It has been said that central auditory processing disorder (CAPD) is to hearing what cerebral visual impairment (CVI) is to vision. With CAPD, the ears may perceive sounds within typical levels but these sounds do not reach the brain in meaningful ways. Many of the risk factors for CVI and CAPD are the same, therefore it is possible that some children diagnosed with CVI may also have CAPD. And of course CAPD can exist without CVI or other visual impairments. Unfortunately, CAPD cannot be diagnosed in young children and CAPD assessments in older children require language acquisition. What do we do with children who are at significant risk for CAPD and have atypical responses to sound, but cannot be tested for a definitive diagnosis?

This session will provide an overview of an annotated checklist that can guide families and educational teams in determining whether a child might have a brain-based hearing issue. A variety of strategies will be highlighted to support these children, including reducing auditory clutter, limiting simultaneous multisensory input, and speaking to children at a rate that supports maximal auditory comprehension. A supplementary benefit to these strategies is that they support learning and engagement amongst almost all children and young adults.