ABSTRACT
What is meant by ‘awareness of sound’ and why is it important? Before children can understand the complex sounds of speech and language, they need to develop an awareness of the sounds around them. Through the exploration of a variety of different objects, children gradually learn to connect sounds to different actions and objects.
Babies are normally most interested in the sound of the human voice. However, for children with a severe or profound hearing loss, this may not be the case in the early stages. They may first need to understand that sound exists, and may feel the vibrations through their body before they are aware of sound through their ears.
