“Read to your child.” It is the mantra of many big literacy organizations. However, reading with your child might be more rewarding. So how can you read with your child if your child cannot read?
Baby sign language has been touted as a multisensory learning tool that can assist children who are learning to read. It has already been shown that children who are baby signers are often more interested in books. This is because unlike reading to your child, which is a passive activity, signing allows your child to participate in the reading process. When your child recognizes a picture that she knows, she can sign along even if she cannot see or understand the words. This participation makes reading more fun and also allows for greater parent-child bonding. It also enables you to start early and help your child develop a love of books.
According to Kauai based baby sign language consultants, Blossoming Little Minds, the best books to begin with are the baby’s first words books. This type of book has lots of pictures and large text. Simple stories also work well. Blossoming Little Minds recommends choosing books with one short concept per page, large text and bold bright pictures.
If you are using a first words book, feel free to sign all the words that you know, but there is no need to learn the signs for every picture in the book. Allow children to sign as many as they want. If there are animals in the story, make the animal sounds for increased enjoyment. If a child points to a picture that she is interested in, you may show her the sign for that concept, or go look it up for future reading. When signing stories, there is no need to sign every word. Simply choose signs for key concepts, especially those that are pictured. In other words, keep it simple for now.
This activity can be done at home, in an early childcare facility or a preschool setting, but it requires that you know some baby sign language. If you are interested in signing with your baby or learning more about baby sign language as a literacy tool, you can contact Blossoming Little Minds for more info. They have an abundance of information on their website and they offer baby sign classes and professional development workshops in Hawaii. They also work with preschools and childcare facilities to help implement sign language into their curriculums.
Comments