3.a. Erik Drasgow discussed in his article how important early exposure is for deaf children (Drasgow 1998). Unlike hearing children who are exposed to language early in the womb, deaf children are exposed to language at birth (Drasgow 1998). Drasgow explains that studies show that the earlier language develops, the more children excel in language skills (Drasgow 1998). Deaf children born to deaf parents will acquire language as easily as a hearing child born to hearing parents develops a spoken language (Drasgow 1998). It is vital that a child receives full exposure to natural language within the first twelve months (Drasgow 1998). Suppose a child does not have access to language until the age of six or seven, that child may never acquire natural language (Drasgow 1998). Parents. Parents have the greatest influence on children, hearing or deaf. A deaf child born to deaf parents normally adapts language, because the parents know how to relate to their child. However, a deaf child born to hearing parents, who have had no previous contact with deaf culture, has difficulty learning to communicate with their child. The absence of communication will interfere with the child's development (Easterbrooks & Baker 2002). Hearing parents do their best, but there are things a deaf child needs. Knowledge of visual and spatial relationships is a skill that most hearing parents do not understand, yet their children will need such understanding (Easterbrooks & Baker 2002). Additionally, we learned that sign language relies heavily on facial expressions and non-manual markers. If hearing parents choose manual communication, they are so focused on signs that they miss the important facial expressions that make up sign language (Ea...... middle of paper ...... hearing: multiple pathways. Boston, MA: Allyn and Bacon.Itano, C.Y. (1997). Speech-language and hearing services in schools, 28(4), 362. Retrieved from http:/ /search.proquest.com/docview/232585838?accountid=14800Keating, E., & Mirus, G. (2003 Examining interactions between language modalities: Deaf children and hearing peers at school, Anthropology and Education Quarterly, 34(2) , 115. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/218136755?accountid=14800Martin, D.S., Craft, A., & Sheng, Z.N. (2001). : an international comparative study of the Deaf, 146(4), 366. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com/docview/214468209?accountid=14800Scheetz, N, (2004). Boston: Pearson.