Sign Language and Children

By Marie Hunt

Mommy MD Staff Writer

The popularity of "baby sign language" has increased as more parents and caregivers find value in this form of communication with their children. The use of sign language with hearing infants and children, experts say, can greatly increase communication between fully verbal adults and the child who is still developing their language skills.

It was observed that in a home where parents sign to their child, such as a home with a non-hearing family member, the child can begin communication as early as six months, while in a home where sign language is not present, the child normally begins to communicate around the age of 12 months. It was formerly believed that the point at which a child begins to speak depends on brain development, and while this is still considered part of the equation, it has been found that motor skills play a large roll in the development of verbal expression. It takes much more coordination for a child to form a word than for that same child to use their hands in a simple gesture; so while their brain is capable of understanding the concept they wish to express and they are aware of a special label for that concept, a child's ability to express it verbally is delayed by the complexity of the muscle coordination required for speech.

A study has been conducted by Simona Ghetti, a professor of psychology at the University of California Davis who works at the university's Center for Mind and Brain, wherein 55 young children were tested to discover whether or not they were capable of introspective thinking, a skill that was thought not to develop until the age of four or five. It was found that this type of thinking occurs in children as young as three. Ghetti believes the reason this has not been discovered until now is that past studies have been reliant on verbal testing, while children at this young age are still developing their speaking skills. Researchers found that they were able to obtain more accurate results by using visual cues and allowing the children to answer the test questions with gestures.

A teacher of American Sign Language, Sarah Jernstrom has reported benefits to introducing sign language as early as birth, allowing the infant to become familiar with the signs even before they are able to duplicate them. Experts believe that using sign language with babies and toddlers not only reduces frustration in the parent and child but may also give them a head start in verbal communication.

References

http://www.idahostatesman.com/life/story/204831.html
http://www.strausnews.com/articles/2007/11/22/sparta_independent/news/10.txt
http://news.cincypost.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071108/NEWS01/711080354