ABSTRACT
SmiLE Therapy started out as an approach to prepare young deaf people for life in the hearing world, outside the protection of their home and their school. The school curriculum must prepare students for when they leave school. In schools which have supported smiLE Therapy most successfully, it has been because of the courage of the head teachers or SENCOs to take the risk and try out smiLE Therapy. For support staff, helping students is arguably at the core of their work. For students with special needs, the curriculum must be adapted to support their core needs to enable them to achieve their maximum potential. What is needed is a curriculum that includes the dedicated teaching of how to engage successfully and confidently with the hearing world. Much work needs to happen to make the shift in curriculum design and joined-up involvement from parents to head teachers, teaching staff and therapists.
