Answered Conundrum Next Conundrum
Best Answer Chosen by Asker
Marked as Best!
November 03, 2009 03:51 AM
Helpful Answer?
(2)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
I have a daughter who is almost 9 months old. I have introduced a few signs to her. It is my belief that doing this will help her communicate before she is able to do so vocally.
Most tantrums come from a child's frustration with the inability to convey their thoughts through communication. If your child is able to communicate through sign language this cuts down on the frustration greatly. Therefore, those terrible twos might not be so terrible!
Babies are capable of both using and understanding sign language well before they are able to speak. Teaching your child sign language allows your child to 'talk' without words! This is beneficial and exciting to both parents, caregivers and children alike.
Signing has it's many, many benefits. To touch on a few, babies who are able to communicate and express their wants and needs will cry less. They also tend to speak vocally earlier, are better readers, have larger vocabulary and have an IQ about 12 points above non-signing babies.
If you think on it logically, babies sign naturally without being taught. If they want something, they are likely to point. They wave, "hello" or "Good Bye". When they wish to be picked up, they raise their arms to you. Is this really so different than your child making the sign for "eat" "drink" or "more"? I don't think so.
You can begin teaching your little one signs very simply. What I do is use basic signs for simple terms while speaking to my child. If I am handing her a cup of juice, I will say would you like some JUICE? As I say the word "Juice" I emphasize it and make the sign for the word. Children are ever so clever and pick up these things very quickly. If you do this, your child will be asking for "juice" rather than you asking him or her if they would like juice!
Once your child understands and associates one sign, introduce another. Make sure to still use the words that your child has previously learned. Repetition is the key.
Most tantrums come from a child's frustration with the inability to convey their thoughts through communication. If your child is able to communicate through sign language this cuts down on the frustration greatly. Therefore, those terrible twos might not be so terrible!
Babies are capable of both using and understanding sign language well before they are able to speak. Teaching your child sign language allows your child to 'talk' without words! This is beneficial and exciting to both parents, caregivers and children alike.
Signing has it's many, many benefits. To touch on a few, babies who are able to communicate and express their wants and needs will cry less. They also tend to speak vocally earlier, are better readers, have larger vocabulary and have an IQ about 12 points above non-signing babies.
If you think on it logically, babies sign naturally without being taught. If they want something, they are likely to point. They wave, "hello" or "Good Bye". When they wish to be picked up, they raise their arms to you. Is this really so different than your child making the sign for "eat" "drink" or "more"? I don't think so.
You can begin teaching your little one signs very simply. What I do is use basic signs for simple terms while speaking to my child. If I am handing her a cup of juice, I will say would you like some JUICE? As I say the word "Juice" I emphasize it and make the sign for the word. Children are ever so clever and pick up these things very quickly. If you do this, your child will be asking for "juice" rather than you asking him or her if they would like juice!
Once your child understands and associates one sign, introduce another. Make sure to still use the words that your child has previously learned. Repetition is the key.
| Asker's Rating: |
(2)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
Reply
Other Answers (5)
November 03, 2009 07:06 AM
(0)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
I did consider it and decided against it for the most part. I witnessed a little girl, my niece in law, who was just amazingly intelligent however her mom taught her baby sign from a very young age and rather than developing language skills out of the frustration of being unable to communicate, she simply got really good at baby sign. By two her mom knew she had a problem, her daughter wasn't even attempting to talk. She had sign, she didn't need too. In the end my sister in law actually had to discourage the signing and make her actually say words to get the thins she wanted to get her to speak. It was frustrating for both parties.
After witnessing this it made sense to me and I decided signing can actually hurt the development of speech in children. I did however teach my son to throw his arms up and try to say all done when he's finished eating that way I know when he's no longer hungry. That's the only sign I taught him. At one year he says over 8 words already. He naturally points at things and waves bye bye when he wants to leave, etc so some baby sign isn't an issue and comes naturally. I just don't support the actual teaching of sign to a child.
I don't think necessarily that sign itself is a bad technique as mentioned it very well could cut down on tantrums, however I think it important sign isn't used for everything or stressed by positive reinforcement as how to communicate. If you allow a child a means of communication in entirety for all things they are a lot less likely to show interest in a new way.
I encourage any type of communication my son exhibits without pushing one type or another.
Helpful Answer?
After witnessing this it made sense to me and I decided signing can actually hurt the development of speech in children. I did however teach my son to throw his arms up and try to say all done when he's finished eating that way I know when he's no longer hungry. That's the only sign I taught him. At one year he says over 8 words already. He naturally points at things and waves bye bye when he wants to leave, etc so some baby sign isn't an issue and comes naturally. I just don't support the actual teaching of sign to a child.
I don't think necessarily that sign itself is a bad technique as mentioned it very well could cut down on tantrums, however I think it important sign isn't used for everything or stressed by positive reinforcement as how to communicate. If you allow a child a means of communication in entirety for all things they are a lot less likely to show interest in a new way.
I encourage any type of communication my son exhibits without pushing one type or another.
(0)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
Reply
November 03, 2009 08:29 PM
(1)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
A friend of mine started teaching her son sign language while he was a baby. Now he is almost 2 and doesn't use words hardly at all, he uses the signs he knows to communicate what he wants. It's a concern because he hasn't started talking yet.
