Northern Virginia Cued Speech Association (NVCSA)

September 30-October 3, 2010

Jamestown 4-H
Educational Center
3751 4-H Club Road
Williamsburg, VA 23185
Google map

Located on the James River, minutes from Colonial Williamsburg, Yorktown, Jamestown Festival Park, Busch Gardens and the Williamsburg Pottery Factory.

Cue Camp Virginia (CCVA) is a workshop intended to educate those who want to know more about Cued Speech and its many applications. In the tranquility of the 4-H Center on the James River, participants can learn and improve Cued Speech skills, learn about raising, educating and communicating with a deaf or hard-of-hearing child, and share the experiences of other families and professionals. We will have adult Cued Speech classes at the Beginner and Intermediate/ Advanced levels, as well as presentations of interest to both parents and professionals. Children K-12 will be in age-appropriate groups that will include activities as well as instruction in Cued Speech. Pre-schoolers will be entertained with arts and crafts and other recreational activities, while receiving constant exposure to Cued Speech. Family-oriented activities and social events abound. Cue Camp Virginia is run by the Northern Virginia Cued Speech Association (NVCSA) and is sponsored by the NVCSA and the National Cued Speech Association, as well as various corporate and community entities.

Cue Camp Directors:

Maureen Bellamy (571) 296-0543
Rosemary Salvi (703) 967-0959

Education, Advocacy and Support
In 1966, R. Orin Cornett, Ph.D., invented Cued Speech to address the problem of low literacy rates among the deaf. Cued Speech is a simple and finite system that allows the deaf or hard-of-hearing person to have a clear and unambiguous visual representation of all the sounds of a spoken language. (At Cue Camp Virginia we teach Cued English, but Cued Speech has been adapted for 56 different languages.) A family that cues to a deaf child can provide complete access to the language spoken by the family, regardless of the degree of the child's hearing loss. Research has shown that the family provides the most influential language model in the child's early life. Cueing in the home has been proven to provide a deaf child with the greatest understanding of language. This is the key to an ability to read, write, communicate and reach his or her full potential. Access to language also contributes greatly to self-esteem and the development of age-appropriate social skills. At Cue Camp Virginia, families and professionals can learn the entire system of Cued English in one weekend, without the distractions of everyday life. Participants can gain confidence and be supported by others who are on the same journey, and see first-hand the successes of families and professionals who have been using Cued Speech for many years. Camp provides an opportunity to learn about the many benefits of Cued Speech, to learn how to advocate for Cued Speech as a way to meet your child's academic needs, and to receive educational and emotional support for the efforts of the family and/or professional.

For additional information, email NVCSA@yahoo.com or call Maureen Bellamy, (703) 560-1035 or Rosemary Salvi, (703) 246-9892.