the part where it's the end of the school year. No one was mute. The room was noisy (I love that). But the proof is in the pudding. I do not believe in printing, and I will not teach it. I teach cursive where the auditory sounding of words are connected. Now, they all had hearing aids. By June, they could talk, have relationships, have friends, and (when they are ready) attend public school. They could read. They could verbalize what they could read. They took to cursive right away.

They could write their own stories.

Parents were shocked. Usually, I'm wasting my time with parents. But with only five kids, I could talk with parents who never thought their child would speak, let alone write stories. Speech therapy every single day. I know lots of men who do that kind of work. No one blinks an eye. I encourage men to take a look at becoming speech therapists. You are needed. You will make good money. And you will meet very cool kids. I give them books that are tough to read. You've got to keep cranking it up. A little harder than they want. Keep reaching. Mothers wept because they never thought that they would hear the voices of their children. A voice is far more than a voice.