Hearing Safety
How the Rainbow DJ Lab protects children's ears: capped headphones, free earplugs, speaker zones, sound-meter checks, and kids who know how to ask for quieter.
Status
These policies were adopted by the Ras Tafari Inc. board on October 17, 2026. The Lab is proposed. The exact sound levels below are the Lab's own limits, chosen to be cautious. The sound meter is part of the gear to be in place before the first class.
Why this matters
DJing is loud by nature, and children's ears are still growing. Hearing damage from noise builds up over time and is permanent. Loudness and time both matter: the louder the sound, the less time is safe.
- The World Health Organization (WHO) says adults can listen at 80 dB for up to 40 hours a week safely, and that each step louder cuts safe time sharply (for example, about 20 minutes a week at 100 dB). WHO and ITU's safe listening standard for devices also sets a more protective mode (75 dB for 40 hours a week) intended for more sensitive listeners such as children.
- The U.S. workplace safety agency NIOSH sets a recommended limit of 85 dBA averaged over 8 hours for adult workers. That's a ceiling for grown-ups at work, not a target for kids.
Our classes are 90 minutes to 2 hours, once a week. We still keep levels well under these limits.
Our rules
| Area | Rule |
|---|---|
| Headphones | Volume is capped on every Lab laptop before class. Headphones are on-ear or over-ear, not earbuds |
| Headphone time | DJ jobs rotate every 3 minutes 45 seconds, so no child wears headphones nonstop. Co-pilot, Hype and Logger can listen at lower volume or off-ear. Coaches teach a "60/60"-style habit: keep volume around 60% or lower and take breaks |
| Main speaker | Set before class and checked with a sound meter. Lab limit: an average under 80 dBA at the nearest place children stand or sit, and adjusted down if it reads higher |
| Speaker zone | No child stands or sits in the zone directly in front of the speakers, within about 10 feet. Staff mark it with tape or cones |
| Earplugs | Free, always available, no questions asked. Children can wear them any time, including during Spotlight |
| Quiet spot | Children can step away from the speakers to rest their ears. The Cool-Down Space is out of the speaker zone |
| Showcase | Same limits, with the meter checked at the families' seats too |
Who controls the main speaker
The main speaker, stage and lights are provided by Q-Ality Sound, under a written vendor agreement. The Lab's DJ controllers plug into its system. But Ras Tafari Inc.'s safety lead has final authority over the main-speaker volume, stage access and stopping a session.
- Q-Ality operates within the Lab's limit and turns it down on request.
- If the safety lead asks for a change for safety reasons, Q-Ality complies immediately, or the session pauses until it does.
- The safety lead can lower the limit at any time.
- Q-Ality staff work the sound system only. They never supervise children.
Sound-meter checks
| When | Who | What |
|---|---|---|
| Before children arrive | Safety lead | Has the main speaker set and measures at the nearest child position |
| Start of Watch Me Think and Spotlight (when the main speaker is used) | Safety lead | Re-measures; has it turned down if over the limit |
| Any time a child or adult says it's too loud | Any adult | Turns it down first (or asks the sound crew to, at once), then measures |
| Each session | Safety lead | Notes the reading in the class log |
Kids are taught to ask for quieter
In a child's first class (Mission 1, Red: Meet the Machine), coaches teach every child:
- "Too loud" is always OK to say. Use the hand signal (hand over ear) or say "Quieter, please."
- An adult turns it down right away, no argument and no teasing.
- Ringing ears, muffled hearing, or ear pain after loud sound means "tell an adult."
- How to put in earplugs properly.
A child is never made to stay near loud sound, and asking for quieter is never treated as a behavior problem.
If a child has ear symptoms
- Ringing, muffled hearing, or pain: the child moves to a quiet spot, and we tell the parent at pickup (or call, if it doesn't go away within the class).
- Children with hearing aids, cochlear implants, sound sensitivity or a history of ear problems: tell us on the Medical & Allergy form and we'll plan with you (for example, lower volume, earmuffs, a seat farther away).
What you'll be told
- At enrollment: these limits and how to request extra protection.
- At pickup: if your child reported ear discomfort.
Sources
- World Health Organization, Deafness and hearing loss: Safe listening (Q&A): https://www.who.int/news-room/questions-and-answers/item/deafness-and-hearing-loss-safe-listening
- World Health Organization, "WHO releases new standard to tackle rising threat of hearing loss" (Global standard for safe listening venues and events, 2022): https://www.who.int/news/item/02-03-2022-who-releases-new-standard-to-tackle-rising-threat-of-hearing-loss
- CDC/NIOSH, Noise and Hearing Loss: https://www.cdc.gov/niosh/noise/about/index.html
- American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), public hearing information on noise and hearing loss: https://www.asha.org/public/hearing/