Babies:


  • They can communicate their needs and wants through the use of sign as young as 6 months.

  • Signing won't delay verbal language development; in fact, it may accelerate it! Research shows that babies who sign usually begin to speak sooner and develop larger vocabularies than non-signing babies.

  • Signing builds on babies' natural tendency to use gestures.

  • Babies develop an understanding of communication patterns at an earlier age.

  • Signing babies tend to be more interested in books.

  • Hearing babies who use English and Sign can communicate more complex messages, through the use of sign, than they could verbally. This can transfer to non-English speakers also.

  • Increases their verbal language by putting a visual and kinesthetic image to a word. Signing allows your infant to clearly communicate specific thoughts.


    Toddlers:

    (in addition to the above)

  • Increases attention span.

  • It can lessen frustrations, because they are able to communicate, with a combination of American Sign Language and their verbal words, which makes their requests more clearly understood.

  • Enhance self-esteem.


    Preschool Age:


  • Hearing students in Pre-K classes who received instruction in both English and American Sign Language scored significantly higher on the Peabody Picture
  • Vocabulary Test than hearing students in classes with no sign instruction.

  • Develops fine motor skills to aid in writing.

  • When adding American Sign Language to verbal language it can help to enhance a hearing child’s spelling and reading skills.

  • Increases attention span.


    Parents:


  • Reduces your frustrations because you are able to meet and understand your child’s needs.

  • Creates a deeper bond with your child.

  • You are able to explore your child’s interest at an earlier age.

  • Gives you a window to your child’s personality.

  • Signing can help you to identify injuries, pain, and other ailments.

  • Signing children can direct parents' attention toward potential dangers or concerns.

  • Signing is a great tool for behavior modification and keeping children safe.


    Educators:


  • Signing helps to lower noise levels in preschool classrooms by reducing frustrated screaming and crying.

  • Signing minimizes stress and frustration for educator who are responsible for meeting the needs of many children at once.

  • Signing reduces the “guesswork” in meeting each child’s maintenance needs resulting in more available time for positive, developmental interactions.

  • Educators report that signing significantly reduces problems with biting. Take away the frustration and biting goes with it.

  • Increase socially appropriate behavior. Children learn to use signs to solve problems.

  • Signing enhances early language skills because children can engage in two-way conversations with their educators and their peers at an earlier age.

  • Signing serves as a language bridge for children and staff who speak different languages.

  • The use of American Sign Language gives children with special needs the opportunity to interact in a meaningful way with typically developing children.

  • General acceptance of children with special needs is greatly enhanced.

  • Children can control the topic of conversation and express their unique interests at an earlier age. This allows educators to design learning activities that will enhance children's specific interest.

  • Signing is appropriate for all preschool age groups (Infants, Toddlers, Preschool, and Pre-K)





Supporting Research:


Felzer, L. (1998). A Multisensory Reading Program That Really Works. Teaching and Change, 5, 169-183.

Wilson, R., Teague, J., and Teague, M. (1985). The Use of Signing and Fingerspelling to Improve Spelling Performance with Hearing Children. Reading Psychology, 4, 267-273.

Hafer, J. (1986). Signing For Reading Success. Washington D.C.: Clerc Books, Gallaudet University Press.

Koehler, L., and Loyd, L. (September 1986). Using Fingerspelling/Manual Signs to Facilitate Reading and Spelling. Biennial Conference of the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication. (4'th Cardiff Wales).
Signs with Hearing Babies of Deaf Parents

In the two studies cited below, hearing babies exposed to both ASL and English were able to communicate more complex messages through the use of signs than they could verbally.

Griffith, P.L. (1985). Mode-switching and mode-finding in a hearing child of deaf parents. Sign Language Studies, 48, 195-222.

Wilbur, R. and Jones, M. (1974). Some aspects of the acquisition of American Sign Language and English by three hearing children of deaf parents. In La Galy, Fox, & Bruck (Eds.), Papers from the Tenth Regional Meeting of the Chicago Linguistic Society, 742-749.

Benifts of Signing in Preschool and Pre-K Environments

Dr. Kimberlee Whaley started a longitudinal study in November 1999 to research the use of ASL signs with preverbal babies in a preschool environment. After her pilot study conducted at Ohio State's A. Sophie Rogers Infant-Toddler Laboratory School, she noted "It is so much easier for our educators to work with 12-month olds who can sign that they want their bottle, rather than just cry and have us try to figure out what they want. This is a great way for infants to express their needs before they can verbalize them."

Dr. Marilyn Daniels, a professor of speech communication at Penn State University, has found that hearing students in pre-kindergarten classes who receive instruction in both English and ASL score significantly higher on the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test than hearing students in classes with no sign instruction. Her studies demonstrate that adding visual and kinesthetic elements to verbal communication helps enhance a preschool child's vocabulary, spelling and reading skills.

Daniels, M. (October, 1994). The effects of sign language on hearing children's language development. Communication Education, 43, 291-298.

Daniels, M. (1996). Seeing language: The effect over time of sign language on vocabulary development in early childhood education. Child Study Journal, 26, 193-208.

Daniels, M. (2001). Dancing with Words: Signing for Hearing Children's Literacy. Westport, Connecticut: Bergin and Garvey.