Join us tomorrow at 10 a.m. for Signing 'Til Dawn for Babies! Bring your little one and learn some basic signs with Dawn Cummings. Signing with babies increases communication, helps with language development and is just plain fun. =) We have a great group going, so come on out!
Hey there moms!
Wondering what to do while the kids are in school?
Come learn Sign Language with us! Signing ‘Til Dawn is a FREE Sign Language class, held Mondays, beginning Sept. 14th, at 10am.
Have a new baby and want to learn Baby Sign? Come on Fridays, beginning Sept. 11th, at 10am!
Last night at Signing til Dawn, we were discussing Blake's signing videos. So by request, here is one of his songs. Be sure to go to youtube and check them all out!
Lots of fun to watch and he uses many of the signs we are learning.
Last week a dozen brave souls came out in the cold to attend Signing 'Til Dawn! Dawn started with a review of the alphabet and then worked through a list of commonly used words such as "same" and "different." After going through the list, everyone had a chance to review again. Everyone also had the opportunity to practice finger-spelling their names in order to introduce themselves to the rest of the group.
These classes are for parents, children and teachers and will focus on more than just the basics - more advanced than baby sign language but not so advanced that individuals new to sign can't just jump right in! We play a game with the kids for the first half and the adults practice during the second half. We're using a mix of ASL (American Sign Language) and SEE (Sign Exact English) to promote proper sentence structure in speech, as an aid to reading and comprehension and to help with communication. Whether you are parents of a new little one just starting out with signing or are school-aged kids working on reading and comprehension... this class is for everybody!
Parents, if your child's teachers need sign language education to better communicate with your child in school, invite them to this class! We love the teachers who work so hard for our kids and we want to support them if they want to increase their knowledge of sign language. Plus, the class is free!
Signing 'Til Dawn will be held Fridays from 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm at the McHenry GiGi's Playhouse (1720 N Richmond Rd, McHenry, IL) and we do ask that you call (815) 385 - PLAY and leave us a message if you plan on attending so we have enough materials on hand but if you forget, come on in anyway! ☺
Dates for classes and for our other programs can be found on our calendar located at the bottom of our blog... scroll down! We update frequently so check back often!
After a little break for the holidays, Signing 'Til Dawn classes start up again this Friday! These classes are for parents, children and teachers and will focus on more than just the basics - more advanced than baby sign language but not so advanced that individuals new to sign can't just jump right in! We play a game with the kids for the first half and the adults practice during the second half. We're using a mix of ASL (American Sign Language) and SEE (Sign Exact English) to promote proper sentence structure in speech, as an aid to reading and comprehension and to help with communication. Whether you are parents of a new little one just starting out with signing or are school-aged kids working on reading and comprehension... this class is for everybody!
Parents, if your child's teachers need sign language education to better communicate with your child in school, invite them to this class! We love the teachers who work so hard for our kids and we want to support them if they want to increase their knowledge of sign language. Plus, the class is free!
Signing 'Til Dawn will be held Fridays from 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm at the McHenry GiGi's Playhouse (1720 N Richmond Rd, McHenry, IL) and we do ask that you call (815) 385 - PLAY and leave us a message if you plan on attending so we have enough materials on hand but if you forget, come on in anyway! ☺
Dates for classes and for our other programs can be found on our calendar located at the bottom of our blog... scroll down! We update frequently so check back often!
Here's a great article about one mom's experience with sign language and reading with her son with Down Syndrome: The Use of a Reading Program and Signing to Develop Language and
Communication Skills in a Toddler with Down Syndrome
Our first sign language class was awesome! Dawn is a great teacher and since she is also parent to a child with special needs, understands how best to approach learning. The kids had a great time and we were impressed at how many signs they already KNOW! WOW!! *I* have some catching up to do ;-)
This class is for anyone who would like to add to their sign vocabulary. If you have a baby or young child and want to learn some signs to use, this would be a good place for you. Certainly children with out the basics would be welcome and we could do our best to catch them up!
We are going to be practicing entire sentences using Exact English. Children with DS often have a hard time with proper construction of sentences and having a visual such as sign language, helps them to learn it and be able to speak it. Speech is always the goal with the use of sign.
I found this interesting study :
"How Manual Sign Acquisition Relates to the Development
of Spoken Language: A Case Study"
Kouri, Theresa - School of Speech Pathology and Audiology, Kent State University, Kent, OH 44242
The relationship between signed and spoken word was observed in a young girl with Down Syndrome during a treatment regimen using simultaneous input.
All of her words were recorded over an 8-month period and classified according to the manner of speech and communication production (i.e., spontaneous/imitated; signed and/or spoken).
It was revealed that most of the words that the girl initially signed were later spontaneously spoken and that most of her signs evolved into spontaneous speech.
Several ideas and themes were demonstrated with specific words (ex: signs to speech), and sign/spoken developments during the first versus the final four months of the research study. It was concluded that use of simultaneous signs supports the formation of spoken language.
I know I witnessed the above with Christine! She has quite the spoken vocabulary, but her articulation makes if very difficult to understand her out of context. Sign gives her the ability to be understood at a more complex level rather then for her to resort to simpler words to get her message across. It also helped her to score higher on the vocabulary parts of formal assessments. It's been a huge help at school with auditory material. She simply can not sit and absorb lots of information by listening alone, so sign language helps her to 'hear' and retain what is being taught. We have also discovered that signing her spelling words results in perfect tests!
We are way past baby sign , but as she gets older we are finding sign to be even more helpful then it was in that stage of her development.
If interested our class meets every other Weds 5:30-6:30, the next class will be this upcoming Weds, October 15.
Here are a few more resources about signing with special needs children :
Children with Special Needs
Using Sign Language
This supports children with language impairments needing more input to understand be able to retell stories. I have found signing the key parts of any story or experience helps her retain and understand more and faster as well.
Insight Into Struggles Of Children With Language Impairments
Hand Gestures Linked To Better Speaking
The Use of Signs by Children with Down Syndrome
Yes, She Can! Language and a Student with Down Syndrome
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