CHILDREN & FAMILIES
Support for the Journey After Activation
implantation is only the beginning
Congratulations on making a HUGELY powerful decision for your child. They may not be able to thank you yet for the 100’s of hours you spent researching and in doctors offices or the sleepless nights, but I assure you, one day they will. You’ve given them an incredible gift, the gift of sound. However, implantation is only the beginning.
In order for your child to be successful in their listening and language, they require Auditory Verbal Therapy or (AVT) from a certified professional. AVT is more than just speech therapy, it is an extremely involved 5 year certification AFTER your masters in speech pathology to certify you in this specific therapy for cochlear implants. Book your free consult to learn more and see if we’re a good fit to work together.
WHAT TO EXPECT
Session Flow:
Each session balances focused skill‑building with play‑based or interest‑driven activities. Parents receive clear strategies, simple games, and everyday routines to reinforce progress at home.
What We Work On:
• Listening & Auditory discrimination
• Early speech and language development
• Confidence in real‑world communication (home, school, community)
• Emotional regulation and self‑advocacy skills
“Tele-therapy at its best! Kim is resourceful, engaging, and the highlight of my son’s week. He’s excited to begin each lesson and we always end our sessions with suggestions, tools, and materials needed to continue practicing at home with confidence.”
SHARI- 5 year old son
BILATERAL COCHLEAR IMPLANTS- MEDEL
“We have been working with Kimberlee for AVT since our child received a cochlear implant 3 months ago. All sessions have been conducted via Zoom and our child has progressed at an amazing pace. Kimberlee helps keep him motivated and goes above and beyond with her support. Being able to work with her through video conferencing is highly effective and super convenient, especially as we live in Northern California.”
Brigitte- 16 year old son
SINGLE SIDE COCHLEAR IMPLANT- MEDEL
“Activation day came and went this week. Hard to believe our daughter has 2 years with her CI. We have lots of gratitude for her therapy with Kimberlee to train her brain for best access to sound.”
DENISE –2 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER
BIMODAL CI AND HA’S + BILINGUAL ASL -MEDEL
“Kim started to provide avt to my son at age 1. our first session was a week after he received bilateral cochlear implants kim was very instrumental in giving my family and I all the tools we needed to help my son hear and develop lANguage. The amount of attention and care she gave my son, as well as teaching me at the same time, I will never be able to repay. i was my sons first and best teacher as kim would say. best of all she made therapy so fun! my son is 6 years old now and wont stop talking! He’s a chatterbox. Kim is truly the best!
Ariana h – 6 year old son
BILATERAL COCHLEAR IMPLANTS–ADVANCED BIONICS
What is AVT?
AVT is a specialized type of therapy designed to help children with cochlear implants develop listening and spoken language. Sometimes AVT’s are called Listening and Spoken Language Specialists (Hearingfirst.org; AgBell.org)
Did you know there’s only 1000 Certified Auditory Verbal Therapists (AVT’s) in the world? That’s in contrast to over 500,000 Speech Language Pathologists and 200,000 Audiologists.
This was shocking to me at first! This is why there’s more than likely not one available through your school, we can sometimes be tricky to find! AGBell.org also has a “look up AVT’s in your area function” for you to check out as well.
One of the reasons there’s not too many of us, is that it requires such an extensive certification process. You certainly need to have a strong motivation and drive in order to complete the process.
The process requires 900 clinically supervised direct AVT hours by a certified AVT who agrees to mentor you for 3-5 YEARS. There are weekly strict evaluation forms for the mentor and mentee to complete, then once all hours are complete, there are 90 required continuing education hours that must be AVT specific, then multiple letters of recommendation from families and your mentor, then a challenging 3 hour exam with over 300 questions.
I tell you this to let you know you really have to WANT to become an AVT if you decide down this path. I did because it truly felt like my calling. I wanted to work directly with people with Cochlear Implants and help Deaf children learn to listen and talk because I KNEW it was possible, I’d seen it many times.
My biggest WHY and Heart for this work is so children (and adults) are not isolated in their ability to communicate. Statistically, 90% of Deaf children are born to hearing parents and 90% of those parents never progress past a preschool level of sign language, meaning their children will surpass their abilities in no time. If you are the exception, I commend you and I happily work with children and families who already sign as well.
Truly, I am ALL FOR ASL, however if a child CAN develop near normal levels of listening and talking and this is in line with the parents & family’s desires, they should be granted that ability.
I assert that ASL can always be added later or done strategically simultaneously to maximize Auditory Brain Development.
In AVT, parents are encouraged to be their child’s first and best teachers. In line with this principle, it is my desire to teach you everything I know so you can run with it and every wonderful interaction you have with your child becomes rich with listening and language and your child constantly talks your ear off in no time.
let’s make them a supertalker
Time to see what’s possible. Reach out to schedule your free consult today. We’ll chat and see if we’re a good fit to work together. If not, no sweat, I’ll send you on your empowered way with recommendations and resources.