Sign language is an incredible tool that can help children around the world with hearing impairments and deafness to communicate. It helps to prevent deaf children from becoming isolated and lonely, offering them a unique way of expressing themselves to both their caregivers and their peers.
Fortunately, it’s becoming increasingly common for childcare settings and schools to teach children of all abilities how to express themselves using sign language. Giving children who can hear, the tools to communicate with those who are deaf or differently abled, can lead to incredible results for everyone involved.
So let’s learn a little more about sign language and how it originated.
The History of Sign Language
Auslan is the language of the Australian deaf community and it is related to BSL (British Sign Language). This has been used for over 200 years.
Although many people (both deaf and hearing) think that hearing people developed sign language, it was actually created within the deaf communities. It began with simple ‘home sign’ systems and gradually grew to a real sign language – fully fluent with complex sentence structures.
It is natural that your child may ask you questions such as ‘what is sign language?”. You can explain to them that it is a way for those who are unable to hear spoken words, to use gestures instead of sounds to express themselves.
Sign language generally involves a combination of:
- Hand shapes
- Facial expressions
- Movement of hands, arms or body
- Fingerspelling
The Benefits of Learning Sign Language
Obviously, for deaf children or those with hearing impairments, sign language can be a lifeline to the world around them. It is their primary way of communicating their needs as well as their thoughts and feelings.
Yet for children who can hear, there are also multiple benefits of learning sign language. These can include:
- Developing listening skills and acquiring a high level of empathy and understanding
- An ability to communicate with those who are differently abled and the chance to truly ‘hear’ children from the deaf community
- Integrating into a culture of acceptance and togetherness – children who learn sign language are generally more inclusive and accepting of diversity and difference
For children who are not yet verbal, especially babies and toddlers, signing to communicate needs often comes naturally.
Whether by pointing or developing unique gestures to represent specific feelings or requests, learning to communicate without words can help to decrease frustration and prevent tantrums.
Non verbal cues are extremely important throughout life and many children who are taught sign language regardless of their hearing ability are found to be better positioned to read body language and facial expressions.
Children who learn sign language at an early age can also benefit from brain and language development. Sign language very often becomes a strong foundation upon which hearing children can build upon as they grow older.
Useful Resources for Learning Sign Language
There are some fantastic online resources for various ways of approaching learning sign language with your child.
In recent years, it’s become popular to teach your baby ‘Baby Sign language’ in order to help them communicate their needs to you before they learn to speak. Videos such as this one show how non verbal toddlers can express nouns and verbs such as ‘milk’ and ‘eat’.
You might also want to find some books that you can read with your child which help to teach them signs that can be useful when communicating with children or adults who are unable to hear. Stories such as A Visit to the Zoo and My Family Lunch will engage and delight your child.
Supported by Australia Reads, there are also some excellent videos developed by City of Sydney which offer filmed storybooks read in English and signed in Auslan. These are great to watch with your child as an alternative to traditional story readings.
In conclusion, learning sign language with your toddler can have many benefits, both for those with hearing impairments and those who can hear. Sign language allows children to communicate their thoughts and feelings, preventing frustration and increasing empathy and understanding. It also helps children to become more accepting of diversity and to integrate into a culture of togetherness.
Learning sign language can also benefit brain and language development, and children who learn sign language at an early age are often better positioned to read body language and facial expressions.
With the availability of many online resources and books, it’s easy for parents to start teaching their children sign language, creating a stronger foundation for communication and connection.
