CODA

3 min read

Identity, family, and belonging across Deaf and hearing worlds.

What this page covers

  • Experiences of growing up between Deaf and hearing worlds

  • Family communication and cultural identity

  • Assumptions often placed on CODA children

  • Reflections that deepen understanding of CODA perspectives

CODA (Children of Deaf Adults) reflects the experiences of growing up between Deaf and hearing worlds.

Within WovenAware’s Lived Experience series, CODA reflections explore the intersection of Deaf and hearing worlds within family life.

This space explores identity, communication, family relationships, and the perspectives shaped by being part of a Deaf-led family while navigating a wider hearing environment.

These experiences are shaped by connection, responsibility, culture, and belonging. They reflect both the richness and the complexity of living across different communication spaces.

CODA reflections are shared across WovenAware’s social platforms and archived here as part of the wider awareness journey.

This series reflects several interconnected aspects of identity, communication, and belonging.

Growing Up Between Worlds

CODA experiences often exist at the intersection of two environments – Deaf and hearing.

This can include:

  • navigating different communication styles

  • moving between cultural spaces

  • understanding both Deaf and hearing perspectives

  • balancing family connection and social environments

  • shaping identity across different experiences

These experiences influence how individuals understand communication, relationships, and belonging.

Identity and Belonging

Identity for CODA individuals can be layered and evolving.

Growing up within a Deaf family often shapes values, communication, and cultural understanding, while wider social environments may hold different expectations and assumptions. These experiences contribute to a unique sense of identity and connection.

CODA explores how belonging is formed across different worlds.

Family and Communication

Communication within Deaf-led families may differ from wider social expectations, creating unique family dynamics and experiences. These relationships are shaped by language, understanding, and shared experience.

CODA reflects on family life, connection, and the role communication plays in shaping relationships and identity.

A Shared Yet Individual Experience

While many CODA individuals share common experiences, each journey is personal.

CODA creates space to explore these experiences with care, recognising both shared realities and individual perspectives. Through reflection and storytelling, this space supports a greater understanding of the diversity within CODA experiences.

A Lived Experience Perspective

CODA is grounded in Deaf family life and shaped by listening to CODA voices and lived experience. It centres the realities of growing up within Deaf-led environments while navigating wider social contexts.

By sharing these perspectives, CODA encourages a deeper understanding of identity, communication, and family experience across Deaf and hearing communities.

When and Where to Find CODA

CODA is shared fortnightly on Thursdays across WovenAware’s social platforms.

Each post reflects on identity, belonging, and communication across Deaf and hearing worlds, shaped by lived experience and family connection.

 

Follow CODA on:

Wherever you engage, the invitation remains the same: to reflect on identity, connection, and the spaces between worlds.

An Invitation to Reflect

CODA invites reflection on identity, connection, and belonging across Deaf and hearing worlds.

Grounded in Deaf family life and shaped by listening to CODA voices, this space encourages thoughtful understanding.

Through understanding, connection grows.

CODA Reflections

CODA reflections explore the experiences of hearing children growing up in Deaf families, highlighting identity, communication, belonging, and the realities that often go unseen.

Children should never be the interpreter

Normalising child labour does not make it harmless

Growing up too fast is not a gift. It’s a cost

When systems fail, children should not be left unprotected

Emergency access is a professional responsibility, not a childhood duty

More reflections are shared throughout the series.