I think a child (without impairment) should be taught to speak clearly before learning alternative ways of communicating. It's a matter of teaching them the preferred way of communicating before teaching them other ways to say the same things. It's very commendable to teach your children other languages and ways of communicating, but you must make it clear FIRST how to speak clearly and then move on to helping them understand other languages based off of what they already know. Set the ground-work first, then advance to other forms of communication.
Helpful Answer?
I think a child (without impairment) should be taught to speak clearly before learning alternative ways of communicating. It's a matter of teaching them the preferred way of communicating before teaching them other ways to say the same things. It's very commendable to teach your children other languages and ways of communicating, but you must make it clear FIRST how to speak clearly and then move on to helping them understand other languages based off of what they already know. Set the ground-work first, then advance to other forms of communication.
(1)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
Reply
November 03, 2009 09:22 PM
(0)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
I would, because some signs allow for them to communicate their needs earlier than their speech skills would otherwise allow, cutting down on frustration for both of us.
I do feel compelled to add, however, that babies do NOT KNOW SIGN LANGUAGE! It drives the Deaf community crazy when people say their 10 month old knows sign language. Sign language is an extremely complicated language, with its own grammar, figures of speech, etc. A baby who can pump its fist to indicate it wants milk or touch its throat to indicate it is hungry is not "speaking" sign language: it is using one sign. To say that babies know sign language is like saying that a baby who can say "milk" is fluent in English, because our language is just that simple.
Also, it is a common myth that teaching children two languages at once (including sign language) means that they will be unable to learn English clearly. Young children are able to easily learn two languages at once, clearly separating their grammar rules. A child who grows up with actual sign language will not misspeak their English just because sign language word order is different. The trick is to use both languages, separately. You actually cannot properly sign and speak at the same time. People who attempt this are trying to accommodate both groups, with good intentions, but even if they sign properly with their hands, sign language involves moving the face and mouth, which cannot be done properly while speaking.
So, in short, yes, I would teach my baby some signs. But I would not presume to say I was teaching my baby sign language, because I am not fluent in the language. I would, however, happily raise my child bilingual if I was a fluent signer, or if a fluent signer could teach the child growing up.
Helpful Answer?
I do feel compelled to add, however, that babies do NOT KNOW SIGN LANGUAGE! It drives the Deaf community crazy when people say their 10 month old knows sign language. Sign language is an extremely complicated language, with its own grammar, figures of speech, etc. A baby who can pump its fist to indicate it wants milk or touch its throat to indicate it is hungry is not "speaking" sign language: it is using one sign. To say that babies know sign language is like saying that a baby who can say "milk" is fluent in English, because our language is just that simple.
Also, it is a common myth that teaching children two languages at once (including sign language) means that they will be unable to learn English clearly. Young children are able to easily learn two languages at once, clearly separating their grammar rules. A child who grows up with actual sign language will not misspeak their English just because sign language word order is different. The trick is to use both languages, separately. You actually cannot properly sign and speak at the same time. People who attempt this are trying to accommodate both groups, with good intentions, but even if they sign properly with their hands, sign language involves moving the face and mouth, which cannot be done properly while speaking.
So, in short, yes, I would teach my baby some signs. But I would not presume to say I was teaching my baby sign language, because I am not fluent in the language. I would, however, happily raise my child bilingual if I was a fluent signer, or if a fluent signer could teach the child growing up.
(0)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
Reply
November 04, 2009 11:24 AM
(1)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
I used signing with my son when he was having difficulty speaking because of his tongue being tied from a tight frenulum. He got irritated at people for making fun of him when he COULD talk. He just had a speech impairment. He got to the point that he wouldn't speak in front of people, he'd just cry and I'd have to figure out what he wanted. That got old quickly and I taught him signs and eventually sign language as a result. It made it easy for us to communicate in public without him being humiliated by ignorant and heartless family members. Once he had his tongue clipped, he was able to learn speech without the impediment. He is still very soft spoken because of the humiliation. He CAN talk louder, he just refuses to (he is 14)
Helpful Answer?
(1)
(0)
Permalink |
Report
Reply
Answer this Question
View All Parenting QuestionsAsk a Conundrum
Please visit these retailers to purchase Conundrum or find the wine at these fine restaurants:
-
1991 St Helena Hwy
-
699 St Helena Hwy
-
1115 Main St
-
1321 Main St
-
Caymus Family of Wines, a five-course dinner with wine pairings~www.ranchandcoast.com
3:05 p.m. March 20th, 2010 -
@ninasfeet @davidcook i see you a cakebread and raise you a caymus http://bit.ly/aA5O9s
10 a.m. March 19th, 2010 -
Caymus Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley ... http://bit.ly/cP95OV
8:43 a.m. March 19th, 2010 -
Dinner @ Bandera with an '07 bottle of Caymus w/my baybay xxx
11:27 p.m. March 18th, 2010 -
RT @ToriMarriner: We have a few spots left for Caymus Duckhorn dinner the 24th- To salivate over the menu : www.victoriagastropub.com
10:54 a.m. March 18th, 2010
dtvrivera
topaz5433
They are 3 years old now and I still teach them some signs and hope they'll stay interested in it because it could be a second language for them.