Fulfilling language and schooling needs of deaf children challenge families and school. Thus, this article is based on studies carried out in a Master’s research in Education, which aimed to understand how deaf children learn sign language, from the first years of life, to the acquisition of written Portuguese in the early grades of Basic Education. The research is characterized as qualitative and for its development narrative interviews were adopted with families of deaf children and teachers working with these students. The empirical materialities arising from the interviews were organized into thematic groups and analyzed from the perspective of Discourse Analysis based on Foucault. The family members’ narratives showed that deaf children have late access to sign language, only when they attend school. In this space, the teachers follow a homogeneous school syllabus, with school practices that are prepared independently, without articulation with the interpreters or teachers of Brazilian Sign Language from the Specialized Educational Service. The text highlights the challenges of families and teachers influenced by the lack of knowledge of the specificity of communication of deaf children and sign language.