HOW ABOUT A SECOND LANGUAGE OR BABY SIGNS?

 

HOW ABOUT A SECOND LANGUAGE OR BABY SIGNS? The purpose of this is not to imply that baby signs are harmful to babies. Parents of young hearing children find this an enjoyable and useful way to communicate and bond. Sign language is a new trend in recent years. In contrast to spoken languages, sign languages are expressed with the hands, arms, and face, and understood with the eyes. Before they develop the muscle and motor skills in their vocal tracks needed for speaking, babies develop the muscle skills in their fingers and hands needed for signing. A baby can engage in two-way communication with caregivers much earlier when using signs than with spoken language, as advocates of baby sign language (and many parents) will tell you. There are certainly some benefits to this. Who wouldn’t love to have an eight-month-old sweetly sign “milk, more, cookie” rather than scream at the top of her/his lungs? If you plan to introduce baby signs to your child or are already enrolled in a program, you should also consider language learning opportunities after your child turns one. In your area, there may be ASL users, programs, or activities that require further development. A second spoken language, such as Chinese or Spanish, might be considered. In order for your child to learn a language other than English, you should not rely solely on baby signs. American Sign Language (ASL) is the basis for most (but not all) U.S. baby sign classes and materials. Deaf people in the United States and English-speaking parts of Canada use ASL, a complex and linguistically complete language. Many people born to Deaf parents speak it as their first language. Even though the signs taught in baby sign classes are usually based on ASL, it's important to understand that most babies who are learning baby signs are not learning ASL and they are not acquiring a complete language. Babies and their caretakers learn a simplified set of signs through baby sign materials and classes, typically focusing on basic needs and objects (such as more, milk, hungry, thirsty, tired, cookie, etc.). Consequently, these signs are not combined into linguistically complete utterances or sentences because they do not learn grammar. For example, most people would not claim to speak French simply because they can count to ten and name their five favorite foods!  As a result, most children (and their caregivers) stop signing once babies learn to speak once they have learned baby signs. On the other hand, there are very few instances in which children continue to develop their sign language skills (for example, if the child is regularly around a caregiver who uses ASL). Mamaestra MUSIC BUY OUR BOOK FROM AMAZON About Mamaestra de Español FREE TRAL COURSE Mamaestra Course Mamaestra Store Share our Work and Art