A deaf couple from Crofton, Maryland, is challenging common misconceptions about deaf parents raising hearing children, from assumptions about their kids' speech development to doubts about their ability to manage everyday family life.
Janet and Daniel Moreno, who are both deaf, are raising four hearing children between the ages of 1 and 7. In an interview with People magazine published on March 22, 2026, Janet, 39, addressed the most common myths she encounters as a deaf mother.
One widespread misconception is the belief that children born to deaf parents will automatically be deaf. "That's just not true," Janet told People.
"Many Children of Deaf Adults (CODAs) are hearing, and they grow up thriving in both worlds." Data from the National Institute on deafness and Other Communication Disorders supports this, noting that more than 90 percent of deaf children are born to hearing parents, meaning deafness does not follow a simple hereditary pattern.
Another assumption Janet frequently confronts is that hearing children raised by deaf parents will struggle with speech. "Some people think hearing kids of deaf parents won't learn to speak properly," she said. "Honestly, our kids learn just like any other child, sometimes with a little more exposure to sign first, but they pick up spoken language just fine."
Research published in the Journal of Deaf Studies and Deaf Education has found that hearing children of deaf parents often develop bimodal bilingualism, becoming proficient in both sign language and spoken language, the NCBI reported.
The Moreno family communicates primarily through sim-com, which involves talking and signing at the same time. When a parent is feeling unwell, the family switches entirely to American Sign Language. Janet noted that her children adjust based on the situation — signing only when shy in public and using sim-com around familiar people.
Janet also pushed back against the belief that deaf parents cannot handle emergencies or daily parenting demands. "We manage just like any parent, we just have our own ways of doing things," she said, adding that the idea of deaf individuals being disconnected from the hearing world could not be "further from the truth."
The most frustrating misconception, she shared, is what she called a "quiet assumption" that deaf parents must be overwhelmed and cannot balance work and family. In reality, Janet and Daniel run an online business selling ASL apparel, Daniel works full-time, and Janet homeschools their oldest child.
"Deafness has not made us incapable of balance," she said. "It has taught us to be intentional, to plan carefully, to lean on each other, and to trust God in the middle of busy seasons."
Janet's advice to other deaf parents raising hearing children was simple. "Trust yourselves," she said. "You know your kids better than anyone else, and your instincts are usually right," as per the NIDCD.
